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Endeavour: The Ship and the Attitude that Changed the World
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER. An inventive biography of one of the most famous ships of all time – an alluring combination of history, adventure and science.
‘HISTORY BOOK OF THE YEAR’ Christopher Hart, Sunday Times
From Johnson’s Dictionary to campaigns for liberty, the Enlightenment was an age of endeavours. ‘Endeavour’ was also the name given to a commonplace, coal-carrying vessel bought by the Royal Navy in 1768 for an expedition to the South Seas. No one could have guessed that Endeavour would go on to become the most significant ship in the history of British exploration.
Endeavour famously carried Captain James Cook on his first great voyage, but her complete story has never been told before. Here, Peter Moore sets out to explore the different lives of this remarkable ship – from the acorn that grew into the oak that made her, to her rich and complex legacy.
‘Fascinating and richly detailed... Peter Moore has brought us an acute insight into the ship that carried some of the most successful explorers across the world. A fine book that’s definitely worth exploring’ MICHAEL PALIN
‘HISTORY BOOK OF THE YEAR’ Christopher Hart, Sunday Times
From Johnson’s Dictionary to campaigns for liberty, the Enlightenment was an age of endeavours. ‘Endeavour’ was also the name given to a commonplace, coal-carrying vessel bought by the Royal Navy in 1768 for an expedition to the South Seas. No one could have guessed that Endeavour would go on to become the most significant ship in the history of British exploration.
Endeavour famously carried Captain James Cook on his first great voyage, but her complete story has never been told before. Here, Peter Moore sets out to explore the different lives of this remarkable ship – from the acorn that grew into the oak that made her, to her rich and complex legacy.
‘Fascinating and richly detailed... Peter Moore has brought us an acute insight into the ship that carried some of the most successful explorers across the world. A fine book that’s definitely worth exploring’ MICHAEL PALIN
432 pages, Paperback
First published August 20, 2018
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About the author
Peter Moore
6 books36 followersPeter Moore is an English writer, historian and lecturer. He is the author of Endeavour (2018) and The Weather Experiment (2015), which were both Sunday Times bestsellers in the United Kingdom. The Weather Experiment was also chosen as one of the New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2015. He teaches at the University of Oxford, has lectured internationally on eighteenth century history, and hosts a history podcast called Travels Through Time.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
August 14, 2023
I listened to the audio version of this book. Looking at my reading activity on GR, I can see I started it on 12 June, so it’s taken me just over 2 months to finish. It’s a longish audiobook – just shy of 20 hours – but even so, the time I’ve taken is maybe an indication that it wasn’t always grabbing my attention.
One particular feature of the audio version was that the narrator affected various accents when quoting from source material, including Yorkshire, Scottish, Irish, Australian, American, Swedish, French and German. When using the last two he kept reminding me of the characters in the British TV comedy “Allo! Allo!” Personally I would rather he hadn’t put on the accents.
The Endeavour was built (and originally named the Earl of Pembroke) in the Yorkshire town of Whitby in 1764, and the ship ended its days in 1778. The author uses the story of the ship as a focal point for the years of its existence, which he argues are some of the most important in the history of the world. It was of course the time of The Enlightenment, and it saw the first stirrings of the Industrial Revolution – James Watt’s Steam Engine was patented in 1769, Hargreaves’ Spinning Jenny in 1770, and 1776 saw the publication of Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations. That same year saw the American Declaration of Independence. The author tries to show how the ship was connected with, and was in some respects emblematic of, these significant events.
I felt it took a while to get going though. It begins with a discussion on the word “endeavour” and its usage in the later 18th century. Then there’s an entire chapter (about an hour long in the audio version) on English oak trees and their use in shipbuilding, followed by another, of similar length, on the history of the town of Whitby. I confess that at this point I wasn’t feeling too much love for the book. It’s only after these opening segments that we move to the construction of the ship, which was designed as a “collier” – for transporting coal from Newcastle to London. There’s a discussion of this trade, the production, transport and consumption of coal being integral to the rapidly growing economy of 18th century Britain.
Of course the core segment of the book is the ship’s journey to the Pacific on Captain Cook’s first voyage of discovery. The Navy purchased the ship because the voyage required a vessel with a shallow draught and lots of storage space. The primary purpose was a journey to Tahiti to observe the 1769 Transit of Venus – a classic Enlightenment project if there ever was one - but Cook went on to circumnavigate and chart the islands of New Zealand, before travelling up the entire east coast of “New Holland” (Australia). I thought this part of the book was excellent. The author has the advantage of great source material in the journals of Captain Cook, Joseph Banks and Sydney Parkinson. He gives us a lively description of all 3 characters, as well as of Tupaia, the Tahitian who formed a friendship with Joseph Banks. I’ve always been interested in the interaction between European explorers and the indigenous peoples they encountered, and I thought this was explored in fascinating detail in the book. The story of the voyage itself is an exciting one.
That middle section of the book was the part I enjoyed best. Taken as a whole though, I found this a rather meandering voyage.
One particular feature of the audio version was that the narrator affected various accents when quoting from source material, including Yorkshire, Scottish, Irish, Australian, American, Swedish, French and German. When using the last two he kept reminding me of the characters in the British TV comedy “Allo! Allo!” Personally I would rather he hadn’t put on the accents.
The Endeavour was built (and originally named the Earl of Pembroke) in the Yorkshire town of Whitby in 1764, and the ship ended its days in 1778. The author uses the story of the ship as a focal point for the years of its existence, which he argues are some of the most important in the history of the world. It was of course the time of The Enlightenment, and it saw the first stirrings of the Industrial Revolution – James Watt’s Steam Engine was patented in 1769, Hargreaves’ Spinning Jenny in 1770, and 1776 saw the publication of Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations. That same year saw the American Declaration of Independence. The author tries to show how the ship was connected with, and was in some respects emblematic of, these significant events.
I felt it took a while to get going though. It begins with a discussion on the word “endeavour” and its usage in the later 18th century. Then there’s an entire chapter (about an hour long in the audio version) on English oak trees and their use in shipbuilding, followed by another, of similar length, on the history of the town of Whitby. I confess that at this point I wasn’t feeling too much love for the book. It’s only after these opening segments that we move to the construction of the ship, which was designed as a “collier” – for transporting coal from Newcastle to London. There’s a discussion of this trade, the production, transport and consumption of coal being integral to the rapidly growing economy of 18th century Britain.
Of course the core segment of the book is the ship’s journey to the Pacific on Captain Cook’s first voyage of discovery. The Navy purchased the ship because the voyage required a vessel with a shallow draught and lots of storage space. The primary purpose was a journey to Tahiti to observe the 1769 Transit of Venus – a classic Enlightenment project if there ever was one - but Cook went on to circumnavigate and chart the islands of New Zealand, before travelling up the entire east coast of “New Holland” (Australia). I thought this part of the book was excellent. The author has the advantage of great source material in the journals of Captain Cook, Joseph Banks and Sydney Parkinson. He gives us a lively description of all 3 characters, as well as of Tupaia, the Tahitian who formed a friendship with Joseph Banks. I’ve always been interested in the interaction between European explorers and the indigenous peoples they encountered, and I thought this was explored in fascinating detail in the book. The story of the voyage itself is an exciting one.
That middle section of the book was the part I enjoyed best. Taken as a whole though, I found this a rather meandering voyage.
February 16, 2019
‘Endeavour still has a place in many people’s hearts today.’
HMB Endeavour was the ship in which Lieutenant James Cook undertook his first voyage of discovery between 1768 and 1771. While the primary purpose of that mission was to observe the Transit of Venus from Tahiti, her secondary mission (to search for the elusive southern continent) led to the charting of New Zealand and the eastern coast of Australia.
