This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1781 edition. Excerpt: ... the Commodore could proceed . to England, without laying in a large quantity both of provisions and naval stores for his use during the voyage. The procuring this supply was attended with much perplexity; for there were people at Canton who had undertaken to surniih him with biscuit, and whatever else he wanted; and nis linguist, towards the middle of September, had assured him from day to day, that all w DEGREESs ready, and would be sent on board him immediately. But a fortnight being elapsed, and nothing brought, the Commodore lent to Canton, to enquire more particularly into the reasons of this difappointment: and he had soon the vexation to be informed, that the whole was an illusion; that no order had been procured from the viceroy, to furnish him with his sea stores, as had been pretended; that there was no biscuit baked, nor any one of the articles in readiness, which had been promised him, nor did it appear that the contractors had taken the least step to comply with their agreement. This was most difagreeable news, and made it suspected, that the surnishing the Centurion for her return to Great Britain might prove a more troublesome matter than had been hitherto imagined, especially too, as the month of September was nearly ended, without Mr Anson's having received any message fronAhe viceroy of Canton. And here, perhaps it might be expected, that a satisfactory account should be given of the motives of the Chinese for this faithltss procedure. However, as I have already, in a former chapter, made some kind of conjectures about a similar event, I shall not repeat them again in this place; but shall content myseif with observing, that, after all, it may perhaps be impossible for an European, ' aorant of the customs and manners of...

The Resolute was a merchant ship purchased by the Royal Navy for service in the search for the lost expedition of Sir John Franklin. Its first voyage to the Canadian Arctic, which took place between 1850 and 1851, proved fruitless, so a second, larger expedition was launched in 1852. Again the Resolute could find no trace of Franklin, and the crew came close to perishing themselves. With their ship trapped in ice, they endured the freezing temperatures and a harrowing trek to Beechey Island to survive. Published in 1857, the present work is the journal of George Frederick McDougall (c.1825-71), who served as master aboard the Resolute. The book features numerous woodcuts and plates, as well as an account of the ship's salvage by an American vessel. Notably, a desk made from the ship's timbers has been used by a number of American presidents in the White House.

An Irish-born adventurer in Russian service, Peter Dobell (1772 1852) embarked in 1812 on a long journey from Kamchatka across Siberia to Tomsk. This two-volume work, first published in 1830, contains a detailed and idiosyncratic account of his journey, painting an affectionate picture of the region and its people. The narrative includes ethnographic observations, descriptions of nights spent with local families, notes on the wildlife encountered, and discussion of the problems caused by the weather. Dobell also lived in China for many years, and his remarks on the experience are incorporated into the work. He gives opinionated observations on topics such as Chinese society, traditions, trade and medicine. Again, this narrative reflects Dobell's instinctive curiosity and enthusiasm. Volume 1 covers the first half of the journey, starting in Kamchatka and ending in Yakutsk."

An Irish-born adventurer in Russian service, Peter Dobell (1772 1852) embarked in 1812 on a long journey from Kamchatka across Siberia to Tomsk. This two-volume work, first published in 1830, contains a detailed and idiosyncratic account of his journey, painting an affectionate picture of the region and its people. The narrative includes ethnographic observations, descriptions of nights spent with local families, notes on the wildlife encountered, and discussion of the problems caused by the weather. Dobell also lived in China for many years, and his remarks on the experience are incorporated into the work. He gives opinionated observations on topics such as Chinese society, traditions, trade and medicine. Again, this narrative reflects Dobell's instinctive curiosity and enthusiasm. Volume 2 covers the concluding part of Dobell's Siberian travels, from Yakutsk to Tomsk. It also contains all of the chapters on China."

