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Explorer · 1728–1779

James Cook

Three Pacific voyages that charted New Zealand, eastern Australia, and Hawaii.

3 voyages
100 dated stops

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Route data is compiled in chronological order from Wikipedia's voyage articles (CC BY-SA), cross-checked against primary source narratives and historical records. Waypoints mark approximate port, bay, and landfall locations — not survey-grade ship positions — and should be verified against detailed historical charts and logs before being treated as authoritative. Coordinates for remote stops and open-ocean legs are estimated and approximate.

  1. 01 · 1768–1771

    Voyage 1

    HMS Endeavour · 31 stops

    Observe the transit of Venus from Tahiti and search for the hypothesised Great Southern Continent.

    Cook's first voyage carried astronomers to Tahiti to observe the 1769 transit of Venus, then opened sealed orders to hunt for the fabled Southern Continent. He charted the whole coast of New Zealand and became the first European to map the eastern coast of Australia, landing at Botany Bay. The Endeavour survived grounding on the Great Barrier Reef before limping home via Batavia.

    On accuracy: The Endeavour carried no marine chronometer. Cook fixed longitude by lunar-distance observations and dead reckoning, so Voyage 1's positions are less precise — sometimes by a degree or more — than the chronometer-aided second and third voyages.

  2. 02 · 1772–1775

    Voyage 2

    HMS Resolution & Adventure · 32 stops

    Settle the Great Southern Continent question by circumnavigating at high southern latitude.

    On his second voyage Cook circled the globe at extreme southern latitudes, becoming the first to cross the Antarctic Circle and reaching farther south than anyone before him. His sweep of the empty Southern Ocean effectively disproved the existence of a habitable Great Southern Continent. Along the way he charted Pacific islands from Easter Island to New Caledonia and, aided by the K1 chronometer, made charts of remarkable accuracy.

  3. 03 · 1776–1780

    Voyage 3

    HMS Resolution & Discovery · 37 stops

    Search for a Northwest Passage from the Pacific side and return Omai to the Society Islands.

    Cook's final voyage sought a Northwest Passage linking the Pacific and Atlantic from the west. He made the first recorded European contact with the Hawaiian Islands and charted the northwest coast of America up to the Bering Strait before pack ice forced him back. Returning to Hawaii, Cook was killed in a confrontation at Kealakekua Bay in February 1779; his crews continued the search before turning home under Clerke and Gore.

The life

Captainjamescookportrait
Nathaniel Dance-Holland · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Captainjamescookportrait

Captainjamescookportrait

Nathaniel Dance-Holland · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Hear the biography read aloud
Hand-drawn chart of Gaspé Bay, Canada, created by Cook in 1758
James Cook · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Hand-drawn chart of Gaspé Bay, Canada, created by Cook in 1758

Hand-drawn chart of Gaspé Bay, Canada, created by Cook in 1758

James Cook · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer who led three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans between 1768 and 1779. He completed the first recorded circumnavigation of the main islands of New Zealand, and led the first recorded visit by Europeans to the east coast of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands.

Cook joined the British merchant navy as a teenager before enlisting in the Royal Navy in 1755. He first saw combat during the Seven Years' War, when he fought in the Siege of Louisbourg. Later in the war he surveyed and mapped much of the entrance to the St. Lawrence River during the Siege of Quebec. In the 1760s he mapped the coastline of Newfoundland and made important astronomical observations which brought him to the attention of the Admiralty and the Royal Society. This acclaim came at a pivotal moment in British overseas exploration, and it led to his commission in 1768 as commander of HMS Endeavour for the first of his three voyages.

During these voyages, Cook sailed tens of thousands of miles across largely uncharted areas, mapping coastlines, islands, and features across the globe in greater detail than previously charted – including Easter Island, Alaska and South Georgia Island. He made contact with numerous indigenous peoples and claimed several territories for the Kingdom of Great Britain. Renowned for exceptional seamanship and courage in times of danger, he was patient, persistent, sober, and competent, but sometimes hot-tempered. His contributions to the prevention of scurvy, a disease common among sailors, led the Royal Society to award him the Copley Gold Medal.

In 1779, during his second visit to Hawaii, Cook was killed when a dispute with Native Hawaiians turned violent. His voyages left a legacy of scientific and geographical knowledge that influenced his successors well into the 20th century. Numerous memorials have been dedicated to him worldwide.

Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

In pictures

4 images · scroll →
This 1775 chart of Newfoundland was based on charts prepared by Cook and others.
Michael Lane and James Cook · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
This 1775 chart of Newfoundland was based on charts prepared by Cook and others.

This 1775 chart of Newfoundland was based on charts prepared by Cook and others.

Michael Lane and James Cook · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
This 1764 map of the world, by French hydrographer Jacques-Nicolas Bellin, shows the major landmasses known to Europeans in the 1760s. Unknown areas included Alaska, the east coast of Australia, and the west coast of…
Jacques-Nicolas Bellin · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
This 1764 map of the world, by French hydrographer Jacques-Nicolas Bellin, shows the major landmasses known to Europeans in the 1760s. Unknown areas included Alaska, the east coast of Australia, and the west coast of…

This 1764 map of the world, by French hydrographer Jacques-Nicolas Bellin, shows the major landmasses known to Europeans in the 1760s. Unknown areas included Alaska, the east coast of Australia, and the west coast of…

Jacques-Nicolas Bellin · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
During Cook's first voyage he became the first recorded European to encounter the east coast of Australia.
Jon Platek . Blank map by en:User:Reisio . · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
During Cook's first voyage he became the first recorded European to encounter the east coast of Australia.

During Cook's first voyage he became the first recorded European to encounter the east coast of Australia.

Jon Platek . Blank map by en:User:Reisio . · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
This drawing of a Māori warrior by Endeavour artist Sydney Parkinson was published in his posthumous book about the first voyage.
Sydney Parkinson · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
This drawing of a Māori warrior by Endeavour artist Sydney Parkinson was published in his posthumous book about the first voyage.

This drawing of a Māori warrior by Endeavour artist Sydney Parkinson was published in his posthumous book about the first voyage.

Sydney Parkinson · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons