Discovering Australia

The black history of Australia, do you know the Great Southern Land, was inhabited by natives, when Captain Cook visited in 1770, did he follow is orders? after concidering the following.

1504 "On the discovery of the new world ..the Chinese to whom no doubt belongs the honour of the first discovery of Australia Marco Polo charts indicated the position of a Great south Land In addition to the chart of Marco Polo another Chart now in the British Museum and bearing the date 1542

1606 The Dutch yacht Duyfen, on returning from an exploring expedition along the coast of new Guinea, touches upon the eastern shore of the Gulf of Carpentaria. Fernandez de Quiros sails from Peru and discovers the New Hebrides called by him "Australia del Espiritu Sancto" Vaes detorres, the Spanish Navigator passes through the Strait which bears his name, obtains a view of cape York, Northern Australia

1642 On the 24th November at about 4 O'clock in the afternoon Able Janz Tasman, with sixty men in the Heemskerck and Fifty in the Zeehaen, sights land with in the south seas unknown to any European nation, on the 2nd December 1642, they land at the entrance to Blackmans Bay and conferred on it the name Anthony Van Diemans landt, in honour of the Governor - General who instigated the discoverage voyage and named Van Diemans Land.

1663 Thevenot's Charts of the west coast of Hollandia Nova published

1767 Maps published in London, showed that practically all the coast of Australia from the inner side of the York Peninsula right around to about midway across the Gulf of Carpentaria also that part of Tasmania from Freyciner's Peninsula and the eastern shores of New Zealand, had been discovered.

1768 Captain Cook sails on his first voyage August 26th 1768.

1770 Captain Cook in the Endeavour had been appointed to prove that New Zealand was not part of the continent, and to discover whether Van Diemans land was part of the same. Point Hicks descried by Lieut. Hicks of the Endeavour April 19th 1770. Soon after Cook lands, discovers Botany Bay. Captain Cook passes through the Torres Straits, (Cook ignorant of Torres discovery) Busted Bay, Thirsty Sound, Endeavour River, visited and named by Cook.

Cook, On the 2nd August 1770, he landed a party of Marines on Possession Island and claimed possession of the land in name of King of Great Britain, George 111 (see Captain Cook's orders)