In this book, Mr Moore writes about the different lives and voyages of the Endeavour and her place in history. She was built in Whitby, first named the Earl of Pembroke and was worked as a collier until purchased by the Royal Navy in 1768.
‘Once afloat in 1764, she lived three distinct lives, under three distinct names, in three theatres of history.’
The story of the Endeavour is also the story of 18th century exploration by Britain, of scientific advances as well as of exploitation and imperialism.
While I knew that the Endeavour was built in Whitby and had been a collier, I knew nothing about what happened to her after 1771. I’ve been on the replica of the HMB Endeavour in Sydney and marvelled at how such a small vessel could have carried the men and supplies necessary for the voyage and then transport more than 30,000 botanical specimens back to England.
But the real story, Mr Moore writes, starts in Restoration England when the two hundred or so oak trees required to build the ship started growing. I like the idea of a connection between the time when the Royal Society was created (in 1660) and the Endeavour sailing in what is known as ‘The Age of Enlightenment’.
I was interested to learn that the Endeavour (then called the Lord Sandwich) was one of about 350 ships assembled off Staten Island before the Battle of Brooklyn (during the American Revolution) in August 1776. In 1778 she came to an end, sank by the British at Newport to try to obstruct the French fleet, which had arrived to help the revolutionaries.
I found this book fascinating. The history of the Endeavour held my attention but what made the book even more interesting for me was the way in which Mr Moore wrote about the period in which she sailed. I learned more about the building of ships at Whitby, about some of the great projects undertaken during the second half of the 18th century and about observations around the Transit of Venus.
‘History often conceals facts. Sometimes, however, through a long lens, it is possible to discern things that were entirely hidden to those closest to the scene.’
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
HMB Endeavour was the ship in which Lieutenant James Cook undertook his first voyage of discovery between 1768 and 1771. While the primary purpose of that mission was to observe the Transit of Venus from Tahiti, her secondary mission (to search for the elusive southern continent) led to the charting of New Zealand and the eastern coast of Australia.
In this book, Mr Moore writes about the different lives and voyages of the Endeavour and her place in history. She was built in Whitby, first named the Earl of Pembroke and was worked as a collier until purchased by the Royal Navy in 1768.
‘Once afloat in 1764, she lived three distinct lives, under three distinct names, in three theatres of history.’
The story of the Endeavour is also the story of 18th century exploration by Britain, of scientific advances as well as of exploitation and imperialism.
While I knew that the Endeavour was built in Whitby and had been a collier, I knew nothing about what happened to her after 1771. I’ve been on the replica of the HMB Endeavour in Sydney and marvelled at how such a small vessel could have carried the men and supplies necessary for the voyage and then transport more than 30,000 botanical specimens back to England.
But the real story, Mr Moore writes, starts in Restoration England when the two hundred or so oak trees required to build the ship started growing. I like the idea of a connection between the time when the Royal Society was created (in 1660) and the Endeavour sailing in what is known as ‘The Age of Enlightenment’.
I was interested to learn that the Endeavour (then called the Lord Sandwich) was one of about 350 ships assembled off Staten Island before the Battle of Brooklyn (during the American Revolution) in August 1776. In 1778 she came to an end, sank by the British at Newport to try to obstruct the French fleet, which had arrived to help the revolutionaries.
I found this book fascinating. The history of the Endeavour held my attention but what made the book even more interesting for me was the way in which Mr Moore wrote about the period in which she sailed. I learned more about the building of ships at Whitby, about some of the great projects undertaken during the second half of the 18th century and about observations around the Transit of Venus.
‘History often conceals facts. Sometimes, however, through a long lens, it is possible to discern things that were entirely hidden to those closest to the scene.’
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
April 20, 2023
Some interesting tidbits in this audiobook - every mention of the Earl of Sandwich made me chortle, as did the celebrated goat on Banks' voyage, and it's always interesting when scurvy shows up. But this was heavily padded and meandering and dull; even the narrator seemed to think so, for he went hilariously overboard on French, Scottish, American accents etc.
Not as gripping or compelling as other nautical history, but a way to pass the time.
Not as gripping or compelling as other nautical history, but a way to pass the time.
November 20, 2018
My wife bought me this book for my birthday. She knew of my interest in the ship, from the time that I crewed on it – or at least on her replica, so the book was an excellent choice.
The book is (mostly) about the ship. (Okay, technically it was not a ship, but a bark, or was it a cat? This it discussed in the book). It does concentrate on the ship and not so much on the people or events around it; they are peripheral. The book really is centred on the boat (right from when its timbers were acorns in the ground) and not the people, as other books are. Of course the events are mentioned in relation to the ship, but they are not the focus. So, for instance, Endeavour's part in the American War of Independence is covered, but as soon as Endeavour is taken out of the picture (by being scuttled) the story ends. There is not even a mention of who won. Did anybody hear the result?
I enjoyed the book and I can only admire the effort that went into its research. A vast number of references have been consulted and used, including ones which reference Endeavour from different points of view, including that of the native Australians when she first appeared. I certainly learned a bit of history that I did not know before. For instance, who knew that John Wilkes was a satirist (the Ian Hislop of his day?) who truly shook up eighteenth-century politics, causing riots? I didn't.
As the subtitle hints, the book is not all about the ship, but the author also suggests that the very name was also indicative of an attitude of the time.
I cannot think of any reader for whom I would not recommend this book. Whether you are interested in ships or history or politics, there is something in there for you.
The book is (mostly) about the ship. (Okay, technically it was not a ship, but a bark, or was it a cat? This it discussed in the book). It does concentrate on the ship and not so much on the people or events around it; they are peripheral. The book really is centred on the boat (right from when its timbers were acorns in the ground) and not the people, as other books are. Of course the events are mentioned in relation to the ship, but they are not the focus. So, for instance, Endeavour's part in the American War of Independence is covered, but as soon as Endeavour is taken out of the picture (by being scuttled) the story ends. There is not even a mention of who won. Did anybody hear the result?
I enjoyed the book and I can only admire the effort that went into its research. A vast number of references have been consulted and used, including ones which reference Endeavour from different points of view, including that of the native Australians when she first appeared. I certainly learned a bit of history that I did not know before. For instance, who knew that John Wilkes was a satirist (the Ian Hislop of his day?) who truly shook up eighteenth-century politics, causing riots? I didn't.
As the subtitle hints, the book is not all about the ship, but the author also suggests that the very name was also indicative of an attitude of the time.
I cannot think of any reader for whom I would not recommend this book. Whether you are interested in ships or history or politics, there is something in there for you.
May 1, 2024
This book is basically a “biography” of a ship, which operated from 1764 – 1778, and had various names including its most famous, the Endeavour. The book is organized around the functions that this ship performed – a trader, an explorer, and a warship. It takes a while to ramp up and starts at the very beginning with the acorn. It is extremely detailed, probably too detailed for me, especially when discussing the techniques of shipbuilding, the French and Indian War, and hundred-year oak trees. These topics seemed a bit much, but the author is clearly enthused about his material!
My favorite part is the description of Captain James Cook’s voyage of exploration to Tahiti, New Zealand, and Australia. (Note: Cook took a different ship on his final travels, which resulted in his death in the Hawaiian Islands.) I particularly enjoyed the description of the Endeavour running aground on the Great Barrier Reef. This is a dramatic scene where the ship is punctured and is rapidly taking on water. There were only enough small boats to hold part of the crew, but with great risk, skill, and a bit of luck, they managed to get the ship free and navigate to Queensland for repair. I also enjoyed the epilogue that mentions the many uses of the name across the centuries. The other two parts, which covered the use of the vessel in trade and as a prison ship in war, were a bit dry.
