A Voyage Round the World (1777)

A Voyage Round the World (complete title A Voyage Round the World in His Britannic Majesty's Sloop, Resolution, Commanded by Capt. James Cook, During the Years 1772, 3, 4, and 5) is Georg Forster's report on the second voyage of the British explorer James Cook. During the preparations for Cook's voyage, the expedition's naturalist Joseph Banks had withdrawn his participation, and Georg's father, Johann Reinhold Forster, had taken his place at very short notice, with his seventeen-year-old son as his assistant. They sailed on HMS Resolution with Cook, accompanied by HMS Adventure under Tobias Furneaux. On the voyage, they circumnavigated the world, crossed the Antarctic Circle and sailed as far south as 71° 10′, discovered several Pacific islands, encountered diverse cultures and described many species of plants and animals.

When they returned to England after more than three years, disagreement about the publication rights for a narrative of the journey arose. After plans agreed with John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, the First Lord of the Admiralty, to publish a joint work with contributions by both Cook and Reinhold Forster had fallen through, Georg, who was not bound by any agreement with the Admiralty, began writing Voyage in July 1776. He published on 17 March 1777, six weeks before Cook's A Voyage Towards the South Pole and Round the World appeared. While 63 copper engravings, paid for by the Admiralty, illustrated Cook's account, only a chart of the Southern Hemisphere showing the expedition ships' courses illustrated Forster's Voyage, which was sold for the same price.

While Forster organised Voyage chronologically, he wrote it as entertaining literature, focusing not on the nautical aspects of the voyage but on scientific observations and on the cultural encounters with the peoples of the South Pacific. This was well received by critics, who praised the writing, especially in contrast to Cook's book, but sales were slow. Controversy continued after the publication. Resolution astronomer William Wales suspected Reinhold Forster of being the true author and published many accusations in his Remarks on Mr Forster's Account of Captain Cook's last Voyage round the World that prompted a Reply to Mr Wales's Remarks in which Georg defended his father against the attacks.

Voyage brought Georg Forster great fame, especially in Germany. It is regarded as a seminal book in travel writing, considered a major influence on the explorer Alexander von Humboldt, and has become a classic of travel literature.

Background

The Royal Society of London suggested James Cook's first voyage, 1768–1771, to observe the 1769 transit of Venus from Tahiti. Following proposals by the geographer Alexander Dalrymple, the scope was widened to a voyage of discovery that was hoped to find the hypothetical continent of Terra Australis Incognita. Cook circumnavigated New Zealand, proving it was not attached to a landmass farther south, and mapped the east coast of Australia but had not found evidence for a large southern continent. After Cook's return, a second voyage was commissioned with the aim of circumnavigating the globe as far south as possible to finally find this famed continent. In the preparations for Cook's second voyage, Joseph Banks, the botanist on the first voyage, had been designated as the main scientific member of the crew. He asked for major changes to the expedition ship, HMS Resolution, which made it top-heavy and had to be mostly undone. Subsequently, dissatisfied with the ship, Banks announced on 24 May 1772 his refusal to go on the expedition.

On 26 May 1772, Johann Reinhold Forster, who had attempted unsuccessfully to become part of Banks's scientific entourage, was visited by the naval surgeon and inventor Charles Irving, who told Forster of Banks's decision and asked whether he would go instead. Forster accepted but requested that his seventeen-year-old son Georg should accompany him as his assistant. Irving relayed this to the First Secretary of the Admiralty, Philip Stephens. Forster was supported by the Royal Society's vice president Daines Barrington, whose friendship he had cultivated. The First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord Sandwich obtained the king's assent for Forster's appointment on 5 June, pre-empting attempts by Banks to force the Admiralty to comply with his demands. Financial questions still needed to be resolved. Barrington attempted to secure for Forster the £4,000 that Parliament had approved for Banks's would-be companion, James Lind. After Lord Sandwich recommended Forster to the prime minister, Lord North, as "one of the fittest persons in Europe for such an undertaking", mentioning Georg as a "very able draughtsman and designer", Lord North obtained the King's approval for a payment of £1,795 for equipment that Forster received on 17 June, as the first instalment of the £4,000. Additionally, despite not having a written contract and relying on Barrington's word only, Reinhold Forster believed he would be allowed to publish a narrative of the journey.