In June 1875, Frederick George Innes-Lillingston (1849 1904) set out for the Arctic aboard Pandora, a steam yacht captained by the seasoned polar explorer Allen Young (1827 1915). In this, the first of two voyages north, Young sought to make the north-west passage. His lieutenant Innes-Lillingston published this short account in 1876. It follows the voyage through to Peel Strait, where Young was forced to turn back in the face of heavy ice. On the journey home, the Pandora picked up the dispatches of the expedition under George Nares that was attempting to reach the North Pole. Conveying both the thrill and difficulty of the endeavour, this narrative provides a highly readable account of seafaring in extreme conditions. Also reissued in this series are two related works by Young: Cruise of the Pandora (1876) and The Two Voyages of the Pandora (1879)."

In 1847, Sir John Franklin and his crew perished on their Arctic expedition. The following years saw multiple attempts to discover what happened to them. First published in 1850, this short account by Robert Anstruther Goodsir (1823 95) is based on the journal he kept while serving as surgeon during an 1849 mission in search of the missing explorers. Seeking to find his brother, Harry, who was assistant surgeon and naturalist on Franklin's expedition, Goodsir vividly describes the various dangers encountered, such as ice floes, icebergs, storms and shipwrecks. Moreover, he takes note of wildlife, notably birds and fish, and records interactions with Inuit. The perspective offered by a medical man, with a keen desire to raise awareness of ongoing rescue efforts, adds further interest to the narrative. Several other works relating to the expeditions in search of Sir John Franklin have also been reissued in this series."

If there's an adventure to be had, it's likely that David Hempleman-Adams has been there first. Ranking alongside Ranulph Fiennes and Chris Bonnington in the pantheon of British explorers, he is the first person in history to achieve what is termed the Adventurers' Grand Slam, by reaching the Geographic and Magnetic North and South Poles as well as climbing the highest peaks on all seven continents. The question Hempleman-Adams is most often asked is, simply: what drives him on? Why risk frostbite pulling a sledge to the North Pole? Why experience the Death Zone on Everest? Why fly in the tiny basket of a precarious balloon across the Atlantic? Is it simply the case that he likes to push himself to the limits, or is there something more to it? No Such Thing as Failure answers these questions and more, uncovering what drives arguably the world's greatest adventurer.

John Byron (1723-86) died a vice-admiral, having earned the nickname 'Foulweather Jack' after much experience on rough seas. In 1741 he was a midshipman aboard HMS Wager in a squadron sent to attack Spanish ships off Chile. Shipwrecked in a storm after rounding Cape Horn, the majority of the survivors turned on their captain and attempted to make their own way home. Byron was among the group who stayed with the commanding officer. In 1768, now a commodore, he published this account of the five harrowing years it took to get back to England, by which time he was one of only four survivors. Although no doubt written to give his side of the story, it appealed to a public eager for tales of dramatic endurance against the odds. Aboard the Beagle on Darwin's voyage, the book also informed the shipwreck in Don Juan by the author's grandson.

Despite Holland's rich history as a major maritime power, by the time this work first appeared in 1876 the Dutch had long abandoned their exploration of the Arctic Circle. In this detailed study, noting the achievements of Dutch navigators, Samuel Richard van Campen (c.1833-c.1893) makes the case for new expeditions into the north, not only to investigate the possibility of Arctic passages to America and Asia, but also to pursue scientific research. The author delineates potential routes and difficulties, discusses ocean conditions, and examines both historical and contemporary expeditions for flaws and successes. The book also includes as an appendix a chronological table of Arctic expeditions ranging from ninth-century Viking endeavours to Allen Young's 1876 voyage. Reissued here is the second edition of 1877, which does not differ textually from the first. Despite the author's intention to continue the work, a second volume never appeared.

Winner of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild Award for Excellence: Outdoor Book 2019 Chris Townsend embarks on a 700-mile walk along the spine of Scotland, the line of high ground where fallen rain runs either west to the Atlantic or east to the North Sea. Walking before the Independence Referendum of 2014, and writing after the EU Referendum of 2016, he reflects on: nature and history, conservation and rewilding, land use and literature, and change in a time of limitless potential for both better and worse.