Overall, this is a bit of a mixed bag for me. Some parts were excellent and other parts dragged. I think the reader's enjoyment will depend on their overall interest level in the wide variety of subject matter.
3.5
My favorite part is the description of Captain James Cook’s voyage of exploration to Tahiti, New Zealand, and Australia. (Note: Cook took a different ship on his final travels, which resulted in his death in the Hawaiian Islands.) I particularly enjoyed the description of the Endeavour running aground on the Great Barrier Reef. This is a dramatic scene where the ship is punctured and is rapidly taking on water. There were only enough small boats to hold part of the crew, but with great risk, skill, and a bit of luck, they managed to get the ship free and navigate to Queensland for repair. I also enjoyed the epilogue that mentions the many uses of the name across the centuries. The other two parts, which covered the use of the vessel in trade and as a prison ship in war, were a bit dry.
Overall, this is a bit of a mixed bag for me. Some parts were excellent and other parts dragged. I think the reader's enjoyment will depend on their overall interest level in the wide variety of subject matter.
3.5
May 9, 2024
This is a biography of the ship Endeavor, that Capt. James Cook piloted for his first journey through the South Seas. It begins, no joking, with an acorn, the story of the trees it came from and the building of the ship itself. Pretty mundane reading, unless you have interest in ship building.
From there the story continues, describing the life and names and ultimate uses of the ship: Trade, Exploration and finally War. The Exploration section was what I was looking for in this book, so of course that was the part of the story that I enjoyed the most.
The author did extensive research on the subject of Endeavour, he deserves praise for that. As I said though, I wanted James Cook story and was disappointed that this was not the book for that.
From there the story continues, describing the life and names and ultimate uses of the ship: Trade, Exploration and finally War. The Exploration section was what I was looking for in this book, so of course that was the part of the story that I enjoyed the most.
The author did extensive research on the subject of Endeavour, he deserves praise for that. As I said though, I wanted James Cook story and was disappointed that this was not the book for that.
February 24, 2019
A great piece of historical detection, research - and a fascinating read.
At times I forgot I was reading about a ship, but the writer skillfully trims the sails to bring us back on course, having colored in the background developments.
A superb way of portraying such changing times in history - jam-packed with incident and insight - engagingly written and a good, flowing read.
Highly enjoyable.
At times I forgot I was reading about a ship, but the writer skillfully trims the sails to bring us back on course, having colored in the background developments.
A superb way of portraying such changing times in history - jam-packed with incident and insight - engagingly written and a good, flowing read.
Highly enjoyable.
July 27, 2019
Far too unfocused...tried too hard
June 15, 2021
A brilliantly written book which although its focus is on the Endeavour also stops off along the way to explore the major events of the time which gives a wider knowledge of the time period. Starting off from the oak trees that were used to make the Endeavour this book takes you through the life of the ship all the way through to its sinking in the war of independence.
I really enjoyed the insights that were revealed regarding the life at the time whether this be a whitby sailor, a botanist or native of Tahiti. It is rich with information but does not become an effort to read and the narrative skips along quickly covering 20ish years of history in around 350 pages.
The key part of the book is of course the journey which made the ship famous. This was described very well with first hand sources utilised and gave a great sense of the emotions, triumphs and perils experienced throughout the voyage.
The author does well at addressing the legacy in the final chapter by both exploring the colonial consequences and the symbol that it has become.
Although I enjoyed this book immensely I do find it a shame that some of the characters that some of the events covered felt incomplete and I would have liked maybe a little more on the fate of Cooks, Banks and others even though if this did not directly relate to the endeavour.
Best quote: "To endeavour meant to exert everything: to stretch mind and body out towards a goal that was only just within reach" p345
I really enjoyed the insights that were revealed regarding the life at the time whether this be a whitby sailor, a botanist or native of Tahiti. It is rich with information but does not become an effort to read and the narrative skips along quickly covering 20ish years of history in around 350 pages.
The key part of the book is of course the journey which made the ship famous. This was described very well with first hand sources utilised and gave a great sense of the emotions, triumphs and perils experienced throughout the voyage.
The author does well at addressing the legacy in the final chapter by both exploring the colonial consequences and the symbol that it has become.
Although I enjoyed this book immensely I do find it a shame that some of the characters that some of the events covered felt incomplete and I would have liked maybe a little more on the fate of Cooks, Banks and others even though if this did not directly relate to the endeavour.
Best quote: "To endeavour meant to exert everything: to stretch mind and body out towards a goal that was only just within reach" p345
October 14, 2025
The Book Endeavour is a remarkably ambitious project—one that dares to weave together intellect, imagination, and deeply human inquiry. Its greatest strength lies in its curiosity: the willingness to ask complex questions and invite the reader into a shared exploration rather than offering easy answers. That sense of partnership with the reader is rare, and it gives the work both intimacy and depth.
There are passages of real beauty here—moments where language rises and lingers, where an idea or emotion glows long after the page has turned. The thematic threads are rich, especially when the narrative leans into vulnerability, allowing uncertainty and wonder to coexist. Those moments feel alive and profoundly authentic.
There are passages of real beauty here—moments where language rises and lingers, where an idea or emotion glows long after the page has turned. The thematic threads are rich, especially when the narrative leans into vulnerability, allowing uncertainty and wonder to coexist. Those moments feel alive and profoundly authentic.
June 11, 2020
Well written, well-researched and lively, much more the portrait of an age than a ship. It covers everything from Whitby to Wilkes, and the Endeavour was much more than just Cook's ship in his voyage to Tahiti and New Zealand but was also part of the British response to the American Revolution. So it touches on colonialism - and tries hard to give indiginenous accounts where these exist, natural science, political upheaval...but also the terrible scourge of scurvy and the losses os sailors overboard. My favourite detail was the ship's goat, which had circumnavigated the globe twice, had a milk supply that never dried up, and who was retired to a pasture with a laudatory poem by Dr Johnson.
March 13, 2019
Very well researched and beautifully written, this was a pleasure to read from start to finish. The spirit of adventure and the thirst for knowledge in the Age of Enlightenment is a pointer to a more positive and active attitude to life
June 19, 2019
The opening chapters, soulful evocations of the geography of Whitby and bygone technologies for constructing ships from oak, mark this book out as something special. Curiously, the shipbuilding was echoed in the news as I was reading it, as a source of timber suitably mature for rebuilding the roof of Notre-Dame was discussed (in the thoroughly 21st-century form of a submerged, preserved forest in Ghana to be harvested by robots...)
Westminster politics, and the proceedings of naval and colonial battles, are recounted where they're relevant to the narrative or a source of colour and background. They're handled with skill so they never outstay their welcome. Above all, the voyage of Cook, Banks and assorted other characters is a great adventure and page-turner in itself. It's kept to manageable brevity by skipping over, for example, detail of the voyage back from Australia, save the sobering facts of the body count: who, and what expertise and potential, was lost to sickness during the circumnavigation.
The author's wrangling of sources always impressed me: where his educated imagination is the only way to form an image, that's made clear; what other writers might state without question is relayed "almost certainly" by Moore. I was fascinated by the exploration, late in the book, of changing perceptions, historical study and commercial interest in Endeavour's voyage, especially the view from Australia where labours of love have led to the publication of vast collections of evidence.
Piecing together fragments of evidence proves a near-impossible task; but reflections on modern-day flickers of the spirit of endeavour, and fitting quotations on the life and death of Captain Cook, make for a satisfying conclusion.
Westminster politics, and the proceedings of naval and colonial battles, are recounted where they're relevant to the narrative or a source of colour and background. They're handled with skill so they never outstay their welcome. Above all, the voyage of Cook, Banks and assorted other characters is a great adventure and page-turner in itself. It's kept to manageable brevity by skipping over, for example, detail of the voyage back from Australia, save the sobering facts of the body count: who, and what expertise and potential, was lost to sickness during the circumnavigation.
