James Cook
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Captain James Cook, FRS (October 27, 1728 (O.S.) – February 14, 1779) was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer. He made three voyages to the Pacific Ocean, mapping many areas and recording several islands and coastlines on European maps for the first time. His is most notable for the British finding the east coast of Australia, finding the Hawaiian Islands and the first mapping of Newfoundland and New Zealand.
During his lifetime, he sailed twice around the world. He crossed the Antarctic Circle and found new islands and landscapes in North America and the South Pacific. During his trips, he spent a lot of time on science experiments, and mapping new areas. He also wrote a lot of books about what he found.
[edit] Cook's Life
Cook was born on October 27, 1728 in Marton (York). He was a son of a Scottish farmer. Since he was young, he dreamed of being captain on a ship and sailing around the world. After 18 years, Cook felt that he had to live his dreams. He knew that he must have another destiny other than farming for the rest of his life. His career started as a seaman in the Royal Navy. Cook was not just a normal seaman. He studied as much as he could. That is how he learned a lot of good knowledge about navigation and science. He was sent on three expeditions with the ship called Endeavour all over the world.
His goals on these missions were:
- to find the South continent (terra australis incognita)
- to make astronomical measures of Venus
- to map new lands
- to take over the land for the British King George III
- to watch for good places for new military bases
- to find new ways between the Pacific and the Atlantic.
At the beginning, it was an honor to be on these expeditions. After a while, money was the most important reason for doing his job. After his death, his wife inherited 70,000 gold coins.
