Voyage to Australia and the Pacific 1791-1793
Bruny d'Entrecasteaux
new edition
First English translation of de Rossel's transcription of d'Entrecasteaux's journal, with introductory essay and explanatory notes.
Opinion
'Exquisitely produced and expertly introduced and translated, this is a fascinating and insightful account of early European contact with Australia'. (National Trust (Tasmania) Newsletter, June 2001)
'As usual, Miegunyah Press has delivered a high quality production." (James Griffin, The Weekend Australian, July 2001)
About this Title
In 1791 Admiral Bruny d'Entrecasteaux sailed with two ships from Revolutionary France to search for his compatriot, the explorer La Pérouse, who was missing in the Pacific.
Over a period of nearly two years he had held his ideologically divided expedition together. Without his exceptional maritime skills his men (and one cross-dressing woman!) might all have died--or played out the destructive fury of the Revolution on the quarterdeck before reaching Java.
More than two centuries later, d'Entrecasteaux's account of his voyage remains a profound affirmation of his achievements. His humane, sensitive and even joyful encounters with the peoples of Australia and the Pacific make this a remarkably appealing book.
Although d'Entrecasteaux failed to discover the fate of La Pérouse, and perished in the attempt, his voyage was more than a mere rescue mission.
Between 1791 and 1793 the expedition discovered the Derwent estuary and the D'Entrecasteaux Channel between Bruny Island and mainland Tasmania, and Esperance Bay and the Archipelago of the Recherche in Western Australia.
D'Entrecasteaux's voyage also recorded some of the earliest observations of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania and south-western Australia, and detailed accounts of the islands and peoples of the Pacific, including New Zealand, Tonga, New Caledonia, the Solomon Islands and New Guinea.
D'Entrecasteaux died suddenly off the coast of New Guinea, reportedly afflicted by symptoms of scurvy in July 1793.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
I The Atlantic
II Cape of Good Hope
III Traversing the Indian Ocean
IV Van Diemen's Land
V The Coral Labyrinths
VI Disappointment in the Admiralties
VII Amboina
VIII Moluccas to Western Australia
IX Espérance Bay
X Coasting Terre de Nuyts
XI Return to Van Diemen's Land
XII To New Zealand and the Friendly Islands
XIII Sojurn in Tongatabou
XIV Observations on Tongatabou
XV To New Caledonia
XVI Observations on New Caledonia
XVII From Balade to Santa Cruz
XVIII The Solomon Islands
XIX The Final Surveys
Afterword
Glossary of French Terms, Titles and Ranks
Glossary of Nautical Terms
Appendix I: Decree of the National Assembly Relating to the Expedition in Search of M. de La Pérouse, 9 February 1971
Appendix II: King's Memorandum
Appendix III: Letter from M. Fleurieu, Minister of Marine, to Sieur d'Entrecasteaux
Endnotes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author
Dr Edward Duyker is an independent historian, and the author of fifteen books. He is a fellow of the Linnean Society of London and the Royal Historical Society, and an Honorary Senior Lecturer in the Department of French Studies, University of Sydney. In 2000 he was made a Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques by the French government. His most recent work, Citizen Labillardière, was the winner of the 2004 New South Wales Premier's General History Prize. In 2004 he was also awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia.
Maryse Duyker was born on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius which was once governed by Bruny d'Entrecasteaux. In 1950 she emigrated to Australia, where she married and raised eight children. She has worked as a French translator and contributed to the collection The Discovery of Tasmania (1992) edited by her eldest son Edward.
Maryse Duyker has worked as a French translator and has published three books.
Add to Shopping Basket
How to buy MUP titles