The author's wrangling of sources always impressed me: where his educated imagination is the only way to form an image, that's made clear; what other writers might state without question is relayed "almost certainly" by Moore. I was fascinated by the exploration, late in the book, of changing perceptions, historical study and commercial interest in Endeavour's voyage, especially the view from Australia where labours of love have led to the publication of vast collections of evidence.
Piecing together fragments of evidence proves a near-impossible task; but reflections on modern-day flickers of the spirit of endeavour, and fitting quotations on the life and death of Captain Cook, make for a satisfying conclusion.
April 4, 2021
What a great read about the history of a very famous ship which was sailed by Captain James Cook and co to the South Seas and also involved in other key historical moments in the second half of the 17th Century. A brilliantly written story that at times will grip you even if you do know what happens.
July 16, 2023
Peter Moore's Endeavour:
Britain's ship of state stars, Captain plays second fiddle:
UK historian Peter Moore's 2018 book Endeavour: The Ship and the Attitude that Changed the World is a highly praised and innovative history of Britain's turbulent years 1760-1780, told through the story of a nondescript vessel that the British Navy fitted out for Captain James Cook's epic 1768-1771 voyage to the South Seas.
Moore believes the years 1760-1780 were highly significant, 'a crucial mini epoch in the development of Western society.' It was the age of the Enlightenment, a time of momentous exploration, discovery, scientific advance, and turbulent politics at home and abroad.
Britain had emerged victorious from the Seven Years War of 1756-1763, winning territory in North America from the French, and establishing itself as the world's strongest naval power. The American colonies were about to revolt over taxation and rule from London. Britain was riven by internal unrest fostered by radical politicians, and was engaged in robust competition globally with France and other European powers for new territories and influence.
In this febrile and restive environment, the British Admiralty and the Royal Society decided to launch a major voyage of scientific discovery and exploration. A rare transit of Venus was to occur in 1769, observation of which from Tahiti could resolve uncertainties about planetary measurements in the solar system, and thereby assist the determination of longitudes that would greatly improve the accuracy and efficiency of naval navigation.
The island of Tahiti would also be a fortuitous starting point to explore the Pacific for the fabled southern continent, discovery and control of which could significantly advantage Britain in the global competition for new territory and resources.
The Admiralty engaged James Cook to captain this daunting South Seas venture. Cook had distinguished himself as a leader, navigator, explorer, mapper and fighter in the Seven Years War. Cook was to be joined by Joseph Banks, a famed naturalist and botanist of the time, to boost the venture's scientific capabilities and credentials.
A collier ship that had been launched in 1764 as the Earl of Pembroke was fitted out for the voyage, and what better name to rechristen it than Endeavour, redolent as it was of the spirit of the age.
Moore has made the Endeavour the main subject of his history. The device of using the story of an artifact to illustrate an historical period is not new (A History of the World in 100 Objects and similar treatments come to mind), but Moore advances it further by writing the biography of a ship.
The ruse works well. Cook's voyage is the centrepiece of the book, and is recounted with much evocative detail that gives the reader an informed and vivid sense of the challenges, exploits, and successes of the voyage, and the times that determined it.
This is all the more remarkable, given that many readers' vision of those times has been occluded by the substantial industrialisation, wars, and modernisation that has occurred in the more than two and a half centuries since. Moore scrubs away much of that interference, to give us a clear appreciation of the ship's service and the period that shaped it.
Moore's focus on the story of the ship means that we leave Cook after the successful completion of his voyage in 1771. Thereafter, the ship served as a provisioning vessel for the British settlement in the Falkland Islands, and then as a transport ship carrying British troops to the American War of Independence. The ship was scuttled in 1778, sunk in Newport Harbour to impede the arrival of French ships sent to aid the American war effort.
Moore's use of the Endeavour as a symbol of the age is undercut slightly by the fact that the ship was again renamed after its Cook voyage, becoming the Lord Sandwich, after the then First Lord of the Admiralty.
Nevertheless, the brute Atlantic tale of life in the windswept Falklands, and the seismic effects of the American War, are robust enough to sustain Moore's idea of the significance of the events affecting the ship in this time of vision, exploration, discovery, Enlightenment ideals, and revolution, all captured in its brief time when it was the Endeavour and the Lord Sandwich.
One minor matter in the book seems uncharacteristic of Moore's otherwise convincing view of the strategic significance of the period. Cook's mapping of Australia's east coast is not covered in detail, and indeed seems rather superficial. This is perplexing, given the historical importance of Cook's discovery.
Moore establishes that Cook was preeminently capable, shrewd, and clever. It seems odd therefore that Moore only notes in passing that Cook did not record and map what is now Sydney Harbour. He seems almost gratuitously to concur with the assessment of Cook's 20th century biographer John Cawte Beaglehole that 'it is curious, though not important, that Cook so consistently missed the harbours in those countries that he deemed of most importance.'
Something else may be going on here. Endeavour was published in 2018, and Moore recorded in his acknowledgements that he had spent time in Sydney researching his book. It seems odd that he would not have been aware of the views of Sydney historian Margaret Cameron-Ash, whose book Lying for the Admiralty also was published in 2018.
The latter proposed on the basis of considerable circumstantial evidence that Cook noted the Harbour when he put in at Botany Bay, and, realising the Harbour's enormous strategic significance in the context of the competition with France for control of the Pacific, kept its existence to himself rather than noting it in the ship's journal that would become public. He presumably described the site in his verbal report to the Admiralty when back in London. This is consistent with Britain's broader geopolitical rivalry with the French. The first British settlement in New South Wales in 1788 also seemed to have pre-knowledge of the Harbour.
The omission is particularly perplexing given that Moore records the intense secrecy that characterized the Admiralty's preparations for the voyage. The venture was a sensitive matter of national security, and espionage by both British and French interests was common. Moore notes that French informants and spies were discovered within the Admiralty when the arrangements for Cook's voyage were being developed, and the culprits were ejected.
Moore notes also that Cook's instructions for the exploration leg of the South Seas voyage were sealed and confidential, and included advice that he was to ensure that no discoveries and related information of strategic interest would find its way to French interests. Cook's experiences in North America during the Seven Years War would have sensitized him to the importance of keeping strategic information away from the French.
Moore does Cook no favours by blithely siding with the unadventurous and recently contested view that Cook's mapping of the Australian east coast was marked by casual oversight of a strategically significant naval base. It seems a blemish on an otherwise remarkable book.
If Moore was aware of the Harbour concealment theory, it would have added to the book to note it, and its implications for Cook's preeminent abilities. As the book stands, Cook's reputation and historical significance is reduced by the omission.
That aside, Moore's book remains a highly readable account of fascinating times, and especially of Cook's spectacularly successful venture into a hemisphere then largely unknown to European interests.
As Moore notes, had the Endeavour been lost when it foundered on the Great Barrier Reef towards the end of its mapping of the Australian east coast, British settlement of Australia, and the remarkable success of the nation that resulted, may never have happened. Cook's leadership and skill enabled the Endeavour to be refloated, repaired, and report its findings back in London.
The later success of the American War of Independence ensured that Britain would turn its attention to the Pacific possessions discovered by Cook, and the successful histories of Australia and New Zealand are testament to Moore's assessment of the substantial significance of the Endeavour's time.
Endeavour is a remarkable story, about a remarkable symbol of Enlightenment enterprise, and one that lives on in modern times, including, as Moore notes, when NASA named its final space shuttle the Endeavour in homage to Cook's historic venture, and to symbolise the continuity of its spirit. Moore has drawn attention to a similarly epochal time in the 18th century.
