The Voyage of Captain John Narbrough to the Strait of Magellan and the South Sea in his Majesty's Ship Sweepstakes, 1669-1671

The Voyage of Captain John Narbrough to the Strait of Magellan and the South Sea in his Majesty's Ship Sweepstakes, 1669-1671
Author: Richard J. Campbell
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 761
Release: 2018-05-11
Genre: History
ISBN: 135116855X

In 2009, after a public appeal, the British Library purchased a manuscript ‘Booke’, which Captain Narbrough bought in 1666 and into which he subsequently entered his journals of his voyages and correspondence relating to them. The ‘Booke’ contains his own fair copy of the journal of his voyage through the Strait of Magellan and north to Valdivia in the Sweepstakes, 1669-1671. This is published here for the first time, together with an incomplete and somewhat different copy of the journal, held in the Bodleian Library, which was made for him by a clerk after he returned to England, and which was partially published in 1694. Both versions of the journal together with previously unpublished records made by members of his company, as well as reproductions of the charts which Narbrough relied on and those he produced, are printed here. Narbrough's mission was to carry out a passenger who referred to himself as Don Carlos Enriques and who claimed to have expert knowledge of Peru and Chile, and contacts with disaffected colonists and indigenous peoples. Don Carlos's written proposals to King Charles II and his ministers, only recently discovered, are here translated from Spanish, and give a clear sense of the character, if not the real identity, of an adventurer, who gave the authorities in England, Chile and Peru totally different and changing stories about his status and the purpose of the voyage. Narbrough's conduct of the voyage has been criticized by later authors who have focussed on his inability recover four of his ship’s company from detention in Valdivia and the lack of tangible results, in the form of trade or contacts with indigenous groups. The more complete story provided here shows that Narbrough carried out his ambiguous orders to the letter. His chart of the Strait of Magellan remained the principal chart of the area for the next century. King Charles II and James, Duke of York, both recognized his abilities. He was rapidly re-employed in naval service, subsequently knighted, and rose to become a Commissioner of the Navy and Commander in Chief in the Mediterranean.

Bibliography of Natural History Travel Narratives

Bibliography of Natural History Travel Narratives
Author: Anne S. Troelstra
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 482
Release: 2017-06-01
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 9004343784

Anne Troelstra’s fine bibliography is an outstanding and ground-breaking work. He has provided the academic world with a long-needed bibliographical record of human endeavour in the field of the natural sciences. The travel narratives listed here encompass all aspects of the natural world in every part of the globe, but are especially concerned with its fauna, flora and fossil remains. Such eyewitness accounts have always fascinated their readers, but they were never written solely for entertainment: fragmentary though they often are, these narratives of travel and exploration are of immense importance for our scientific understanding of life on earth, providing us with a window on an ever changing, and often vanishing, natural world. Without such records of the past we could not track, document or understand the significance of changes that are so important for the study of zoogeography. With this book Troelstra gives us a superb overview of natural history travel narratives. The well over four thousand detailed entries, ranging over four centuries and all major western European languages, are drawn from a wide range of sources and include both printed books and periodical contributions. While no subject bibliography by a single author can attain absolute completeness, Troelstra’s work is comprehensive to a truly remarkable degree. The entries are arranged alphabetically by author and chronologically, by the year of first publication, under the author’s name. A brief biography, with the scope and range of their work, is given for each author; every title is set in context, the contents – including illustrations – are described and all known editions and translations are cited. In addition, there is a geographical index that cross refers between authors and the regions visited, and a full list of the bibliographical and biographical sources used in compiling the bibliography.