The explorer, soldier and geophysicist Sir Edward Sabine (1788 1883) served as astronomer on John Ross's 1818 expedition in search of the North-West Passage. His return to the Arctic, under William Parry in 1819 20, compounded a keen interest in geomagnetism and his publications earned him the Copley Medal of the Royal Society (whose presidency he would later hold). His experience and expertise made him a natural editor, therefore, of this Arctic narrative, translated into English from German by his wife, Elizabeth Juliana Leeves (1807 79), and published in 1840. It is the account by Ferdinand von Wrangell (1797 1870), a Russian explorer of Baltic German ancestry, regarding his expedition to survey Siberia's north-eastern coastline. Compiled from the notes of the scientists on board, this work offers a valuable and wide-ranging insight into an inaccessible and little-known portion of the globe.

Published in English translation in 1793, this was the first study of Madagascar by a European. A member of the Academie des Sciences, Alexis-Marie de Rochon (1741 1817) was a distinguished French physicist, astronomer and traveller. He was involved in scientific voyages of discovery in the 1770s, conducting a hydrographic survey of the Indian Ocean. The present account was intended to show the advantages of French settlement in Madagascar and includes details of geography, anthropology and agriculture. In discussing cocoa and sugar, Rochon outlines the potential advantages of steam engines in sugar factories. He also provides an exploration history of the region and an interesting account of colonial leaders, notably Maurice Benyovszky (1746 86), the explorer-adventurer who was appointed governor of Madagascar by Louis XV. The work also includes a 'Memoir of the Chinese Trade', which details the many products traded between Europe and China in the late eighteenth century.

On 22 May 1826, HMS Beagle left Plymouth Sound on her maiden voyage, accompanying HMS Adventure to Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego to survey the Strait of Magellan. Years later, Royal Naval officer John Macdouall (fl.1820 30) proclaimed himself 'one whose visit to Port Famine, and sometime residence on that inhospitable coast, have left no wish of re-visiting it, really or metaphorically'. Nevertheless, his first-hand account of the first nineteen months of the Beagle's voyage, originally published in 1833, is a highly entertaining read. With an amusing combination of self-deprecation and caustic observation, and in preference to 'the trouble of detailing the monotonous course of a long sea voyage', Macdouall relates anecdotes about life aboard ship and the peoples and places encountered. While unforgiving of 'absurd' Spanish customs and 'national indolence', and Rio de Janeiro's 'bowing hypocritical Portuguese', he offers a generally kinder portrait of Fuegian and Patagonian 'savages'.

Joined by seven eminent natural scientists, including Karl von Scherzer (1821-1903), the Austrian naval expedition of 1857-9 was remarkable for its globe-spanning scale. During the course of the voyage, the naturalists collected an abundance of samples which contributed to several scientific discoveries, including the isolation of cocaine in its pure form. Some of the investigations also revolutionised knowledge in such fields as geology, oceanography, hydrography and geomagnetism, and are still being studied by modern-day researchers. Prepared by Scherzer and first published in English in 1861-3, this is a compelling three-volume account of the mission, remaining relevant to scholars interested in naval exploration and the history of science. Opening with the guidance given by Alexander von Humboldt prior to the expedition, Volume 1 covers the leg between Europe and India. It includes notes on the social structure of the populations encountered, and on the local flora and fauna.

Joined by seven eminent natural scientists, including Karl von Scherzer (1821-1903), the Austrian naval expedition of 1857-9 was remarkable for its globe-spanning scale. During the course of the voyage, the naturalists collected an abundance of samples which contributed to several scientific discoveries, including the isolation of cocaine in its pure form. Some of the investigations also revolutionised knowledge in such fields as geology, oceanography, hydrography and geomagnetism, and are still being studied by modern-day researchers. Prepared by Scherzer and first published in English in 1861-3, this is a compelling three-volume account of the mission, remaining relevant to scholars interested in naval exploration and the history of science. Volume 2 covers the leg from India to Australia, with notes on the Nicobar Islands, Singapore, Java, Manila, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Pacific archipelagos.

