Ian Edwards 2002 Headlines of History: A Chronicle of Western Australian History (Perth?, Flying Fish Ventures) p. 9 Visit by French Vessel L’Oiseau 4 August 1687 En route from Cape of Good Hope to Thailand, the French ship L’Oiseau, under the command of Admiral Duquesne-Guitton … sighted the coast of “Terre de la Concorde” (New[…]
Introduction Gavin Menzies is the author of a very successful book, entitled 1421: The year China discovered the world, published first in 2002. There have been subsequent editions in paperback. Many members of the community of scholars who specialize in the history of cartography have criticized this text severely. This lecture reviews some of the[…]
Swedish Crew Members on Dutch Ships 1600s & 1700s There were Swedish crew members on Dutch ships visiting Australia in 1600s and 1700s. Solander with Captain Cook 1770 Swedish born Daniel Solander sailed in the Endeavour, as Assistant Botanist under Banks, when Captain Cook mapped the east coast of Australia in 1770. Discovery of Norfolk[…]
As the organisation formed to promote the 400 year anniversary of mapping Australia—Australia on the Map 1606-2006—winds up, a new AHS region has been formed to promote the history of mapping and hydrography.
A well-attended meeting of AHS members (many of whom are new AHS members who had recently served on the former Australia on the Map 1606-2006 committee), voted unanimously to form a region to be known as theAustralia on the Map Division of the Australasian Hydrographic Society.
The meeting also elected Rupert Gerritsen as Chair of the Australia on the Map Division (AMD) and Peter Reynders as the Secretary–Treasurer.
“Like its ‘1606-2006’ predecessor,” Rupert Gerritsen explained. “The AHS’s Australia on the Map Division will be outward looking and inclusive. We’d like as many AHS members to be involved as possible.
“While initially we’ll be meeting monthly in Canberra, that shouldn’t put anyone off. Our experience with 1606-2006 shows that, with email and Internet, distance is no barrier to participation and organisation.”
Judging by the lively discussion at the inaugural meeting — and the range of backgrounds and interests its membership already has—we can expect AMD to soon be fostering many activities and individual projects ranging from serious historical research to events popularising the understanding of early maritime history.
To get involved in AMD or for more information contact Peter Reynders on (02) 62820064 or via email here
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AUSTRALIA SINCE FEDERATION, begins with the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901 as an independent nation. (Note it was not an ‘end of the colony’ where the colonists returned to the home country and left the land to the indigenous people as later happened elsewhere). Shortly after women gained the right to vote.[…]
THE COLONIAL ERA, includes the exploratory expeditions into the interior and the slow and often painful contact history on land. It starts with the arrival of the first fleet on the 26 January 1788, in Sydney, lead by Arthur Phillip, to establish a penal colony. This was the main reason for the initial British settlement.[…]
THE AUSTRALIAN MARITIME CONTACT PERIOD is a most exciting but not well known period, starting in 1606, when the first European mariners sailed into Australian water, recording their observations of this land and the residents they encountered. Every Australian should know the name of Willem Janszoon and his ship Duyfken, the first recorded ship and[…]
BEFORE ANY OF OUR HISTORY WAS WRITTEN DOWN the Original Australians lived here for more than 40.000 years. They may be the oldest continuous population in the world. Many hunted and gathered for their livelihood, some lived in semi-permanent villages. They arrived here from the North, group after group and occupied the continent. Occasionally they[…]