His Majesty’s Bark Endeavour

Captain Cook’s Ship on His First Global Circumnavigation, Endeavour's flat bottom was well suited for sailing along coasts in shallow waters and allowed the boat to be beached for the loading and unloading of cargo and for basic repairs. The addition of a third internal deck provided cabins and storerooms for men and supplies, and the Navy armed the ship with ten four-pounder cannons and twelve swivel guns.  She was a “full-rigged ship,” using square sails on three masts.   She measured 106 feet long and 29 feet wide, weighed 368 tons, and carried ninety-four men.

After the successful 'Darwin Beagle Diary' blog, from May 2011 I will be recording Captain James Cook's circumnavigation of the world on the Bark Endeavour.  The aim is to post each entry exactly 243 years later, his first being on 27th May, 1768.  We will be following his exploits day-by-day, together with the entries in the Journal kept by Sir Joseph Banks, the eminent botanist who was part of the expedition.