From 1708 to 1711, Woodes Rogers led a South Pacific privateering voyage to raid French and Spanish
From 1708 to 1711, Woodes Rogers led a South Pacific privateering voyage to raid French and Spanish ships for England. The crew included Captain Edward Cooke, who wrote about their experiences. On January 31, 1709, the crew saw a fire on Juan Fernandez Island, near Chile. The next day, they anchored at the island and met Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish castaway living alone since 1704 after abandoning a British expedition. Selkirk lit the fire to alert the ship, which he assumed was British and therefore, an ally. Previously, Selkirk had only encountered Spanish ships and decided to hide from them. During Selkirk’s first several months on the island, he built two huts with Pimento trees and lined them with goatskin after using his gun to kill goats. He was able to create fire by rubbing two sticks of Pimento wood. It was hard for Selkirk to digest fish without salt as a preservative, but he could eat crawfish, goats, turnips, cabbage, and season his food with allspice from the pimento trees. Selkirk had befriended cats who escaped ships that visited the island. One of his amusements was to teach his cats and goats how to dance, as pictured here. Selkirk was the inspiration for Daniel Defoe’s fictional character, Robinson Crusoe.Images from:Henry, David. An Historical Account of All the Voyages Round the World, Performed by English Navigators… Vol. 2. London: printed for F. Newberry …, 1773-74.Call Number: G240 .H52 Vol. 2Catalog Record: https://bit.ly/3tySX6x -- source link
Tumblr Blog : noelcollection.tumblr.com
#oceanic exploration#robinson crusoe#islands#south pacific