Where Fate Beckons: The Life of Jean-François de la Pérouse (Volume 2)

by John Dunmore

French explorer and naval officer Jean-François de la Pérouse (1741–88) was, after James Cook, the greatest explorer of the Pacific in the eighteenth century. In 1785, La Pérouse was commissioned by Louis XVI to head an expedition into the uncharted regions of the Pacific Ocean. Setting out from France, the expedition over the next three years was the first to map the coasts of California, Alaska, and Siberia. From there, La Pérouse continued to Easter Island and Hawaii, where La Pérouse Bay bears his name. After a stop in Botany Bay, Australia, La Pérouse's two ships set out for the Solomon Islands. En route, they encountered a storm and were sunk; despite search efforts over the centuries, no trace of the wreckage of La Pérouse's ships has been found.


Where Fate Beckons tells the story of La Pérouse's life and adventures, along the way providing a lively introduction to the world of French colonialism, the end of the Age of Exploration, and French society in the years leading to the French Revolution.

Genres: Biography

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 20, 2010

About the author

John Dunmore is professor emeritus of French at Massey University, New Zealand and has written more than twenty books on French navigation in the Pacific.

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading about the life of La Perouse. He is one of the characters that we have heard of, but not many people know much about him. Especially with regard to Australian history, as he arrived at Botany Bay at the same time as the First Fleet in 1788 and then just literally disappeared, never to be heard of again. The book starts at his childhood and goes through to his disappearance, including his love with Elanor. It's a great story and the book is immaculately written and researched.