Travelers and Explorers, Part 6: James Cook (1728-1797), England's Poseidon

History Unplugged Podcast · Jul 1, 2021 · 51m

James Cook came from a humble village upbringing. But by the end of his career, he circumnavigated the globe several times, discovered Australia and explored its west coast, mapped much of the South Pacific, and was worshipped as a deity by some Hawaiian natives. He also made incredible contributions to science. Two botanists on his second voyage collected over 3,000

plant species and presented their findings to the Royal Society. His crew included several

artists, who documented the botanists' findings and completed 264 drawings. Cook even

determined the cause of scurvy and implemented a…