Britain's ship of state stars, Captain plays second fiddle:
UK historian Peter Moore's 2018 book Endeavour: The Ship and the Attitude that Changed the World is a highly praised and innovative history of Britain's turbulent years 1760-1780, told through the story of a nondescript vessel that the British Navy fitted out for Captain James Cook's epic 1768-1771 voyage to the South Seas.
Moore believes the years 1760-1780 were highly significant, 'a crucial mini epoch in the development of Western society.' It was the age of the Enlightenment, a time of momentous exploration, discovery, scientific advance, and turbulent politics at home and abroad.
Britain had emerged victorious from the Seven Years War of 1756-1763, winning territory in North America from the French, and establishing itself as the world's strongest naval power. The American colonies were about to revolt over taxation and rule from London. Britain was riven by internal unrest fostered by radical politicians, and was engaged in robust competition globally with France and other European powers for new territories and influence.
In this febrile and restive environment, the British Admiralty and the Royal Society decided to launch a major voyage of scientific discovery and exploration. A rare transit of Venus was to occur in 1769, observation of which from Tahiti could resolve uncertainties about planetary measurements in the solar system, and thereby assist the determination of longitudes that would greatly improve the accuracy and efficiency of naval navigation.
The island of Tahiti would also be a fortuitous starting point to explore the Pacific for the fabled southern continent, discovery and control of which could significantly advantage Britain in the global competition for new territory and resources.
The Admiralty engaged James Cook to captain this daunting South Seas venture. Cook had distinguished himself as a leader, navigator, explorer, mapper and fighter in the Seven Years War. Cook was to be joined by Joseph Banks, a famed naturalist and botanist of the time, to boost the venture's scientific capabilities and credentials.
A collier ship that had been launched in 1764 as the Earl of Pembroke was fitted out for the voyage, and what better name to rechristen it than Endeavour, redolent as it was of the spirit of the age.
Moore has made the Endeavour the main subject of his history. The device of using the story of an artifact to illustrate an historical period is not new (A History of the World in 100 Objects and similar treatments come to mind), but Moore advances it further by writing the biography of a ship.
The ruse works well. Cook's voyage is the centrepiece of the book, and is recounted with much evocative detail that gives the reader an informed and vivid sense of the challenges, exploits, and successes of the voyage, and the times that determined it.
This is all the more remarkable, given that many readers' vision of those times has been occluded by the substantial industrialisation, wars, and modernisation that has occurred in the more than two and a half centuries since. Moore scrubs away much of that interference, to give us a clear appreciation of the ship's service and the period that shaped it.
Moore's focus on the story of the ship means that we leave Cook after the successful completion of his voyage in 1771. Thereafter, the ship served as a provisioning vessel for the British settlement in the Falkland Islands, and then as a transport ship carrying British troops to the American War of Independence. The ship was scuttled in 1778, sunk in Newport Harbour to impede the arrival of French ships sent to aid the American war effort.
Moore's use of the Endeavour as a symbol of the age is undercut slightly by the fact that the ship was again renamed after its Cook voyage, becoming the Lord Sandwich, after the then First Lord of the Admiralty.
Nevertheless, the brute Atlantic tale of life in the windswept Falklands, and the seismic effects of the American War, are robust enough to sustain Moore's idea of the significance of the events affecting the ship in this time of vision, exploration, discovery, Enlightenment ideals, and revolution, all captured in its brief time when it was the Endeavour and the Lord Sandwich.
One minor matter in the book seems uncharacteristic of Moore's otherwise convincing view of the strategic significance of the period. Cook's mapping of Australia's east coast is not covered in detail, and indeed seems rather superficial. This is perplexing, given the historical importance of Cook's discovery.
Moore establishes that Cook was preeminently capable, shrewd, and clever. It seems odd therefore that Moore only notes in passing that Cook did not record and map what is now Sydney Harbour. He seems almost gratuitously to concur with the assessment of Cook's 20th century biographer John Cawte Beaglehole that 'it is curious, though not important, that Cook so consistently missed the harbours in those countries that he deemed of most importance.'
Something else may be going on here. Endeavour was published in 2018, and Moore recorded in his acknowledgements that he had spent time in Sydney researching his book. It seems odd that he would not have been aware of the views of Sydney historian Margaret Cameron-Ash, whose book Lying for the Admiralty also was published in 2018.
The latter proposed on the basis of considerable circumstantial evidence that Cook noted the Harbour when he put in at Botany Bay, and, realising the Harbour's enormous strategic significance in the context of the competition with France for control of the Pacific, kept its existence to himself rather than noting it in the ship's journal that would become public. He presumably described the site in his verbal report to the Admiralty when back in London. This is consistent with Britain's broader geopolitical rivalry with the French. The first British settlement in New South Wales in 1788 also seemed to have pre-knowledge of the Harbour.
The omission is particularly perplexing given that Moore records the intense secrecy that characterized the Admiralty's preparations for the voyage. The venture was a sensitive matter of national security, and espionage by both British and French interests was common. Moore notes that French informants and spies were discovered within the Admiralty when the arrangements for Cook's voyage were being developed, and the culprits were ejected.
Moore notes also that Cook's instructions for the exploration leg of the South Seas voyage were sealed and confidential, and included advice that he was to ensure that no discoveries and related information of strategic interest would find its way to French interests. Cook's experiences in North America during the Seven Years War would have sensitized him to the importance of keeping strategic information away from the French.
Moore does Cook no favours by blithely siding with the unadventurous and recently contested view that Cook's mapping of the Australian east coast was marked by casual oversight of a strategically significant naval base. It seems a blemish on an otherwise remarkable book.
If Moore was aware of the Harbour concealment theory, it would have added to the book to note it, and its implications for Cook's preeminent abilities. As the book stands, Cook's reputation and historical significance is reduced by the omission.
That aside, Moore's book remains a highly readable account of fascinating times, and especially of Cook's spectacularly successful venture into a hemisphere then largely unknown to European interests.
As Moore notes, had the Endeavour been lost when it foundered on the Great Barrier Reef towards the end of its mapping of the Australian east coast, British settlement of Australia, and the remarkable success of the nation that resulted, may never have happened. Cook's leadership and skill enabled the Endeavour to be refloated, repaired, and report its findings back in London.
The later success of the American War of Independence ensured that Britain would turn its attention to the Pacific possessions discovered by Cook, and the successful histories of Australia and New Zealand are testament to Moore's assessment of the substantial significance of the Endeavour's time.
Endeavour is a remarkable story, about a remarkable symbol of Enlightenment enterprise, and one that lives on in modern times, including, as Moore notes, when NASA named its final space shuttle the Endeavour in homage to Cook's historic venture, and to symbolise the continuity of its spirit. Moore has drawn attention to a similarly epochal time in the 18th century.
May 26, 2019
Endeavour: The Ship That Changed the World is the story behind the humble little ship that is best remembered as the ship that took Captain James Cook on his first major journey of exploration. A humble collier (ship that carried coal), with many lives and many names, as Endeavour she circumnavigated the globe, survived coral reefs, and mapped New Zealand.
In his book, Peter Moore goes into carefully researched and detailed accounts of not only the building of Endeavour (first called (Earl of Pembroke) but also the Age of Enlightenment in which it was built and how that affected many of her crew: scientists and naturalists like Dr Solander and Joseph Banks (students of Carl Linnaeus) and Navy man James Cook himself. While the bulk of the book is spent on Cook's voyage Moore also gives fascinating details behind Endeavour's final incarnation: as the Earl of Sandwich bringing Hessian troops across the Atlantic and serving as a prison galley off of Newport during the American Revolution.
