51ºÚÁÏ

Use this lesson to explore extracts from Cook’s original journal with other documents to find out what happened. What was the impact of his voyage on Britain and on the Indigenous peoples of the places he arrived at?

Suitable for: Key stage 1, Key stage 2, Key stage 3, Key stage 4, Key stage 5

In June 1769, James Cook opened an envelope containing secret instructions from King George III. Cook was in Tahiti, having led the expedition to observe the transit of Venus across the sun by astronomer Charles Green and others.

These secret instructions revealed that there was a second mission: to find the mysterious alleged southern continent ‘Terra Australis’, and claim it for Britain.

Cook set sail southward. From 1769 to 1770, he would reach and chart what are now New Zealand and the east coast of Australia. While he never found ‘Terra Australis’ – which was thought to cover the entire southern hemisphere – his voyage had long-lasting consequences for the places he visited and led to the formation of the modern countries Australia and New Zealand. Although they were inhabited, Cook charted and claimed the places he visited in the name of his country, which led to their occupation and colonisation by Great Britain. The first penal colony in Australia was established in 1788 in Botany Bay, a place originally named and described by Cook. Today, Australia and New Zealand are still part of the Commonwealth of Nations.