The Wide Wide Sea

hampton sides, the wide wide sea, the fateful final voyage of captain james cook captain james cook's voyages have recently come under scrutiny as part of a broader reassessment of colonial legacies.

though cook himself was primarily an explorer and cartographer, his expeditions heralded the arrival of european colonisers bringing with them guns, disease and exploitation that deeply affected indigenous peoples across the pacific from new zealand to alaska.

this narrative history focuses on cook's third voyage, the most dramatic and extensive of his travels involving over 180 men and spanning thousands of miles.

it chronicles not only cook's epic journey but also the broader implications of his expeditions offering a complex view of their enduring global significance.

the pride of great britain in 1776, captain james cook was at the peak of his fame.

he was a world-renowned explorer who charted the iciest corners of the planet.

his two monumental voyages were hailed by england's king george iii as well as by scientists and anthropologists everywhere.

his personal life, however, was less glamorous.

he lived a modest life in london with his wife elizabeth, enduring a strained relationship due to his frequent absences at sea.

elizabeth had endured the grief of losing three of their five children while cook was away and cook himself felt restless at home, longing for the purpose and discipline of naval life.

cook's rise from a farm manager's son to a celebrated explorer was remarkable.

his career began in the coal-hauling ships of whitby, leading to a royal navy commission to observe the transit of venus in the south pacific, which launched his legendary status.

cook was not only a skilled navigator but also an early anthropologist who approached indigenous cultures with respect.

he made significant advances in preventing scurvy among his crew and revolutionised navigation with the newly invented marine chronometer, which allowed him to map new territories with remarkable accuracy.

now, in 1776, the 46-year-old cook was drawn back to exploration by a new admiralty mission.

this expedition had an element of secrecy to it.

part of the mission was to explore the icy northwest coast of north america in search of the northwest passage, a route that might provide english ships passage from the pacific to the atlantic.

cook eagerly accepted the command of this final voyage.

while some thought it hubris for him to press his luck on a third journey, he was driven by a passion for exploration and belief in his continued success.

this final voyage promised to extend his legacy, blending his achievements in exploration with his unrelenting curiosity.

a dubious plan charles clark, captain cook's loyal second-in-command, was chosen to command discovery, the sister ship to resolution.

the expedition was carefully plotted by cook and the admiralty to search for the northwest passage from the pacific side, a strategy they hoped would give britain a commercial advantage over its european rivals.

the expedition had strong backing, notably from lord john montagu, the fourth earl of sandwich, who theorised that saltwater didn't freeze, which would theoretically allow cook to navigate arctic waters.

the planned route took the ships around africa through the polynesian islands and then northward to the arctic waters of north america.

there was another element, however.

captain cook was also tasked with returning a young polynesian named mai to his homeland.

mai had become a sensation in london after arriving from the south pacific in 1774 aboard the ship adventure.

born on the island of ryatea, which had been overrun by the bora-borans, mai sought revenge and hoped that english military power could help him reclaim his family's honour.

after gaining the favour of figures as prestigious as king george iii, who promised to return him home, mai's return journey was planned as part of cook's third voyage.

king george also wanted to introduce british farming practices to tahiti by giving mai custody of various animals and seeds, which lent the resolution the feel of a noah's ark.

cook said farewell to his family on june 23rd, unaware that it would be their last meeting.

the ships, loaded with supplies and notable officers like william bly, set sail on june 25th, with clark expected to rendezvous in south africa.

by july 24th, resolution reached the canary islands after navigating harsh waters, while the discovery finally departed england with clark aboard, unknowingly carrying tuberculosis.

discovery arrived in cape town in late november, reuniting clark with cook.

after a month of rest and repairs, both ships continued their journey into the unknown, with cook setting a course for new zealand, compelled by instructions to revisit a grim incident from his second expedition.

this involved an episode on new zealand's south island, where ten sailors from adventure had been killed by members of the maori tribe, some reportedly mutilated and eaten.

the incident had shocked britain, and while cook had positive encounters with the maori during his previous visits, he was determined to investigate and understand the reasons behind this violent event.

a complicated return home on february 10th, 1777, the resolution and discovery approached new zealand's south island.

initially, the maori believed that cook was there for revenge.

with mai as translator, cook tried to assure them that his intentions were peaceful.

as the crew set up tents and the animals were brought out to graze, tensions began to melt.

the maori had never seen horses or cows before.

their curiosity peaked, the maori began to approach in increasing numbers, leading to a bustling scene of trade and interaction.

cook began his investigation, and soon learned that a maori chief named kahura was known to have led the massacre of the englishmen.

apparently, after a maori tribesman had stolen some bread, one of the sailors overreacted and shot him.

this had led to a violent altercation that resulted in another tribe member being killed.

chief kahura then led an assault that killed the ten english sailors.