Quotes from letters, Navy lists, and journal entries bring each of Endeavour's incarnations into vivid life and Moore's detailed accounts do a fantastic job of making the reader feel as if they are a part of the crew, sharing the triumphs and terrors along with the sailors. Moore also does an excellent job of recognizing Endeavour as the symbol for so many of imperialism and conquest, and he pulls no punches in acknowledging the death and destruction European explorers in general, and Endeavour in particular, brought to the Pacific Islands, Australia, and New Zealand.
It did take me about a hundred pages to really get into Endeavour. Moore begins his study of the ship from acorn on, including studies of the variety of oaks in England and which ones were considered best for ship building, the history of the little town of Whitby where Endeavour was first built, the lives of the men behind her design and construction, and even the Enlightenment-era thinking behind the term "endeavour" itself. All of which was very interesting in small doses- but Moore reached virtually James Michener level details from beginning on for each of these subjects. Once things got going and Endeavour was out to sea the book picked up pace. Full of interesting facts on the science, philosophy, politics, and maritime history of the age, Endeavour: The Ship That Changed the World is an excellent read for history lovers, those interested in exploration, and maritime history.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
In his book, Peter Moore goes into carefully researched and detailed accounts of not only the building of Endeavour (first called (Earl of Pembroke) but also the Age of Enlightenment in which it was built and how that affected many of her crew: scientists and naturalists like Dr Solander and Joseph Banks (students of Carl Linnaeus) and Navy man James Cook himself. While the bulk of the book is spent on Cook's voyage Moore also gives fascinating details behind Endeavour's final incarnation: as the Earl of Sandwich bringing Hessian troops across the Atlantic and serving as a prison galley off of Newport during the American Revolution.
Quotes from letters, Navy lists, and journal entries bring each of Endeavour's incarnations into vivid life and Moore's detailed accounts do a fantastic job of making the reader feel as if they are a part of the crew, sharing the triumphs and terrors along with the sailors. Moore also does an excellent job of recognizing Endeavour as the symbol for so many of imperialism and conquest, and he pulls no punches in acknowledging the death and destruction European explorers in general, and Endeavour in particular, brought to the Pacific Islands, Australia, and New Zealand.
It did take me about a hundred pages to really get into Endeavour. Moore begins his study of the ship from acorn on, including studies of the variety of oaks in England and which ones were considered best for ship building, the history of the little town of Whitby where Endeavour was first built, the lives of the men behind her design and construction, and even the Enlightenment-era thinking behind the term "endeavour" itself. All of which was very interesting in small doses- but Moore reached virtually James Michener level details from beginning on for each of these subjects. Once things got going and Endeavour was out to sea the book picked up pace. Full of interesting facts on the science, philosophy, politics, and maritime history of the age, Endeavour: The Ship That Changed the World is an excellent read for history lovers, those interested in exploration, and maritime history.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
February 7, 2021
My hopes for this book were tremendous. They were not met. Not even close.
The author put far too much emphasis on mundane elements of the Endeavour’s amazing story. His writing is often awkward. This is exacerbated by his overuse of archaic words and terms. I can tolerate such terms in quotes from older texts ... not so much in the main text of the book. If a glossary was provided, this may have l grated on me less.
The book is rife with descriptions of geographical information. A half dozen relevant maps (possibly replacing photos of portraits of many of the people who influenced the journey of Endeavour) would have eased the burden of reading this book. A relevant picture is indeed worth a 1000 words ... and the additional clarity and brevity a few maps would have given the book might have tripled my rating of, and quadrupled my pleasure on reading, this work.
Yet again, Goodread’s members let me down. I suspect the “reviewers” who lauded the book did so on on what the book promised; certainly not on what it delivered. This could have been a great book ... it should have been a great book. Unfortunately, the editor(s) and the publisher let the author and readers down.
Endeavour deserves better. Unfortunately, I would recommend people avoid this book.
The author put far too much emphasis on mundane elements of the Endeavour’s amazing story. His writing is often awkward. This is exacerbated by his overuse of archaic words and terms. I can tolerate such terms in quotes from older texts ... not so much in the main text of the book. If a glossary was provided, this may have l grated on me less.
The book is rife with descriptions of geographical information. A half dozen relevant maps (possibly replacing photos of portraits of many of the people who influenced the journey of Endeavour) would have eased the burden of reading this book. A relevant picture is indeed worth a 1000 words ... and the additional clarity and brevity a few maps would have given the book might have tripled my rating of, and quadrupled my pleasure on reading, this work.
Yet again, Goodread’s members let me down. I suspect the “reviewers” who lauded the book did so on on what the book promised; certainly not on what it delivered. This could have been a great book ... it should have been a great book. Unfortunately, the editor(s) and the publisher let the author and readers down.
Endeavour deserves better. Unfortunately, I would recommend people avoid this book.
October 30, 2018
A really first rate story that had me engrossed from start to finish.
Peter Moore does a superb job of telling the Endeavour's story against the backdrop of revolutionary history in both the UK and the American "colonies", as well as the gripping tale of Cook's first circumnavigation.
His description of Cook's voyage is central and the characters who travelled with him on the famous voyage are brought to life, as are the adventures en route.
Can a factual history book be a page-turner? Yes it can.
Peter Moore does a superb job of telling the Endeavour's story against the backdrop of revolutionary history in both the UK and the American "colonies", as well as the gripping tale of Cook's first circumnavigation.
His description of Cook's voyage is central and the characters who travelled with him on the famous voyage are brought to life, as are the adventures en route.
Can a factual history book be a page-turner? Yes it can.
March 14, 2019
A very enjoyable account of the famous ship and the times in which it sailed. The story of its construction, travels, and eventual fate is interwoven with contemporary politics, science, and the fascinating characters that were associated with it. Chief amongst these were Cook and Joseph Banks, but there are plenty more. Something for anyone interested in exploration, maritime history, the Enlightenment, or the birth of the United States, where one of the most famous and significant ships to ever sail met its rather sad end. A really good read.
November 14, 2019
This book suffered from too much padding. The parts about the Endeavor and its bigger voyages were good. This is true about it early coaling missions as well as exploration, but there just was not much significance to its service in the Revolutionary War to distinguish it from other transports so the author is reduced to giving a general history of the war. The early sections on acorns dragged as well.
December 17, 2020
There's a fine balance with these kinds of historical, artifact-, object-, or theme-based books. Too little context and it's dull monomania; too much context and the main theme gets lost in tangents. Moore strikes the balance, sketching a great deal of historical, political, scientific, and sociological background across the long odyssey of the Endeavour, from the British dawn of science and empire to the American Revolution, and manages not to lose narrative momentum.
August 18, 2020
If you like boats and Captain Cook, this is excellent.
January 21, 2021
Too long. I understand the desire to cover every aspect of the ship, but starting with an acorn? Best when covering exploration, bogged down at other times.
April 21, 2020
Endeavour, the ship and attitude that changed the world, Peter Moore
In 1971, Nasa named the Apollo 15 spaceship “Endeavour”. In 1989 the new space shuttle commissioned to replace the Ill-fated Challenger was named SS Endeavour. The original Endeavour was not a spaceship, but an English sailing vessel commissioned in 1764. This was a vessel that was to sail around the world on a mission of discovery that would reveal native peoples never seen before, that would discover species of flora and fauna unknown to the world, that would discover lands never trammeled by European peoples.
