#0782 'HMS Endeavor'

Patagonia, Cape Horn,

1769 James Cook, 1768 - 1771

James Cook embarked on his first major sea voyage in 1768. The aim of his journey was nothing less than to observe the passage of the planet Venus in front of the sun disk - the Venus transit of June 3, 1769 - on Tahiti and thus, on the basis of Kepler's laws, the to determine the distance of the planets in our solar system. The Royal Society, under the presidency of the astronomer Lord Morton, initiated this expedition. Cook came to this honor through his services in the Navy of England, which was able to use the map series created by Cook decisively during the Seven Years' War against France in the fight for Quebeck, the St. Lawrence River and the supremacy over Newfoundland. Between 1756 and 1768 he not only showed great skill as a cartographer, but also as a sailor. After being appointed captain of the South Seas expedition, he was not a little envied. In January 1769 he circumnavigated Cape Horn at the inhospitable end of South America to complete the first part of the mission in Tahiti. Cook then explored the world south of the 40th parallel until 1771, in search of the hoped-for southern continent, the Terra Australis incognita. He mapped New Zealand, Australia and numerous islands in the South Pacific for the European world. The scientists on board had collected countless plants, animals and information, which were transmitted and handed over to the museums of Europe.