A Pirate Of Exquisite Mind: The Life Of William Dampier

By: Diana Preston and Michael Preston

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Synopsis: 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.

Book Quality:: Publisher Quality
ISBN-13:: 9781446429181
Related ISBNs:: 9780552772105
Publisher:: Transworld
Date of Addition:: 08/17/18
Copyrighted By:: Doubleday
Adult content:: No
Language:: English
Has Image Descriptions:: No
Categories:: History, Military, Nonfiction, Biographies and Memoirs, Politics and Government
Grade Levels:: Twelfth grade
Submitted By:: Bookshare Staff
Usage Restrictions:: This is a copyrighted book.