Departure of HMS Endeavour
- When
- 1768
- Where
- Britain; Admiralty; Earl of Pembroke; Gallions Reach, Thames; Plymouth
- Episodes
- 5
On 26 August 1768 HMS Endeavour, the former collier Earl of Pembroke commanded by Lieutenant James Cook, departed Plymouth with 18 months of provisions for 94 people, beginning the first of Cook's three Pacific voyages. The expedition's publicly stated goal was to observe the 1769 transit of Venus from Tahiti.
Episodes
- Royal Society petition for a Pacific expedition
The Royal Society petitioned King George III in February 1768 to finance a scientific expedition to observe the 1769 transit of Venus.
- Cook appointed to command the expedition
On 5 May 1768, on Hugh Palliser's recommendation, the Admiralty selected the 39-year-old Cook to lead the voyage.
- Cook takes command of Earl of Pembroke
On 27 May 1768 Cook took command of the Earl of Pembroke, a collier purchased for the Society's expedition.
- Endeavour takes on armaments at Gallions Reach
On 21 July 1768 Endeavour sailed to Gallions Reach on the Thames to load armaments for protection in the Pacific.
- Departure of HMS Endeavour from Plymouth
In late August 1768 Endeavour departed Plymouth carrying 18 months of provisions for 94 people, beginning the first voyage; sources disagree on whether the date was 25 or 26 August.
Background and detail
Background. In February 1768 the Royal Society petitioned King George III to finance a Pacific expedition to observe the 1769 transit of Venus. That May, based on Hugh Palliser's recommendation, the Admiralty selected the 39-year-old Cook to lead the voyage, and he took command of the Earl of Pembroke, a collier the Navy renamed Endeavour.
Preparations. In July 1768 Endeavour sailed to Gallions Reach on the Thames to take on armaments against potentially hostile Pacific island natives. The vessel had been purchased for a scientific mission to the Pacific and to search for the surmised Terra Australis Incognita, the 'unknown southern land'.
Departure from Plymouth. Commissioned as His Majesty's Bark Endeavour, the ship departed Plymouth on 26 August 1768, carrying 18 months of provisions for 94 people. She headed south, continuing along the African coast and across the Atlantic toward South America.
People involved
- James Cook · Commander of HMS Endeavour
Sources
- HMS Endeavour Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-21
- James Cook Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-22
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.