Joined by seven eminent natural scientists, including Karl von Scherzer (1821-1903), the Austrian naval expedition of 1857-9 was remarkable for its globe-spanning scale. During the course of the voyage, the naturalists collected an abundance of samples which contributed to several scientific discoveries, including the isolation of cocaine in its pure form. Some of the investigations also revolutionised knowledge in such fields as geology, oceanography, hydrography and geomagnetism, and are still being studied by modern-day researchers. Prepared by Scherzer and first published in English in 1861-3, this is a compelling three-volume account of the mission, remaining relevant to scholars interested in naval exploration and the history of science. Volume 3 includes notes on Sydney, Auckland, Tahiti, the coastal cities of South and Central America, and the journey back to Europe, as well as reflections by the author on the achievements of the expedition.

Founded in 1666, the French Academie des Sciences was a prominent and prestigious organisation behind numerous scientific advances in Europe in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In 1817, commissioned by the Academie, Louis de Freycinet (1779-1841) embarked on a three-year expedition with the main purpose of investigating terrestrial magnetism and taking a series of pendulum measurements. In the course of this voyage around the world, the scientists aboard the Uranie also collected an abundance of samples and made significant observations in the fields of geography, ethnology, astronomy, hydrography and meteorology. The progress of this journey was detailed by Jacques Arago (1790-1855), draughtsman on the expedition, in the form of letters to a friend. This illustrated narrative is prefaced by a report to the Academie which summarises the mission's findings. Translated into English and published in 1823, this work is an informative and often witty account, reflecting contemporary ambitions in science and exploration.

In the mid-nineteenth century, the northern coastline of North America was of particular interest to the Hudson's Bay Company as it was believed to hold the key to the elusive North-West Passage, a trade route from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Recruited to lead a team to survey part of this forbidding region, the Scottish explorer John Rae (1813-93) undertook his first expedition during 1846-7. It was remarkable not only for its success, but also because Rae's was the first crew to overwinter in the Arctic. Unlike other Victorian explorers, Rae embraced the culture of the Inuit and learnt to live off the land like them, which enabled him to complete his survey. First published in 1850, this journal relates the details of his journey as well as how he and his men survived the extreme conditions. It remains a valuable document in the history of Arctic exploration.

An admirer of Captain Cook, Otto von Kotzebue (1787-1846) was a leading navigator, in Russian service, circumnavigating the globe three times. His 1815 expedition set out to find a passage through the Arctic, study the coastlines of Kamchatka and Alaska, and explore the Pacific. Among the personnel were the naturalist Chamisso and the artist Choris, who both contributed valuable information to the published account, while Eschscholtz, a physician, collected zoological specimens. Originally published in 1821 in Russian and German, this English translation, presented with many plates and charts, appeared the same year and formed part of Darwin's library aboard the Beagle. Volume 1 details the expedition's inception and presents the journal of the voyage, with observations of Cape Horn, Polynesia, Siberia, Alaska, California, and Hawaii. Meteorological details are regularly recorded, but this account is notable for its vivid descriptions of the peoples encountered.

During the voyage of HMS Bounty from Tahiti to bring the breadfruit plant to the West Indies, Fletcher Christian led what became the most infamous mutiny in seafaring history. Perhaps better known today through Hollywood depictions, the story of the events surrounding the date of 28 April 1789 is told here by William Bligh (1754-1817), the ship's commander. This reissue includes as an appendix Bligh's first narrative of the mutiny, published in haste in 1790 with the intention of following it with a separate account of the events leading up to the mutiny. The main text comprises the revised, fuller version he published instead in 1792, citing 'the manifest convenience' of having everything in one continuous narrative. The reasons behind the mutiny remain to this day a subject of debate. Undeniable, however, is that Bligh's is a remarkable tale of seamanship and survival.

