The Baudin expedition (French: Expédition Baudin) of 1800 to 1803 was a French expedition to map the coast of New Holland (now Australia). It was approved by Napoléon Bonaparte and Nicolas Baudin was selected as its leader. It started with two ships, Géographe, captained by Baudin, and Naturaliste, captained by Jacques Hamelin, and was accompanied by nine zoologists and botanists, including Jean-Baptiste Leschenault de la Tour, François Péron and Charles-Alexandre Lesueur, as well as the geographer Pierre Faure. The expedition was considered a great success, as it produced the Freycinet Map of 1811, the first full map of Australia, and discovered more than 2500 new species.

History

Expedition

Napoléon Bonaparte, as First Consul, formally approved the expedition "to the coasts of New Holland",Horner, 1986, p.40 after receiving a delegation consisting of Baudin and eminent members of the Institut National des Sciences et Arts on 25 March 1800. The explicit purpose of the voyage was to be "observation and research relating to Geography and Natural History."'Plan of Itinerary for Citizen Baudin' in Baudin, 2004, p.1.

The Baudin expedition departed Le Havre, France, on 19 October 1800. Because of delays in receiving his instructions and problems encountered in Isle de France (now Mauritius) they did not reach Cape Leeuwin on the south-west corner of the continent until May 1801. Upon rounding Cape Naturaliste, they entered Geographe Bay. During their exploration here they lost a longboat and a sailor, Assistant Helmsman Timothée Vasse. They then sailed north, but the ships became separated and did not meet again until they reached Timor. On their journeys Géographe and Naturaliste surveyed large stretches of the north-western coast. The expedition was severely affected by dysentery and fever, but sailed from Timor on 13 November 1801, back down the north-west and west coast, then across the Great Australian Bight, reaching Tasmania on 13 January 1802. They charted the whole length of Tasmania's east coast and there were extensive interactions with the Indigenous Tasmanians, with whom they had peaceful relationships. They notably produced precious ethnological studies of Indigenous Tasmanians.

The expedition then began surveying the south coast of Australia,M.L. Freycinet, Carte Générale de la Nouvelle Hollande dressée par M. L. Freycinet Commandant de la Goëllette le Casuarina, An 1808. Louis Freycinet, Atlas Historique, Paris, 1811. but then Captain Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin in Naturaliste decided to make for Port Jackson (Sydney) as he was running short of food and water, and in need of anchors. En route, in April 1802, Hamelin explored the area of Western Port, Victoria, and gave names to places, a number of which have survived, for example, Île des Français is now called French Island.

Meanwhile, Baudin in Géographe continued westward, and in April 1802 encountered the British sloop HMS Investigator commanded by Matthew Flinders, also engaged in charting the coastline, at Encounter Bay in what is now South Australia. Flinders informed Baudin of his discovery of Kangaroo Island (, ), St. Vincent's and Spencer's Gulfs. Baudin sailed on to the Nuyts Archipelago, the point reached by the Dutch ship 't Gulden Zeepaert in 1627, before heading for Port Jackson as well for supplies.

In late 1802 the expedition was at Port Jackson, where the government sold 60 casks of flour and 25 casks of salt meat to Baudin to resupply his two vessels. The supplies permitted Naturaliste to return to France and Géographe to continue her explorations of the Australian coast.Historical Records of Australia (1915), Series I, vol.3 1801/02, p.600. The expedition reported on the defences of the town and the disaffection of Irish convicts. Naturaliste took with her the Colony's staff surgeon, Mr. James Thomson, whom Governor Philip Gidley King had given permission to return to England.Historical Records of Australia (1915), Series I, vol.3 1801/02, p.718.

