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Section 2 Curious to Discover

William Charles Thomas Dobson, 1817-1898
Portrait of William Dampier c.1850

oil on canvas; 123.4 x 99.2 cm
Rex Nan Kivell Collection; NK12470 T382
National Library of Australia

 

William Dampier is best remembered for his voyages to explore New Holland in 1686 in the Cygnet, and later as Captain of the British Admiralty's first South Seas voyage in 1699. Dampier had travelled to Jamaica in his youth and became a buccaneer "more to indulge my curiosity than to get wealth".

Dampier had been sailing for 12 years before he was given the command of the Cygnet. His subsequent expeditions had no success and Dampier's leadership abilities were questioned. He was declared unfit to command a royal vessel, but continued as a privateer. By the time this posthumous portrait was painted Dampier was considered one of the greatest sailors in English history.

 

 

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