A Pirate Of Exquisite Mind

The Life Of William Dampier

William Dampier, (1651-1715), was an English adventurer and pirate who preyed on ships on the Spanish Main. Poor and ill-educated and determined to make his fortune, he nonetheless had a passion for exploration and scientific research.

Dampier was the first to map the winds and currents of the world's oceans; led the first recorded party of Englishmen to set foot on Australia - 80 years before Cook; wrote about Galapagos wildlife 150 years before Darwin, who drew on Dampier's notes in his own work; was the first travel writer: A NEW VOYAGE AROUND THE WORLD was instant bestseller when it was published in 1697 - said to have influenced the novels of Swift and Defoe.

A man full of contradictions: he who achieved so much 'blew it' later in life, declining into scandal, failure and even farce. A unique man ahead of his time, he lived a large part of his life among pirates yet managed to preserve what Coleridge called his "exquisite refinement of mind". A classic example of the best narrative history.
Lively... extraordinary life - an unlikely combination of plundering and pioneering achievements in natural history and exploration
The Sunday Times

About Diana Preston

Details
  • Imprint: Corgi
  • ISBN: 9780552772105
  • Length: 512 pages
  • Dimensions: 198mm x 30mm x 126mm
  • Weight: 354g
  • Price: £10.99
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