William Dampier (c.1651-1715) was a pirate and adventurer who was (albeit for chaotic and unintended reasons) the first man to voyage round the world three times. A New Voyage Round the World (1697), written from notes kept during his first long voyage, was a literary sensation (inspiring Gulliver's Travels) and the model for all the great British naturalists and explorers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. His many wanderings took him from the Arctic to the South Pacific. He rescued Alexander Selkirk from his four years in the Juan Fernandez Islands (inspiring Robinson Crusoe). He died back in England, having had one final triumph in successfully piloting a small fleet in the Pacific to capture a treasure-crammed 'Manila Galleon', a Spanish trading ship.
William Dampier's A Voyage to New Holland, Etc. in the Year 1699 is a captivating account of his travel experiences in the late 17th century. Written in a descriptive and informative style, the book provides a vivid portrait of the landscapes, people, and cultures encountered by...
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