Lexi Webster
In 1768, Captain James Cook set sail on the first of three voyages to the Pacific and Southern Oceans. While he is often credited with discovering Australia, this is a myth. In fact, Cook made the first recorded European sighting of the eastern coast of Australia, which he called 'New Holland', in 1770. He claimed the land for Britain and named it New South Wales. Cook's voyage had long-lasting consequences for the places he visited and led to the formation of the modern countries of Australia and New Zealand.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of the ship | HMB Endeavour |
| Captain's name | Lieutenant James Cook |
| Year of the first voyage | 1768 |
| Year of claiming Australia for Britain | 1770 |
| Date of claiming Australia for Britain | 22nd August 1770 |
| Name of the claimed land | New South Wales |
| Name of the island where Cook climbed to claim the land | Possession Island |
| Name of the strait | Torres Strait |
| Name of the reef | Great Barrier Reef |
| Name of the river | Endeavour River |
| Name of the bay | Botany Bay |
| Name of the tribe that resisted the landing | Dharawal |
| Name of the people that established good relations with Cook | Guugu Yimithirr |
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What You'll Learn
Captain James Cook's first sighting of Australia
Captain James Cook first sighted the Australian continent on April 19, 1770, and went on to claim it as British territory. Cook was a British explorer, cartographer, and naval officer who gained fame for his three voyages to the Pacific and Southern Oceans between 1768 and 1779.
On his first voyage, Cook carried out his observation of the Transit of Venus on June 3, 1769, and left Tahiti after six weeks. He then received secret instructions from King George III to find the alleged southern continent 'Terra Australis' and claim it for Britain. In 1770, he reached and charted the southeastern coast of Australia, becoming the first recorded European to encounter its eastern coastline.
On April 19, 1770, the crew of HMB Endeavour first sighted the Australian coast at Tolywiarar, now known as Point Hicks in Victoria's East Gippsland. The following day, they rounded the southeastern tip of the Australian mainland and sailed into Yuin country. Cook's journal entries from this period record his interactions with Australian Aboriginal peoples as he sailed up the eastern coast of modern-day Australia.
On April 23, 1770, Cook made his first recorded direct observation of Aboriginal Australians at Brush Island near Bawley Point. He wrote in his journal that they "appear'd to be of a very dark or black Colour but whether this was the real colour of their skins or the C [l]othes they might have on I know not." As Endeavour continued northwards along the coastline, Cook charted and named landmarks as he went.
Cook's sighting of Australia was an extraordinary feat of navigation and cartography, requiring skilful seafaring to navigate the Great Barrier Reef. His voyage had long-lasting consequences, leading to the formation of the modern country of Australia and marking the beginning of a relationship between two long-separated cultures.
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Cook's interactions with Aboriginal Australians
Captain James Cook's first encounter with Aboriginal Australians took place in 1770 when he reached the southern coast of New South Wales and sailed north, charting Australia's eastern coastline. Cook's interactions with Aboriginal Australians have been the subject of much research and debate, exploring the relationships forged between Indigenous Australians and outside cultures before and after his arrival.
In his journal entries, Cook documented his observations and interactions with the Aboriginal people he encountered during his voyage. He wrote about the land and its potential for trade, noting that it did not appear to produce anything that would invite Europeans to settle there. Despite this assessment, Cook claimed the eastern coast of Australia for the British Crown, an act that had long-lasting consequences for the Aboriginal people and led to the establishment of a British penal colony in New South Wales 18 years later.
One of the well-known interactions between Cook and Aboriginal Australians occurred with the Gweagal people of Botany Bay, who rejected his overtures. However, Cook and his crew established good relations with the Guugu Yimithirr people, although his refusal to share the turtles his men had captured was considered an abuse of hospitality and caused serious offence.
The arrival of Cook and other European explorers marked a significant shift in the history of Aboriginal Australians. While there is a common perception of a sudden encounter between Cook and Aboriginal people, evidence suggests that Indigenous Australians had been interacting with explorers and traders from various cultures for centuries before Cook's arrival. This includes contact with the Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Makassans from Indonesia.
The impact of Cook's arrival and the subsequent colonisation of Australia had profound and often devastating consequences for Aboriginal people. The separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, known as the Stolen Generations, is one of the tragic outcomes of this colonial history. Aboriginal Australians have expressed their perspectives on Cook through stories, songs, humour, and derision, reflecting a complex and layered response to his legacy.
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The Endeavour getting stuck on the Great Barrier Reef
Captain James Cook set sail on the HMS Endeavour in 1768 on the first of three voyages to the South Seas. On 11 June 1770, the ship ran aground on the Great Barrier Reef, risking its destruction. The crew had to throw ballast, weapons, and casks overboard to lift the ship and prevent a catastrophe. They then managed to reach land, where they spent six to seven weeks making repairs. During this time, they encountered the Guugu Yimithirr people and observed "giant hares", or kangaroos.
