Captain James Cook, a British Navigator, Cartographer and explorer was one of the pre-eminent sailors and innovators of his age. Now a controversial figure for indigenous cultures who see him as the instigator and symbol of European colonial expansion and genocide; the real James Cook was actually quite a different man to what has been imagined. Coming from abject poverty in rural Yorkshire England; raised among the pacifist and hard working Quakers, he dreamed of sailing to far off lands in the pacific since he was a boy. Working as an apprentice aboard a grubby Whitby Cat collier, he soon proved himself a hard working and competent sailor. He was later to join the Royal Navy and sail to Canada, taking part in the siege of Louisburg and Quebec, while learning the cartography and surveying skills that were to revolutionise the Navy from that time on. James Cook circumnavigated the globe three times, charted approximately a third of the unknown coastlines of the globe; beginning with his first voyage aboard the Endeavour, with Naturalists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander. He was the first man to sail below, and above the 70th parallel, and his regime of hygiene and fresh food revolutionised the management of scurvy while at sea. For this, he was admitted as a fellow to the Royal Society, as well as raised from the rank of Master, to Lieutenant and then Post Captain -something that would otherwise have caused a scandal among the high society gentry, if it were not for his incredible reputation. In all three of his major voyages, spanning twenty years, he never lost one crew member to the disease, which was an astonishing achievement when compared to a 40% plus death rate that was typical of long range voyages in the time preceding his. His untimely murder in Hawaii robbed the world of a humble, humane and dedicated leader, whose legacy now risks being tarnished by historical revisionists more focused on political activism than historical reality. #captaincook, #jamescook, #realhero, #aussiehero, #endeavour, #Australia, #navigator, #cartographer, #circumnavigation 00:08:10 Whitby, the Walkers and his apprenticeship 00:09:42 The Quakers 00:20:00 Royal Navy career in Canada and charting development 00:31:15 Circumnavigation 1: The Venus Transit expedition 00:41:41 Tahiti 00:45:03 New Zealand and Tupaia's Maori mediation 00:48:43 The New Holland Coast 00:53:51 Shipwreck and Aboriginal interaction 00:56:29 Rounding the top end and claiming New Holland 00:58:27 Disaster in Batavia 01:01:00 Circumnavigation 2: the 60th Parallel and terra incognita 01:06:00 Honours back home 01:07:17 Circumnavigation 3: Hawaii, Alaska and the Northwest Passage 01:11:25 Conflict and death in Hawaii 01:17:26 The "Noble Savage"? 01:18:46 Legacy and conclusion Searchable copies of both Cook's and Bank's journals are available : https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-228958465/view https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20110315072757/http://southseas.nla.gov.au/journals/banks/contents.html ERRATA / CORRIGENDA: Thanks to all the viewers who wrote in with corrections! Its difficult to produce this kind of material over many long hours without an editorial team, so the odd error creeping in is inevitable! 1. Linnaeus was incorrectly addressed as Swiss rather than Swedish. Sincere apologies to my Swedish viewers! 2. The opening sequences show Lenin's bust rather than Stalin- for which I had no acceptable statue image- apologies for any confusion. 3. The pronunciation of Staithes has the "e" remain silent. Apologies to my English friends 4. Elizabeth Batts Cook lived to be 93 and not 85 years old as was incorrectly stated in the film. Closing music: Long Road Ahead by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100588 Artist: http://incompetech.com/ Some viewers have complained about the music choice and volume - so I have uploaded another copy of this video -minus the music tracks- here: https://youtu.be/hbj119ex8LU A narration-only audio version of this video (i.e. minus the music) is available on the Heroes and Legends Documentary Channel Podcast. Simply search on Spotify, Itunes or one of the other leading providers for details. If you enjoy my content, leave your suggestions and comments below, and please consider making a donation via the heart-shaped Thanks link on your screen; via PayPal or sign up as a Patreon supporter to help me continue making these unfunded educational videos: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=4D958V58PAVDU https://www.patreon.com/heroesandlegends https://buymeacoffee.com/infoQh For resources, links to my other videos, merchandise, the latest social media posts and podcast links, please visit my Heroes and Legends Website: www.heroesandlegends.com.au ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6Fz88l2vlo

