Relation Du Voyage à la recherche de La Pérouse, volume 1

Author Jacques-Julien Houton de Labillardiere (French 1755-1834)

Subject or historical figure Admiral Antoine Bruny d'Entrecasteaux (French, 1737 - 1793)

Date1798

Object number00000349

NameBook

MediumInk on paper

DimensionsOverall: 315 x 230 x 37 mm, 1.45 kg

ClassificationsBooks and journals

Credit LineANMM Collection

Terms

DescriptionA book titled 'Relation Du Voyage A La Recherche De La Perouse (Account Of The Voyage In Search Of La Perouse), Volume 1, by Jacques Labillardière. Admiral Bruny d'Entrecasteaux was in command of this French expedition with the ships LA RECHERCHE and L'ESPERANCE. Combined with searching for the missing La Perouse expedition in the Pacific, they conducted hydrographic survey work, particularly in Tasmania . This is volume one of two narratives and an Atlas of charts recording d'Entrecasteaux's expedition. Jacques Labillardière was the naturalist of the expedition.HistoryJacques Labillardiere was botanist on the expedition commanded by Admiral Joseph-Antoine Bruny d'Entrecasteaux and sent to search of the missing French explorer La Perouse. The expedition was also ordered to conduct scientific work and anthropological and botanical surveys of the places they visited. After stopping briefly at the Cape of Good Hope, the expedition's two ships LA RECHERCHE and L'ESPERANCE continued to southern Tasmania. During the following years d'Entrecasteaux searched the western Pacific - actually sighting Vanikoro Island in the Solomons (where La Perouse's ships were wrecked) but not stopping there. This was the second time in as many years that a European vessel had come close to finding traces of La Perouse's missing ships; HMS PANDORA had sailed past Vanikoro in August 1791 during their search for the 'pirated' BOUNTY. Although plumes of smoke were detected, the Pandoras did not bother to investigate these obvious signs of habitation. Although he was unable to locate the missing ships during the expedition, d'Entrecasteaux conducted important scientific research and exploration in the Pacific, Western Australia and Tasmania. However by 1793 many of the ship's crew were very sick of scurvy, including d'Entrecasteaux who died in July. The remaining expedition sailed to Surabaya in the Dutch East Indies where they learnt the French King had been executed and the newly formed Republic of France was at war. At this time many of the expedition papers were captured by the British. Jacques Labillardiere eventually returned to France in 1796 and his 'Voyage in Search of La Perouse' detailing the exploits of the d'Entrecasteaux expedition was first published in 1800. It offers an account of the natural history and ethnography of the places d'Entrecasteaux's expedition visited. In 1804-1807 Labillardiere also published 'Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen', the most comprehensive account of the Australian flora to that time. SignificanceThis volume is an important early record of European exploration of Australia and details some of the earliest observations of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania and south-western Australia. D'Entrecasteaux also offered accounts of the islands and peoples of the Pacific.