Captain James Cook

About Cook Captain James Cook was born on the 27 th of October 1728 in a small Yorkshire village. At 17 he worked in a shop near Whitby. But he has always wanted to work in the sea so he decided to work as a coal shipper. He joined the Royal Navy, after studying mathematics and astronomy.

The First Voyage In 1768 Cook was the head of English expedition on board the ship "Indevr" directed to the Pacific Ocean by the British Admiralty to explore the southern continent. After the discovery of the four islands he reached an unknown land, with high, snow-capped mountains. It was New Zealand. More than 3 months Cook sailed along its bankes, and saw that there were two large islands, separated by the Strait, later received his name. The first voyage took Cook more than 3 years.

Antarctic voyage The second expedition in took place on two ships - "Resolution" and "Adventure“. Cook wanted to find and to examine the south of New Zealand. In January 1773 it was the first time in the history of navigation when somebody crossed the Antarctic Circle. Cook was the first sailor who met and described icebergs, naming them "ice islands".

The third voyage and Cook’s death In winter Cook discovered 5 of the Hawaiian Islands. Cook confirmed the presence of the Bering Strait between Asia and America. Faced with the solid ice, he returned for the winter to the Hawaiian Islands, where he was killed by the inhabitants.

Cook as a person and a professional "Strive and achieve" - this is the motto of Cook’s life. He was very brave, wanted to get the goal and wasn’t afraid of anything. Cook was married and had six children who died in early childhood. More than 20 geographic items, including three bays, two groups of islands and two straits are named by Cook.