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RESEARCHED BY PETER KILLACKEY
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AUSTRALIAN DISCOVERY BY SEA
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LAPÉROUSE IN THE PACIFIC
Louis XV1 of France was greatly interested in the discovery voyages of Captain Cook, as he was in all matters relating to exploration and navigation. He desired that the French should participate in the pursuit of further discoveries in the South Seas, and for this purpose he instigated the voyage of Lapérouse, who sailed from France in 1785.
His instructions contained no reference to Botany Bay, and it had not been his intention originally to make a call at that place, of which, however, he had read an account in Cook's Voyages. The reason why he determined to visit Botany Bay is made clear in the following extract from his own narrative of his experiences in the, Pacific.
The massacre of Captain de Langle and part of his crew at the Navigator Islands, and the destruction of his long-boats determined Lapérouse to sail to some place where he would not be in danger of quarrels with natives while his men were engaged in putting together two new long-boats, the parts of which he carried in the hold. His vessels arrived at Botany Bay on January 26th, 1788. Captain Arthur Phillip and the "First Fleet" for the English settlement had arrived on January 18th; but Phillip speedily came to the conclusion that Botany Bay was an unsuitable site for the settlement, and chose Port Jackson, where the town of Sydney was built.
The statement frequently made that "England won Australia by six days" has no foundation. Lapérouse had no thought of settlement; he merely wanted a quiet place for effecting his repairs. These pages give his own story of the tragedy at the Society Islands, and of his experiences at Botany Bay.
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