During a life of many and varied interests, the art historian and mountaineer William Martin Conway (1856 1927) served as a professor of art at Liverpool and Cambridge, a member of parliament, director-general of the Imperial War Museum, and president of the Alpine Club. He climbed extensively in Europe and the Himalayas, mapped part of the Karakoram range (for which he was knighted), and named several mountains. In 1894 he walked the length of the Alps accompanied by two Gurkha soldiers. The celebrated expedition took the party sixty-five days to complete. Conway and his companions climbed twenty-one peaks, including Mont Blanc, the Jungfrau and Grossglockner, and traversed thirty-nine mountain passes. Published a year later, this is the illustrated second edition of Conway's popular personal account of the expedition, in which he documents the party's progress on a daily basis.

Born Adventurer tells the story of Frank Bickerton (1889-1954), the British engineer on Sir Douglas Mawson's Australasian Antarctic Expedition of 1911-14. The expedition gave birth to what Sir Ranulph Fiennes has called 'one of the greatest accounts of polar survival in history' and surveyed for the first time the 2,000-mile stretch of coast around Cape Denison, which later became Adelie Land. The MBE was, however, only one episode in a rich and colourful career. Bickerton accompanied the ill-fated Aeneas Mackintosh on a treasure island hunt to R.L. Stevenson's Treasure Island, was involved with the early stages of Sir Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, and tested 'wingless aeroplanes' in Norway. Born Adventurer follows him through his many experiences, from his flying career in the First World War to his time in California, mixing with the aristocracy of the Hollywood and sporting worlds, and from his safaris in Africa to his distinguished career as an editor and screenplay writer at Shepperton Studios. Stephen Haddelsey draws on unique access to family papers and Bickerton's journals and letters to give us a rich and full account of this incredible adventurer and colourful man.

The enthusiasm of Sir Clements R. Markham (1830-1916) for travel and exploration started early and took him around the world. Originally a naval officer, he was later responsible for organising the geographical mapping of much of India, and brought the method of brewing pure quinine to India from his extensive travels in Peru. An active and influential member of the Hakluyt Society and Royal Geographical Society, Markham was instrumental in gathering support for this 1875-6 Arctic expedition. He gives a clear account of the funding, planning and aims, the execution of the journey, and how the research should be continued. In particular, he documents the physical activities involved on the expedition, including the surveying of coastal landforms, and the tradition of the Royal Navy in the Arctic. This 1877 template for scientific exploration demonstrates the approaches adopted in the nineteenth century, and is still of interest today.

The famous explorer of the Arctic region, Sir John Franklin (1786 1847) was appointed Governor of the penal colony of Tasmania (then known as Van Diemen's Land) in 1837. At first enthusiastically welcomed by the free colonists of the island, Franklin quickly became embroiled in political and administrative difficulties, and his compassion for convicts and aboriginals alike was incompatible with his duties. In 1843, colonial officials loyal to his predecessor succeeded in getting Franklin recalled by sending damaging accounts of his conduct to London. This pamphlet was Franklin's defence of his own character against these misrepresentations, but he was not to see his reputation recovered. He completed the book on 15 May 1845, just days before he departed on another Arctic expedition to search for the North-West Passage. Franklin and his entire crew died on the journey, and only many years later was the tragic fate of the expedition discovered.

Berthold Seemann (1825-71), a German-born botanist and traveller, published several scientific books and articles. He also composed music and in the 1860s he wrote three plays which enjoyed some success in Germany. In 1846 Seemann was appointed naturalist to the British ship HMS Herald, which was engaged in a hydrographical survey of the Pacific. In this two-volume work, published in 1853, the author recounts how he joined the Herald in Panama in 1847 and remained on board until 1851. The ship explored almost all of the West Coast of America and also sailed north into the Arctic seas. In Volume 1, Seemann arrives in Panama, only to find that the Herald is not yet in port; he uses the time to explore the Isthmus, the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, and in the process discovers a number of new plants.