when cook met kahura, and kahura admitted to the killing, even mai believed that cook should have shot kahura on the spot.

but both cook and captain clark agreed that more violence was not the answer.

cook was already worried about how european contact has affected indigenous cultures, and he didn't want to cause further disruption.

with the mystery solved to his satisfaction, the ship sailed on to tahiti and the society islands.

tahiti was already well known by the crew for its legendary beauty and pleasures.

but for mai, the return to his homeland brought a mix of joy and anxiety over how he would be received after his years away.

in speaking with the local chief, cook became convinced that mai would have trouble staying.

despite mai's blessing from king george, he was still seen as low status due to his family heritage.

for his part, mai didn't really care.

he remained fixated on seeking revenge against his enemies, the bora borans.

so cook decided to move on and try elsewhere.

when they came to the island of hua hin, cook found the tribal chief very amenable to the idea of welcoming mai.

the chief gave mai a plot of land, and the crew built a house, planted a garden, and unloaded the menagerie of animals.

when it came to farewells, mai was in tears, hugging cook, who'd become something of a father figure to him.

for his part, cook remained uncertain about mai's future, unsure if he'd be able to reintegrate himself into this society.

one of the crewmen on this voyage, william bly, would return to hua hin in 1789.

by that time, he'd learned that mai had died only a couple years after they'd departed in 1780 from a viral throat infection believed to have been introduced by spanish visitors to tahiti.

not only that, but bly found very few remnants of mai's life or any of the many possessions he'd been given.

an unexpected visit in november 1777, resolution and discovery left hua hin and the rest of the society islands behind.

when they began their journey north across the pacific, they were venturing into uncharted territory, 5,000 miles of open ocean.

but they expected that.

they thought they'd see nothing until they hit the coast of north america.

however, they soon found something.

on december 23rd, a low coral island was spotted, which cook named christmas island, now kiritimati.

the crew celebrated christmas there with a feast of local seafood before resuming their voyage.

then, on january 18th, 1778, cook and his crew sighted a lush volcanic island, part of what would later be known as the hawaiian islands.

this was a completely unexpected surprise.

the first island encountered was kauai.

cook and his men were struck by its beauty and fertile land.

even more remarkable was the fact that the islanders spoke a language very similar to tahitian.

this revealed to cook that the polynesians had amazing seafaring skills, though it seemed that the hawaiians had lost contact with their tahitian relatives long ago.

mostly, cook was thoroughly enchanted by the islanders' vibrant culture and way of life, sensing he had encountered a rich civilization.

he admired the kauaian people's craftsmanship, from their tapa cloth made of mulberry bark to their intricately designed weapons.

he was impressed by the island's thriving population and abundant resources.

as with the tahitians, the women here were also very eager to engage sexually with cook's crew, though it was noted by his men that cook himself always remained chaste.

cook did not claim the hawaiian islands for britain, suspecting they might fall into spanish hands.

after a brief stay, resolution and discovery headed north toward the american continent.

cook's focus remained on exploration and mapping rather than territorial claims, in line with his broader scientific mission.

an elusive passage on march 7, 1778, captain cook's ships, resolution and discovery, sighted land along what is now oregon's coastline.

enduring storms and fog that limited visibility, they navigated up the coast toward alaska.

by march 29, they found a peaceful inlet surrounded by snow-capped peaks, which cook named nootka sound after a misinterpretation of a native phrase.

the local moa chart people, who had lived there for millennia, greeted the crew in 32 canoes, leading to a rich cultural exchange that included trade and music played by cook's men.

as the ships continued northward into stormier seas, they reached prince william sound on april 26, where cook seized the opportunity to repair a dangerous leak in resolution.

after sending exploration teams into the bay's two major arms without success, cook pressed on through treacherous waters along the kenai peninsula.

on may 25, they discovered what was later named cook inlet, though cook cursed it as a waste of time after finding it unproductive.

by july 1, cook's expedition found a true passage to the bering sea, navigating through the aleutian islands and along alaska's west coast, where he named various landmarks.

a week later, cook reached cape prince of wales, the westernmost point of alaska, and briefly visited the eastern edge of asia, where the chukchi people welcomed him with whale meat and shared their way of life.

by august 11, cook had crossed from asia back to north america, becoming the first captain to cross both the antarctic and arctic circles.

however, as cook ventured into the arctic ocean, he encountered a massive ice wall, quickly disproving lord sandwich's theory that saltwater doesn't freeze.

forced to retreat, cook's ships escaped the ice by august 21 and returned to the chukchi sea.

realising that further progress was impossible, cook planned to return to alaska in the spring for another attempt at the northwest passage.

by august 29, 1778, cook redirected his expedition towards hawaii, eager to return to the warmth of the tropical islands after a summer of challenging exploration.

as resolution and discovery once again reached the hawaiian islands, cook made the surprising decision to remain offshore.

