Captain Cook : Master of the Seas

by Frank McLynn

• ISBN13: 9780300114218
• ISBN10: 0300114214
• Format: Trade Book
• Copyright: 2011-06-07
• Publisher: Yale University Press

Summary

The age of discovery was at its peak in the eighteenth century, with heroic adventurers charting the furthest reaches of the globe. Foremost among these explorers was navigator and cartographer Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy. Recent writers have viewed Cook largely through the lens of colonial exploitation, regarding him as a villain and overlooking an important aspect of his identity: his nautical skills. In this authentic, engrossing biography, Frank McLynn reveals Cook's place in history as a brave and brilliant seaman. He shows how the Captain's life was one of struggle--with himself, with institutions, with the environment, with the desire to be remembered--and also one of great success. InCaptain Cook, McLynn re-creates the voyages that took the famous navigator from his native England to the outer reaches of the Pacific Ocean. Ultimately, Cook, who began his career as a deckhand, transcended his humble beginnings and triumphed through good fortune, courage, and talent. Although Cook died in a senseless, avoidable conflict with the people of Hawaii, McLynn illustrates that to the men with whom he served, Cook was master of the seas and nothing less than a titan.

Author Biography

Frank McLynn is a highly regarded historian specializing in biographies and military history. He has written more than twenty books, including Richard and John: Kings at War, Napoleon, and Marcus Aurelius: A Life. He lives in Surrey, England.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. ix
Charting Cook	p. xiii
A Yorkshire Apprenticeship	p. 1
The Seven Years War	p. 19
Charring Newfoundland	p. 43
The Challenge of the Pacific	p. 65
First Contacts with Tahiti	p. 93
The Isle of Cythera	p. 119
Peril in Australasia	p. 129
Homeward Bound	p. 155
Antarctica	p. 181
Tongans and Maoris	p. 203
Mastering the Pacific	p. 227
Lost Horizon: The Great Southern Continent	p. 253
The Last Voyage	p. 281
Tahiti: The Final Phase	p. 309
Quest for Illusion: The Northwest Passage	p. 337
Hawaiian Nightmare	p. 365
Tragedy on Kealakekua Beach	p. 387
Conclusion	p. 411
Appendix	p. 419
Notes	p. 422
Index	p. 473
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.