This is a story about a little known, yet much misunderstood hero. But more than that it is also a story about a clash of philosophies, the dawn of a new era; a young nation, and a once mighty one - both in their own way experiencing an identity crisis. In 1911, a young Norwegian explorer called Roald Amundsen reached the south Geographic Pole in a slick, clinical, sportsmanlike operation, having recently also been the first man to sail through the fabled North-West Passage on the other side of the globe. In doing so, he eclipsed a massive, lavishly funded, British polar expedition which was characterised by poor organisation, incompetent leadership and gross negligence that led to tragic suffering and loss of life. What followed in Britain was nothing less than a public cover-up, and whitewashing of their own expedition’s failures. Amundsen was characterised as a usurper and glory seeker, such that his reputation suffered even in his own fledgling nation of Norway. Undeterred, he would nevertheless push on with his polar ambitions, pioneering technology and protocols that saw him become the first explorer to reach both the north and south poles, the first to fly a plane beyond the arctic circle and even the first to fly an airship over the North Pole. A very private and driven man unused to public life or promotional spin, his serious and reserved nature won him few friends, while his unromantic writing style and matter of fact lectures hardly fired the popular imagination, hungry as they were for swashbuckling heroics and adventure; such that his stature has been overshadowed by the likes of Scott and Shackleton. In recent decades, a more sober reflection on what we now call the Heroic age of Polar exploration has begun to restore Amundsen to his pre-eminent position as the greatest of all Polar explorers. He was a man who spent years among the Netsilik Eskimo, studying their survival skills in minute detail, while astutely observing their culture with the greatest admiration and respect; pragmatically and successfully adopting their stone age wisdom while also embracing cutting edge technology. He was a man ahead of his time, yet was wise enough to apply the skills of the ancient ways in attaining his arctic goals. Join us as we dive into the life and times of Roald Amundsen, quiet conqueror of the earth’s Polar regions. #amundsen #roaldamundsen #explorer #northpole #southpole #arctic #antarctica #shackleton #norway #hero All footage used in this montage remains the property of its respected creators, and is gratefully acknowledged in the end credits. Content: 00:00 02:20 Fritjof Nansen's Greenland expedition 04:36 Sir John Franklin's expeditions 17:09 Fritjof Nansen's Fram Expedition to the North Pole 23:08 The Belgica Expedition 1897 30:53 Amundsen's North West Passage Expedition 53:50 The British Discovery Expedition 59:45 Ernest Shackleton's Nimrod Expedition 1:05:40 Amundsens Decision to head South 1:12:02 Scott v Amundsen- the race is on 1:27:35 Scott's push for the Pole 1:37:50 Amundsen's Maud Expedition 1:39:50 Lincoln Elseworth and The Dornier flights 1:41:42 The Norge Airship Expedition 1:45:28 Closing Remarks ERRATA / CORRIGENDA: 1. In the introduction (only), the south pole conquest is mentioned as happening in 1912, instead of 1911. Oops. 2. At 29:40 the narrator says the sun returned in June. in Antarctica the sun actually returns in September If you enjoy my content, leave your suggestions and comments below, and please consider making a donation via the heart-shaped Thanks link on your Youtube screen; via PayPal; or why not sign up as a Patreon supporter to help me continue making these unfunded educational videos: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=4D958V58PAVDU https://www.patreon.com/heroesandlegends https://buymeacoffee.com/infoQh For an audio-narration only version of this video please visit the Heroes and Legends Documentary Channel Podcast, via Spotify, Itunes or other leading broadcasters. For resources, links to my other videos, merchandise, the latest social media posts and podcast links, please visit my Heroes and Legends Website: www.heroesandlegends.com.au ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFVnzRTc84U