Intrepid Journeys

Esmond de Beer was born in Dunedin on 15 September 1895 to Isidore Samuel de Beer (1860-1934) and Emily (1864-1930), née Hallenstein. Schooled at Selwyn College, and Middle Hill School, London, de Beer went up to New College, Oxford, in the autumn of 1914, as a commoner. After demobilization, as part of the 2nd Battalion 35th Sikhs, he went to University College, London, and the newly founded Institute of Historical Research. An MA thesis on Sir Thomas Osbourne, the Earl of Danby’s ministry of 1675-1678, led to de Beer’s editing the first full edition of John Evelyn’s Diary, published by Clarendon Press, Oxford, in 1955. This photograph was taken by Gary Blackman at de Beer’s house at 31 Brompton Square, London. Photograph of Esmond de Beer, 1975. By Gary Blackman, Dunedin

In 1589, Hakluyt produced his The Principall Navigations, Voiages and Discoveries of the English Nation, a folio of over 800 pages. Between 1598 and 1600, he expanded it to a three-volume folio edition, running to over 1.7 million words in about 2000 pages. Principall Navigations was based on original sources and records of explorers and travellers. Indeed, Hakluyt was scrupulous as a compiler, and it is said that he knew every mapmaker, traveller, merchant-adventurer, explorer, and court official from whom he acquired the most up-to-date information. Embedded in this work is a copy of Abraham Ortelius’ famed Typus Orbis Terrarum, a map first published in 1564. A translation of the quote by Cicero reads: ‘Who can consider human affairs to be great, when he comprehends the eternity and vastness of the entire world?’ ________________________________________________________________ Richard Hakluyt, The Principall Navigations, Voiages, and Discoveries of the English Nation. London: George Bishop and Ralph Newberie, 1589; facsimile: Cambridge: Published for the Hakluyt Society and the Peabody Museum of Salem at the University Press, 1965. Special Collections G242 H419 1965

Lionel Wafer (c. 1660 -1705) went to sea for the first time in 1677 as a ‘loblolly boy’ or ship surgeon’s assistant. After returning home in 1679, he left again a month later, this time for Jamaica. From there, he boarded a buccaneer boat and became a ‘pirate surgeon’, sailing the Caribbean with notorious privateers like William Dampier and Bartholomew Sharp. In 1681, Wafer was seriously injured and he spent time recovering with the Cuna Indians on the Darien Peninsula (between Panama and Colombia). His New Voyage describes his experiences with them. Travel writer, Lillian Joyce, in her introduction to this volume, states that Wafer’s book ‘remains the most authoritative source of information concerning the native folk of south-east Panama’. ___________________________________________________________________________ Lionel Wafer, A New Voyage & Description of the Isthmus of America. Oxford: Printed for the Hakluyt Society, 1934. Journals G161 H2 Ser. 2 no. 73

This volume contains first-hand accounts of, what are described as, ‘the most stirring episode in the wonderful history of Spanish conquests’. No doubt, the Peruvian people did not view it as such. The translated words of Francisco de Xeres, Miguel de Astete, Hernando Pizarro, and Pedro Sancho, tell the tale of how Spanish conquistador, Francisco Pizarro (born c. 1471), initiated, what would ultimately become, the decimation of the native peoples of South America. Pizarro and his troops marched down the Peruvian coast at the end of 1532 to Caxamalca (about half way down on the map on display). There they took Incan King, Atahualpa (d. 1533), hostage and killed thousands of Peruvians, all without losing a single soldier. ___________________________________________________________________________ Reports on the Discovery of Peru. London: Printed for the Hakluyt Society, 1872. Journals G161 H2 Ser. 1 no. 47

