François Thijssen
Encyclopedia
François Thijssen or Frans Thijsz (died 13 October 1638?) was a Dutch
explorer
who explored the southern coast of Australia
.
He was the captain of the ship t Gulden Zeepaerdt (The Golden Seahorse) when sailing from Cape of Good Hope
to Batavia. On this voyage, he ended up too far to the south and on January 26, 1627 he came upon the coast of Australia
, near Cape Leeuwin
.
Thijssen continued to sail eastwards, mapping more than 1500 kilometres of Australia's coast. He called the land t Land van Pieter Nuyts
(The Land of Pieter Nuyts
), referring to the highest VOC
official aboard his ship. Part of Thijssen's map shows the islands St Francis and St Peter, now known collectively with their respective groups as the Nuyts Archipelago
. The ship, which had been built in Middelburg
and left Zeeland
on 22 May 1626, finally arrived in Batavia on 10 April 1627. Thijssen's observations were included as soon as 1628 by the VOC cartographer Hessel Gerritsz
in a chart of the Indies and New Holland.
This voyage defined most of the southern coast of Australia and discouraged the notion that "New Holland", as it was then known, was linked to Antarctica. Much later, Thijssen's findings led Jean Pierre Purry to propose a Dutch colony on the mainland there in 1717-18. In his 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels
, Jonathon Swift placed Lilliput and Blefuscu
near the unimaginably remote Nuyts Archipelago a hundred years after their discovery. Indeed, present day South Australia
would not be visited again by Europeans for 165 years, when in 1792 the French explorer Bruny d'Entrecasteaux searched there for his lost compatriot La Pérouse
.
Thijssen took the "Gulden Zeepaerdt" back to Middelburg on a 1629-1630 voyage. He was captain on the ship "Valk" which sailed in 1636 from Zeeland to Batavia. Later, this ship perished near Pulicat
in southeast India on 13 October 1638, though it is unclear if François Thijssen was its captain at the time.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
explorer
Exploration
Exploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
who explored the southern coast of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
He was the captain of the ship t Gulden Zeepaerdt (The Golden Seahorse) when sailing from Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
to Batavia. On this voyage, he ended up too far to the south and on January 26, 1627 he came upon the coast of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, near Cape Leeuwin
Cape Leeuwin
Cape Leeuwin is the most south-westerly mainland point of the Australian Continent, in the state of Western Australia.A few small islands and rocks, the St Alouarn Islands, extend further to the south. The nearest settlement, north of the cape, is Augusta. South-east of Cape Leeuwin, the coast...
.
Thijssen continued to sail eastwards, mapping more than 1500 kilometres of Australia's coast. He called the land t Land van Pieter Nuyts
Pieter Nuyts
Pieter Nuyts or Nuijts was a Dutch explorer, diplomat, and politician.He was part of a landmark expedition of the Dutch East India Company in 1626–27, which mapped the southern coast of Australia. He became the Dutch ambassador to Japan in 1627, and he was appointed Governor of Formosa in the same...
(The Land of Pieter Nuyts
Pieter Nuyts
Pieter Nuyts or Nuijts was a Dutch explorer, diplomat, and politician.He was part of a landmark expedition of the Dutch East India Company in 1626–27, which mapped the southern coast of Australia. He became the Dutch ambassador to Japan in 1627, and he was appointed Governor of Formosa in the same...
), referring to the highest VOC
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
official aboard his ship. Part of Thijssen's map shows the islands St Francis and St Peter, now known collectively with their respective groups as the Nuyts Archipelago
Nuyts Archipelago
The Nuyts Archipelago, including the Isles of St Francis, comprises a group of mainly small and mostly granitic islands lying off Ceduna, South Australia, at the eastern end of the Great Australian Bight and the north-western coast of the Eyre Peninsula...
. The ship, which had been built in Middelburg
Middelburg
Middelburg is a municipality and a city in the south-western Netherlands and the capital of the province of Zeeland. It is situated in the Midden-Zeeland region. It has a population of about 48,000.- History of Middelburg :...
and left Zeeland
Zeeland
Zeeland , also called Zealand in English, is the westernmost province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the south-west of the country, consists of a number of islands and a strip bordering Belgium. Its capital is Middelburg. With a population of about 380,000, its area is about...
on 22 May 1626, finally arrived in Batavia on 10 April 1627. Thijssen's observations were included as soon as 1628 by the VOC cartographer Hessel Gerritsz
Hessel Gerritsz
Hessel Gerritsz was a Dutch engraver, cartographer and publisher. Despite strong competition, he is considered by some “unquestionably the chief Dutch cartographer of the 17th century”...
in a chart of the Indies and New Holland.
This voyage defined most of the southern coast of Australia and discouraged the notion that "New Holland", as it was then known, was linked to Antarctica. Much later, Thijssen's findings led Jean Pierre Purry to propose a Dutch colony on the mainland there in 1717-18. In his 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels
Gulliver's Travels
Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships, better known simply as Gulliver's Travels , is a novel by Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift that is both a satire on human nature and a parody of...
, Jonathon Swift placed Lilliput and Blefuscu
Lilliput and Blefuscu
Lilliput and Blefuscu are two fictional island nations that appear in the first part of the 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. The two islands are neighbors in the South Indian Ocean, separated by a channel eight hundred yards wide. Both are inhabited by tiny people who are about...
near the unimaginably remote Nuyts Archipelago a hundred years after their discovery. Indeed, present day South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
would not be visited again by Europeans for 165 years, when in 1792 the French explorer Bruny d'Entrecasteaux searched there for his lost compatriot La Pérouse
Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse
Jean François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse was a French Navy officer and explorer whose expedition vanished in Oceania.-Early career:...
.
Thijssen took the "Gulden Zeepaerdt" back to Middelburg on a 1629-1630 voyage. He was captain on the ship "Valk" which sailed in 1636 from Zeeland to Batavia. Later, this ship perished near Pulicat
Pulicat
Pulicat is a historic seashore town in Thiruvallur District, of Tamil Nadu state, South India. It is about 60 km north of Chennai and 3 km from Elavur, on the barrier island of Sriharikota, which separates Pulicat Lake from the Bay of Bengal. Pulicat lake is a shallow salt water lagoon...
in southeast India on 13 October 1638, though it is unclear if François Thijssen was its captain at the time.
Sources
- Michael Pearson Great Southern Land. The maritime explorations of Terra Australis (2005) (published by the Australian government department of the environment and heritage)
- Data on trips of the VOC ships ‘’Gulden Zeepaard’’ and ‘’Valk’’