This was a vessel that had very humble origins. Built in a yard in Northern Yorkshire, her original designation was that of a stodgy 368-ton Collier, built to transport coal from New Castle to London. In 1768 she was recommissioned as a royal naval vessel, HMS Endeavour and tasked by the Royal Academy of science with sailing to the south Pacific, to the recently discovered island of Tahiti to conduct astronomical observations of the transit of the planet of Venus across the sun. A secondary purpose was to look for a southern continent, the existence of which had been hinted by a Dutch East India Captain named Tasmin, a century before. On board were naturalists, Astronomers, artists, cartographers. Endeavor was under the command of Captain Cooke, a man destined for an iconic place in the history of exploration. Also aboard was James Banks, an English aristocrat and naturalist, whose discoveries on the voyage would give him a revered place in the annals of the Royal Academy.
What makes this book unique is it is in essence a history of a ship from its original construction to its ultimate demise in Narragansett Bay near Newport during the American revolution. As we follow the voyage of the ship, we follow the people aboard and their adventures, discoveries and mishaps. Imagine yourself aboard as you visit New Zealand and contact the Maori people, a people unknown till that time. In Tahiti Cook takes on board a Polynesian navigator to help him navigate through the islands. When he arrives in New Zealand, 3000 miles from Tahiti, he is astounded to find that the Tahitian and the Maoris speak the same language. He makes the correct inference that they are the same people. The ship encounters the southern coast of Australia and moors in what is now known as Botany Bay south of Sydney. Unknown to science marsupials such as Kangaroos and Koala Bears are encountered. Being a lifelong sailor, I got an amazing vicarious experience reading the passage where the ship encounters the previously unknown and uncharted Great Barrier reef off the coast of northeast Australia. The narrative is quite spellbinding in that over a period of a month the ship runs aground, is beached for repairs and then is barely able to escape the reefs clutches when trying to sail clear. After it’s around the world voyage, the ship is repurposed to bring supplies to the English outpost on the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. In 1776 the ship is again repurposed to bring Hessian soldiers to the American Revolution before meeting an ignominious end as a hellish prison ship in Narraganset Bay.
Endeavour’s voyage around the world while displaying the best human virtues of perseverance, curiosity and loyalty to cause had in the end very ambivalent consequences. The voyage spawned “an irregular invasion of adventurers that began to swarm around the isles of the Pacific in the nineteenth century”. “It was equally clear that with their sea charts and scientific surveys, and with the ritual planting of Union Jacks on new shores, Cook and Banks had established the platform for the aggressive process of colonization that followed. The legacy of this is still being felt today”.
A compelling and interesting insight into an age where science and exploration fired the imagination, where ideas of freedom and democracy fired the passions. JACK
In 1971, Nasa named the Apollo 15 spaceship “Endeavour”. In 1989 the new space shuttle commissioned to replace the Ill-fated Challenger was named SS Endeavour. The original Endeavour was not a spaceship, but an English sailing vessel commissioned in 1764. This was a vessel that was to sail around the world on a mission of discovery that would reveal native peoples never seen before, that would discover species of flora and fauna unknown to the world, that would discover lands never trammeled by European peoples.
This was a vessel that had very humble origins. Built in a yard in Northern Yorkshire, her original designation was that of a stodgy 368-ton Collier, built to transport coal from New Castle to London. In 1768 she was recommissioned as a royal naval vessel, HMS Endeavour and tasked by the Royal Academy of science with sailing to the south Pacific, to the recently discovered island of Tahiti to conduct astronomical observations of the transit of the planet of Venus across the sun. A secondary purpose was to look for a southern continent, the existence of which had been hinted by a Dutch East India Captain named Tasmin, a century before. On board were naturalists, Astronomers, artists, cartographers. Endeavor was under the command of Captain Cooke, a man destined for an iconic place in the history of exploration. Also aboard was James Banks, an English aristocrat and naturalist, whose discoveries on the voyage would give him a revered place in the annals of the Royal Academy.
What makes this book unique is it is in essence a history of a ship from its original construction to its ultimate demise in Narragansett Bay near Newport during the American revolution. As we follow the voyage of the ship, we follow the people aboard and their adventures, discoveries and mishaps. Imagine yourself aboard as you visit New Zealand and contact the Maori people, a people unknown till that time. In Tahiti Cook takes on board a Polynesian navigator to help him navigate through the islands. When he arrives in New Zealand, 3000 miles from Tahiti, he is astounded to find that the Tahitian and the Maoris speak the same language. He makes the correct inference that they are the same people. The ship encounters the southern coast of Australia and moors in what is now known as Botany Bay south of Sydney. Unknown to science marsupials such as Kangaroos and Koala Bears are encountered. Being a lifelong sailor, I got an amazing vicarious experience reading the passage where the ship encounters the previously unknown and uncharted Great Barrier reef off the coast of northeast Australia. The narrative is quite spellbinding in that over a period of a month the ship runs aground, is beached for repairs and then is barely able to escape the reefs clutches when trying to sail clear. After it’s around the world voyage, the ship is repurposed to bring supplies to the English outpost on the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. In 1776 the ship is again repurposed to bring Hessian soldiers to the American Revolution before meeting an ignominious end as a hellish prison ship in Narraganset Bay.
Endeavour’s voyage around the world while displaying the best human virtues of perseverance, curiosity and loyalty to cause had in the end very ambivalent consequences. The voyage spawned “an irregular invasion of adventurers that began to swarm around the isles of the Pacific in the nineteenth century”. “It was equally clear that with their sea charts and scientific surveys, and with the ritual planting of Union Jacks on new shores, Cook and Banks had established the platform for the aggressive process of colonization that followed. The legacy of this is still being felt today”.
A compelling and interesting insight into an age where science and exploration fired the imagination, where ideas of freedom and democracy fired the passions. JACK
August 15, 2019
“Endeavour: the ship that changed the world,” by Peter Moore (Farrar, Strouse and Giroux, 2018). Forget the subtitle: this actually is the biography of a ship, with deep context going back even to the age and location of the oaks used to build the vessel herself. Endeavour was a Whitby collier: built in the British coastal city of Whitby specifically to carry coal from Newcastle to London. (Now I truly understand the phrase “to carry coals to Newcastle.) She had bluff bows, a square stern, flat bottom, officers and sailors quarters in stern and bow, and no decks: just a huge open hold for the cargo. She was a successful vessel, and then was bought by the Royal Navy for Lt. James Cook for a voyage around Cape Horn to Tahiti for an observation of the Transit of Venus---an astronomical event during which the planet passes across the face of the sun. Among those on the voyage is Joseph Banks, who became the great biologist later written about by Patrick O’Brian, and others who made extraordinarily clear and precise drawings of the plants, animals and people they encountered. Precise measurements of the time and appearance of the transit would make possible accurate measurements of the distance between the earth and the sun. Moore spends time talking about the unusual energy, risk-taking and curiosity of the British during that period of the mid-1700s. Imagine a government spending the money and effort to equip not one but two complete expeditions for no reason other than to do some very obscure observations. Like going to the moon, eh? After some very difficult voyaging, they arrive in Tahiti, and develop a fairly good relationship with the inhabitants (who had already witnessed the power of Western arms during a visit by HMS Dolphin, which defended itself strenuously an attack by the Tahitians). The transit is observed, but that is almost secondary to the journals, illustrations and specimens collected to be brought back to England. From there, Cook travels westward hoping to find an expected southern continent. First they visit New Zealand, for a much less peaceful encounter with the Maori. Then they go further west, and find what they do not realize is Australia. Cook calls the place they visit Botany Bay. Before landing, the ship ran into a coral reef, and only by tremendous effort and very good luck (with the calm weather) manage to get her off, and then to the bay where they can careen and repair the hull. On departure, they barely manage to escape through the Great Barrier Reef (which they don’t know it is) and make it to Batavia and the Dutch colony there. Finally Endeavour arrives back in England, where the exploit is a great sensation. Now it is time for the American revolution, and the ship is converted into a troop transport to carry Hessian soldiers to New York. Then she is part of an invasion fleet that invades Rhode Island; she is used to hold prisoners; finally she is scuttled in the approaches to Narragansett Bay to prevent the French fleet from linking up with the American army. Along the way Moore provides clear and fascinating accounts of British politics, the radical machinations of the politician John Wilkes, the debates in Parliament over the American affair, and so forth. He does not stint in describing the enslavement of Africans in America, nor the ultimate destructiveness of the European excursions to other lands, driven by the Enlightenment and curiousity as well as greed. Solid book, though very badly edited and with some grave grammatical faults.
https://us.macmillan.com/books/978037...
https://us.macmillan.com/books/978037...
