Admiral William Henry Smyth (1780 1865) went to sea at an early age, becoming a sailor and surveyor with the East India Company, and later moving to Mediterranean waters. A founding member of the Royal Geographical Society in 1830, he spent much of his free time engaged in scientific pursuits. One of his final projects was this 'word-book' of nautical terminology, which he had been compiling throughout his career, and whose publication was eagerly anticipated by his fellow naval officers. Although Smyth died before it was published in 1867, his notes were edited by his family and revised by...

When the experienced Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin (1786 1847) was put in command of an expedition in 1845 to search for the elusive North-West Passage he had the backing of the Admiralty and was equipped with two specially-adapted ships and a three-year supply of provisions. Franklin was last seen by whalers in Baffin Bay in July 1845. When the expedition failed to return in 1848, enormous resources were mobilised to try to discover its fate. In 1852 H.M.S. 'Assistance' was sent to lead another search mission. It was captained by Edward Belcher (1799 1877), who eventually took the...

When the experienced Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin (1786 1847) was put in command of an expedition in 1845 to search for the elusive North-West Passage he had the backing of the Admiralty and was equipped with two specially-adapted ships and a three-year supply of provisions. Franklin was last seen by whalers in Baffin Bay in July 1845. When the expedition failed to return in 1848, enormous resources were mobilised to try to discover its fate. In 1852 H.M.S. 'Assistance' was sent to lead another search mission. It was captained by Edward Belcher (1799 1877), who recounts his unsuccessful...

Sir Edward Belcher (1799 1877) was a British naval officer who served as surveyor on several long voyages in the Atlantic and Pacific. Published in 1848, this two-volume account, interspersed with charts and illustrations, was the second of his journals to appear in print, and appealed to Victorian readers' enthusiasm for books on exploration, natural history, ethnology and adventure. Volume 1 combines reports on navigation and encounters with pirates with vivid descriptions of coral reefs, villages and temples. It describes the topography and inhabitants of exotic locations including Borneo,...

Sir Edward Belcher (1799 1877) was a British naval officer who served as surveyor on several long voyages in the Atlantic and Pacific. Published in 1848, this two-volume account, interspersed with charts and illustrations, was the second of his journals to appear in print, and appealed to Victorian readers' enthusiasm for books on exploration, natural history, ethnology and adventure. In Volume 2, Belcher recounts dramatic episodes on his return journey to England from Japan via Hong Kong and Mauritius. This volume incorporates an engaging, and sometimes alarming, commentary on flora and...