After the repairs were completed, the Endeavour re-entered the waters of the Great Barrier Reef on 4 August 1770. The ship spent 18 dangerous days and nights navigating the treacherous conditions, with the crew at the mercy of sudden wind shifts and strong tides as they picked their way through the shoals, sandbanks, and coral reefs. Finally, on 13 July 1771, the Endeavour returned to England, having survived its encounter with the Great Barrier Reef.
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The establishment of a British penal colony in New South Wales
Captain James Cook set sail on the first of three voyages to the South Seas in 1768. He carried with him secret orders from the British Admiralty to seek 'a Continent or Land of great extent' and to take possession of that country 'in the Name of the King of Great Britain'.
In 1770, Cook claimed the eastern portion of the Australian continent for the British Crown, naming it New South Wales. In his journal, he wrote:
> So far as we know [it] doth not produce any one thing that can become an Article in trade to invite Europeans to fix a settlement upon it.
Despite this assessment, Britain chose Australia as the site of a penal colony, seeking to pre-empt the French colonial empire from expanding into the region. In 1787, the First Fleet of 11 convict ships set sail for Botany Bay, arriving on 20 January 1788 to found Sydney, New South Wales, the first European settlement on the continent. The first ship of the First Fleet, HMS Supply, with Captain Arthur Phillip aboard, reached Botany Bay. However, Botany Bay was found to be unsuitable, so Phillip led the exploration of Port Jackson, reaching Sydney Cove on the night of 25 January 1788. On the morning of 26 January, men on board this ship went ashore and started clearing land for a camp. In the afternoon, they erected a flagpole, raised the Union Jack, and the officers ashore made toasts to the Royal Family and the success of the colony. The Colony of New South Wales was formally proclaimed on 7 February 1788.
The first responsible self-government of New South Wales was formed on 6 June 1856 with Sir Stuart Alexander Donaldson appointed by Governor Sir William Denison as its first Colonial Secretary. On 1 July 1851, writs were issued for the election of the first Victorian Legislative Council, and the absolute independence of Victoria from New South Wales was established, proclaiming a new Colony of Victoria. On 6 June 1859, Queen Victoria signed Letters Patent to form the separate Colony of Queensland.
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Cook's second Pacific voyage
Captain James Cook's second voyage of discovery departed Plymouth Sound on Monday 13 July 1772. His first port of call was at Funchal in the Madeira Islands, which he reached on 1 August. Cook praised his ship's sailing qualities in a report to the Admiralty from Funchal Roads, writing that she:
> steers, works, sails well and is remarkably stiff and seems to promise to be a dry and very easy ship in the sea.
The ship was re-provisioned with fresh water, beef, fruit and onions, and after a further provisioning stop in the Cape Verde Islands two weeks later, set sail due south toward the Cape of Good Hope. The Resolution anchored in Table Bay on 30 October with the crew all in good health because of Cook's imposition of a strict dietary and cleanliness regime. It was here that a Swede, Anders Sparrman, joined the expedition as a botanist.
The ships left the Cape on 22 November 1772 and headed for the area of the South Atlantic where the French navigator Bouvet claimed to have spotted land. On 17 January 1773, Resolution was the first ship to venture south of the Antarctic Circle, which she did twice more on this voyage. The final such crossing, on 3 February 1774, was to be the most southerly penetration, reaching latitude 71°10′ South at longitude 106°54′ West.
Cook undertook a series of vast sweeps across the Pacific, finally proving there was no Terra Australis in temperate latitudes by sailing over most of its predicted locations. In the course of the voyage, he visited Easter Island, the Marquesas, Tahiti, the Society Islands, Niue, the Tonga Islands, the New Hebrides, New Caledonia, Norfolk Island, Palmerston Island, South Sandwich Islands, and South Georgia, many of which he named in the process.
Cook proved the Terra Australis Incognita to be a myth and predicted that an Antarctic land would be found beyond the ice barrier. He also discovered several islands along the Scotia Arc, initiating the commercial interest that underpinned much of the focus on Antarctica over the next 150 years.
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Frequently asked questions
Captain Cook's voyage to Australia was commissioned by King George III. The voyage had two main goals: to observe the transit of Venus from Tahiti and to seek evidence of the postulated Terra Australis Incognita or "undiscovered southern land".
After observing the transit of Venus in Tahiti in 1769, Cook left for Huahine, Bora Bora and Raiatea before heading southwest in search of the Great South Land. Not finding it, he sailed to New Zealand and spent six months charting its coast. He then sailed to New Holland (as Australia was then called) and claimed the eastern portion of the Australian continent for the British Crown in 1770.
In Australia, Captain Cook explored the east coast of the continent, interacted with Australian Aboriginal peoples, and collected Australian plants and animals.
