HM Bark Endeavour
Replica of Captain Cook's Ship
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Reproduced courtesy of the Australian National Maritime Museum |
Out to prove or disprove the existence of a "Great South Land," English explorer James Cook set sail from England in 1768 on HM Bark Endeavour. He reached New Zealand in 1770, circumnavigated and completely charted the North and South Islands, then proceeded north.
He followed the eastern coast of Australia and landed at Botany Bay on April 28, 1770, in the area that is now Botany Bay National Park.
Cook's Endeavour voyage in 1768-1771 contributed greatly to the world's knowledge of seamanship, navigation and geography. He was the first captain to calculate his longitudinal position with accuracy using a complex mathematical formula developed in the 1960s.
The Endeavour is recreated
The HM Bark Endeavour was recreated to exacting standards, with building begun in 1988 in Fremantle, Western Australia. Because of financial difficulties, a charitable trust, HM Bark Endeavour Foundation, was set up in 1991 to continue the work on the new Endeavour.
The completed replica was launched on December 9, 1993 and commissioned on April 16, 1994. She set sail for Sydney in October of that year, visiting Albany, Adelaide, Hobart, Melbourne and other ports along the way.
The Endeavour sails the world
On arrival in Sydney the Endeavour was displayed at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour. Since then, the Endeavour has sailed in both Australia and New Zealand and embarked on a world voyage, through South Africa, on to England, the east and west coasts of North America before returning to New Zealand and Australia. She was in port in Sydney during the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
The Endeavour then set out on other international voyages and in April 2005 returned to Sydney from Cook's hometown, Whitby, in England.
The non-profit HM Bark Endeavour Foundation has transferred ownership of the ship to the Australian Government.
When in Sydney, the Endeavour is docked at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour and is open to the public between 10am and 5pm daily. Charges apply.