The journal written by Antonio Pigafetta (c.1491-c.1531) is the main source for the voyage undertaken by Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521), the Portuguese explorer who was the first to circumnavigate the world. Magellan was killed in the Philippines on the return journey. In 1519, five vessels left Seville: Trinidad (the flagship); San Antonio; Concepción; Santiago; and Victoria. On 6 September 1522, only the last arrived back, carrying 18 of the 270 original crew. Perhaps Magellan’s greatest feat was negotiating the Straits that now bear his name, and inching his way into the ‘peaceful sea’ – the Pacific Ocean. This work, translated by Lord Stanley, 3rd Baron Stanley of Alderley (1827-1903), also includes a biography on Magellan, and log-book details of Francisco Alvaro, the pilot. ________________________________________________________________ The First Voyage Round the World by Magellan. Translated from the Accounts of Pigafetta. London: Printed for the Hakluyt Society, 1874. Journals G161 H2 Ser.1 no.52

At a meeting of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in February 1810, it was suggested to Henry Holland (1788-1873), future physician to Queen Victoria, that he join an expedition to Iceland with Sir George Mackenzie (1780-1848). For Holland it was an opportunity to examine some of Iceland’s 130 active and extinct volcanic mountains. He became a confirmed Icelandophile, visiting the country twice (1810; 1871). In this first edition, Holland ranges in topic from weather and the country’s parishes, to commerce and population. The maps, like this one of the route from Reykjavík to Hvítárvellir, were sketched by him. ________________________________________________________________ The Iceland Journal of Henry Holland, 1810. London: Hakluyt Society, 1987. Journals G161 H2 Ser.2 no.168

On display is part of a narrative by Bartholomew Plaisted (d.1767), a marine surveyor for the East India Company, who was dismissed for being troublesome. He returned to England via India, travelling along the Great Desert Caravan Route, which provided a short cut from the Mediterranean ports to the Indian seas. He began at Basra on 20th April 1750, and reached Aleppo on 23rd July 1750. On this trip of some 1300 km, he estimated the caravan he was with numbered 5000 camels and 1000 men. He also offered a few travel hints: a tent was essential; boiled butter, cheese, and well-cured tongues were far superior to potted meat; and carting along chinaware improper. The map depicts the towns along the route. ________________________________________________________________ The Desert Route to India: Being the Journals of Four Travellers by the Great Desert Caravan Route between Aleppo and Basra, 1745-1751. London: Printed for the Hakluyt Society, 1929. Journals G161 H2 Ser.2 no.63

Who has not wanted to pen the words: ‘I am on the road to Tombuctoo’? So wrote explorer Alexander Gordon Laing (1794-1826) to Hanmer Warrington, his father-in-law, on 3rd November 1825. Supported by Sir Joseph Banks and others, Laing set off to confirm the location of Timbuktu, and position clearly the Niger River. In mid-July 1825, he left Tripoli and started across the Sahara. By August 1826 he was in Timbuktu, after being robbed, stabbed numerous times, and losing his right hand. On preparing to leave the city, he was killed by Tuareg raiders. This publication is a compilation of his writings such as ‘Cursory Remarks’ on the Niger and a few surviving letters. Laing ‘re-discovered’ Timbuktu. It is regarded as one of the great journeys in the history of African exploration. ________________________________________________________________ ‘Letters of Major Alexander Gordon Laing 1824-1826’ in Missions to the Niger, I. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press for the Hakluyt Society, 1962. Journals G161 H2 Ser.2 no.123

This work, edited by Andrew David, contains a synopsis of the voyage of the Endeavour, descriptions of surveying methods, and biographical details of the surveyors, draughtsmen, and artists on board. Importantly, it contains the 320 charts and coastal views produced on board the ship. To the left are profiles of the ‘Watering Place’ in Queen Charlottes Sound, and to the right is a map of the South Island sketched by James Cook, ably assisted by Isaac Smith (1752–1831). De Beer generously funded the production of this first volume. ________________________________________________________________ The Charts & Coastal Views of Captain Cook’s Voyages. Vol. One. The Voyage of the Endeavour, 1768-1771. Edited by Andrew David. London: The Hakluyt Society in association with the Australian Academy of the Humanities, 1988. Central G420 C65 CF86