this puzzled the crew who, after the tough voyage from the arctic, were eager to land.

cook's strategy was to prevent the spread of venereal disease that was affecting his crew and to better manage interactions with the islanders in order to avoid conflicts.

so cook circled around the islands and was drawn to the larger island of hawaii with its impressive snow-capped volcanoes.

so it was that on january 17, 1779, cook and his crew reached kealakekua bay on hawaii's kona coast, a site of deep spiritual significance.

kealakekua was central to hawaiian royalty and the home of lono, the god of peace and fertility.

vast crowds, numbering up to 10,000 people and 1,000 canoes, poured out from the bay and greeted the ships with intense enthusiasm.

faced with such an overwhelming greeting, it was difficult to enforce cook's offshore strategy, and by late january they needed to get ashore for repairs and supplies.

but cook's arrival during this significant religious festival led to a ceremonial reception.

as he stepped onto the beach, locals performed rituals and chanted lono.

historians debate whether the hawaiians truly viewed cook as lono.

some believe this is the case, while others think it might have been a strategic move by priests to gain favor with cook.

nevertheless, many crew members were under the impression that he was seen as the embodiment of one of the kealakekuan's most cherished gods.

as usual, cook and his crew began setting up camp and engaging in trade.

however, the jubilant mood changed when the powerful local king, kalani opu, made his return on january 26th.

the king's return was meant to signify a shift to a new season, represented by a different god.

kalani opu presented cook with a magnificent feathered cloak and helmet.

but as time went on, the king grew frustrated with cook's prolonged stay, which strained local resources and violated sacred traditions.

cook sensed this frustration, but as resolution and discovery attempted to leave on february 3rd, the weather was not cooperative.

when they tried to cross the channel toward maui, a storm broke resolution's foremast, causing cook to limp back to kealakekua for repairs.

upon return, things quickly turned from bad to worse.

on february 14th, a boat that was tied to the side of discovery was stolen.

cook was livid and began to consider drastic measures.

he planned a blockade of the bay and hatched a plot to kidnap kalani opu and hold him for ransom until the boat was returned.

as cook began to coax kalani opu to resolution, the situation rapidly deteriorated.

efforts to enforce the blockade were going poorly and the hawaiians grew hostile.

rocks were being hurled at the crew and shots were fired.

cook's attempt to control the situation failed.

despite his efforts to retreat, cook was attacked and brutally killed along with four other officers.

a crew returns without their captains.

after cook's death, the expedition fell into disarray, but charles clark, despite being gravely ill with tuberculosis, took command.

he sent lieutenant bly to retrieve essential supplies and tasked lieutenant king with negotiating for cook's remains.

however, tensions ran high as the crew faced resistance from the islanders, leading to a violent confrontation in which many hawaiians were killed and their homes burned.

the hawaiians, intimidated by the europeans' firepower, eventually sought peace and returned some of cook's body and possessions.

a somber funeral for cook was held aboard resolution on february 21.

with repairs completed, the expedition finally departed kealakekua bay on february 23, 1779, but continued to face difficulties.

clark, severely weakened, attempted to carry on with the mission to find the northwest passage, but was ultimately thwarted by insurmountable ice barriers in alaska.

his tuberculosis worsened and he died on august 22, 1779, at a russian port in petropavlovsk, where he was buried.

leadership then passed to john gore, who commanded resolution, while james king took charge of discovery.

the ships continued their journey, navigating through the kuril islands, japan, and taiwan, before arriving in macau in december, 1779.

back in england, news of cook's death reached london in january, 1780, shocking the nation and deeply distressing king george iii and others.

by october 7, 1780, after one of the longest voyages in maritime history, the expedition finally returned to london, remarkably without losing any crew members to scurvy.

cook's legacy, however, endured in hawaii, where his bones became part of local rituals and his memory was woven into the island's history.

over a century later, in 1874, the hawaiian princess lightlike gifted a white obelisk to mark the site of cook's death, a monument that continues to attract visitors, though it has been a site of contention.

when the author visited the memorial site, the obelisk had been vandalised with red paint and a message, you are on native land.

the main takeaway of this chapter to the wide, wide sea by hampton sides is that captain james cook embarked on his third and final voyage while at the height of his fame.

the mission was to explore the pacific northwest in search of the elusive northwest passage.

along the way, cook was often faced with the profound impact of european encounters with indigenous peoples.

the story builds to a tragic climax with cook's untimely death in hawaii, reflecting the broader consequences of european exploration and the collision of cultures.

at the time, cook was seen as an expert navigator, a curious explorer and a thoughtful anthropologist, but his death was the result of cultural insensitivity and he is now viewed by many as a prime representative of british colonisation and its overreach.

ok, that's it for now.

we hope you enjoyed it.

see you in the next chapter.