January 4, 2020
A slow start, which worried me as tales of oceanic travels and exploration is one of my favourite genres, but once I reached the heart of the subject matter--the ship Endeavour's historic journey through the South Pacific, the book was a page-turner that I did enjoy immensely. I confess, however, that I was tempted to abandon it after the first 15 pages, at which point I began to understand the faintest of warnings in Simon Winchester's review: "an immense treasure trove of fact-filled [information]". For me, that was the problem--too many facts (or as kids today say, TMI). There are certainly some readers who will be mesmerized by 15 pages of the first chapter ('Acorns') that records the history, location and nature of England's various oak forests, but I am not one of them. The next four chapters (70 or so pages) were similarly weighed down with names, dates and facts concerning ship-building, the town of Whitby, coastal England, etc. that I had to force myself to finish (OK, I skimmed a lot of those pages). But reading on, I found the treasure promised by Winchester -- for the actual story of the ship's travels, which focuses not only on the ship but the crew and its discoveries and experiences, was as Winchester concluded in his review "highly readable fun" and which helped round out my knowledge of exploration of the South Pacific. A lot of time and research went into this work but moving some of the information out of the text proper and into footnotes would have made the reading of this fascinating tale 'smoother sailing'.
August 12, 2019
This book is an interesting slant on the story of Captain James Cook and his navigation across the globe. Instead of a biography of Cook or a traditional history of his voyages, it traces the history of the ship on which he initially sailed the South Seas in the 18th century.
The story also includes the details of the ship before and after it entered Cook's service; it served as a collier before and a troop transport ship after Cook sailed her around the globe.
Regardless, there is still a good deal of information about Cook, Banks, Darymple, Lord Sandwich, and other characters familiar to others like me how have immersed themselves in the story of Cook and his voyages.
The Epilogue highlights an on-going archeological effort to identify and recover remains of Endeavour from the harbor in Newport, RI. Moore reports that many of the relics purporting to belong to Endeavour actually belong to Cook's second great ship Resolution. Ironically, both may rest within sight of each other in Newport Harbor.
Consider Moore's volume a scholarly, thoroughly-documented sidebar to one of the great stories of nautical discovery in human history. In the process, a reader will learn about the construction, fitting out and sailing of wooden ships of this age and some Revolutionary War history to boot.
Overall, a very good read.
The story also includes the details of the ship before and after it entered Cook's service; it served as a collier before and a troop transport ship after Cook sailed her around the globe.
Regardless, there is still a good deal of information about Cook, Banks, Darymple, Lord Sandwich, and other characters familiar to others like me how have immersed themselves in the story of Cook and his voyages.
The Epilogue highlights an on-going archeological effort to identify and recover remains of Endeavour from the harbor in Newport, RI. Moore reports that many of the relics purporting to belong to Endeavour actually belong to Cook's second great ship Resolution. Ironically, both may rest within sight of each other in Newport Harbor.
Consider Moore's volume a scholarly, thoroughly-documented sidebar to one of the great stories of nautical discovery in human history. In the process, a reader will learn about the construction, fitting out and sailing of wooden ships of this age and some Revolutionary War history to boot.
Overall, a very good read.
November 5, 2022
Excellent history of an idea, a ship, and an age. The Endeavour is best known for its journey around the world, Captain Cook, and his crew. However, Moore tells not simply this story, but the story of the age. The mid-seventeenth century gripped Britain with the spirit of exploration, discovery, and invention. Endeavour was a word that captured this spirit. Moore begins with the landscape of oaks from which the ships of the age were built and the stories of the people who lived among them.
As the book develops and the Endeavour is built, Moore teaches the reader why the Endeavour was such an unlikely boat. The middle section of the book covers the story of exploration we know, but upon her return to Britain, the Endeavour was re-purposed and re-named.
As the century progressed, war with France had created problems in the colonies that gave birth to a new endeavor. The colonies in North America were conspiring to begin a war for independence from Great Britain. This created a new adventure for our main character, the ship once known as Endeavour.
Peter Moore is a very talented storyteller. He writes in the style of Simon Winchester. Moore weaves details together to create a captivating tale that educates, entertains and amuses. I highly recommend!
As the book develops and the Endeavour is built, Moore teaches the reader why the Endeavour was such an unlikely boat. The middle section of the book covers the story of exploration we know, but upon her return to Britain, the Endeavour was re-purposed and re-named.
As the century progressed, war with France had created problems in the colonies that gave birth to a new endeavor. The colonies in North America were conspiring to begin a war for independence from Great Britain. This created a new adventure for our main character, the ship once known as Endeavour.
Peter Moore is a very talented storyteller. He writes in the style of Simon Winchester. Moore weaves details together to create a captivating tale that educates, entertains and amuses. I highly recommend!
September 2, 2025
I was thinking 2 stars for quite a while... slow start on this one. So much of the first couple parts is sort of random and unrelated to the story. I somehow like when Simon Winchester does that, but maybe I feel like he's doing something more like James Burke's Connections. This didn't feel connected - at all.
Eventually it got going and it was an interesting take on Cook's first voyage especially. That's most of the book, but there are also bit about Endeavour after the circumnavigation. Almost nothing about Cook's second and third voyages, because this is a book about a ship and not about a person.
So be warned... if you're looking for a book about James Cook - this isn't it. If you're looking for a book about a ship that started life as the Earl of Pembroke and ended up as the Lord Sandwich (yes THAT Lord Sandwich) and was the Endeavour for a few years between - this is your book.
Eventually it got going and it was an interesting take on Cook's first voyage especially. That's most of the book, but there are also bit about Endeavour after the circumnavigation. Almost nothing about Cook's second and third voyages, because this is a book about a ship and not about a person.
So be warned... if you're looking for a book about James Cook - this isn't it. If you're looking for a book about a ship that started life as the Earl of Pembroke and ended up as the Lord Sandwich (yes THAT Lord Sandwich) and was the Endeavour for a few years between - this is your book.
May 26, 2025
My hopes were high for this book as I was recommended it from a friend. Doing a little research on Endeavor before reading it, I had high hopes that the book would focus on the incredible journey undertaken to study the natural world a century before Darwin & Wallace.
Instead, I got a book filled with what seems to be irrelevant information and well, useless facts. There are numerous times where it reads as if the author was asked for 25 pages from the publisher, was only able to write 5, and so therefore had to make up another 20. Not to mention the name “Endeavor” is slightly misguiding since the ship had three names during its life.
Had the book focused on the journey of endeavor in greater depth (a topic I still think would have wild success) this book would’ve been much better. Overall, wouldn’t recommend.
Instead, I got a book filled with what seems to be irrelevant information and well, useless facts. There are numerous times where it reads as if the author was asked for 25 pages from the publisher, was only able to write 5, and so therefore had to make up another 20. Not to mention the name “Endeavor” is slightly misguiding since the ship had three names during its life.
Had the book focused on the journey of endeavor in greater depth (a topic I still think would have wild success) this book would’ve been much better. Overall, wouldn’t recommend.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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