Before resuming the voyage Baudin purchased a 30 ton schooner, which he named the , a smaller vessel which could conduct close inshore survey work. He sent the larger Naturaliste under Hamelin back to France with all the specimens that had been collected by Baudin and his crew. As the voyage had progressed Louis de Freycinet, now a Lieutenant, had shown his talents as an officer and a hydrographer and so was given command of Casuarina. The expedition then headed for Tasmania and conducted further charting of Bass Strait before sailing west, following the west coast northward, and after another visit to Timor, undertook further exploration along the north coast of Australia. Plagued by contrary winds, ill health, and because 'the quadrupeds and emus were very sick',Baudin p.561. it was decided on 7 July 1803 to return to France. On the return voyage, the ships stopped in Mauritius, where Baudin died of tuberculosis on 16 September 1803. The expedition finally reached France on 24 March 1804.

The scientific expedition was considered a great success, with more than 2500 new species discovered.

Outcomes

An inscription on a rock was left by members of Géographe on Kangaroo Island in 1803, which reads, "", i.e. "Expedition of discovery by Captain Baudin in the Géographe, 1803". To protect it from erosion, the original rock is now housed at the Gateway Visitor Information Centre on Howard Drive, Penneshaw, and a fine replica is on open view on the Penneshaw foreshore, beneath a concrete dome which has been a local landmark since 1906.

+ Geographical features of South Australia which were named by Baudin Name Location K.I. Remarks Cape Adieu Here Baudin left South Australia to return to Port Jackson D'Anville Bay Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville, geographer Cape Beaufort perhaps Louis Joseph, Duke of Vendôme, Duke of Beaufort Cape Bedout # Jacques Bedout, Napoleonic naval hero, rear admiral Cape Borda # Jean-Charles de Borda, recently deceased mathematician and mariner, constructor of the standard metre Cape Bouguer # Pierre Bouguer, astronomer and mathematician, "the father of naval architecture" Cape Buffon # Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, naturalist Cape Carnot # Lazare Carnot, engineer and mathematician, member of the Committee of Public Safety Carpenter Rocks # named "Les Carpentiers", perhaps for their sawtooth appearance Cape Cassini # César-François Cassini de Thury, cartographer (or another of his family) Casuarina Islets # schooner Casuarina commanded by Louis de Freycinet Corvisart Bay # Jean-Nicolas Corvisart, physician to Napoléon Bonaparte Cape du Couedic # Charles Louis Chevalier du Couëdic de Kergoualer (1740–1780), commander of frigate La Surveilante Decres Bay Denis Decrès, naval officer, Napoleon's Minister of the Navy Cape Dombey Joseph Dombey, French naturalist of the Americas whose plant collections are currently owned by the British Museum Cape D'Estaing Charles Hector, comte d'Estaing, admiral, executed during the Reign of Terror D'Estrees Bay # Victor-Marie d'Estrées, admiral who fought in battles of the late 17th century Cape D'Estrees (ditto) Cape Euler Leonhard Euler, prolific 18th century Swiss mathematician, founder of the Euler diagram (a diagrammatic means of representing sets and their relationships) Fenelon Island François Fénelon, novelist, author of The Adventures of Telemachus; archbishop Fleurieu Peninsula # Charles Pierre Claret de Fleurieu, Minister of the Navy under Louis XVI, Napoleonic Minister Plenipotentiary and member of the Council of State Cape Forbin # Claude de Forbin, late 17th and early 18th century admiral, governor of Bangkok Cape Gantheaume # Honoré Joseph Antoine Ganteaume, naval officer, president the Navy section of the Council of State Guichen Bay # Luc Urbain de Bouëxic, comte de Guichen, French admiral of the American War of Independence Cape Jaffa # Jaffa, port taken by Napoleon in March 1799 during the Egypt Campaign Jussieu Bay Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, botanist Cape Kersaint # Armand de Kersaint, rear admiral during the French Revolution, executed during the purge of the Girondins Lacepede Bay # Bernard Germain de Lacépède, naturalist, collaborator of Buffon, author of a Histoire naturelle des poissons Cape Lannes Jean Lannes, a Marshal of the Empire Cape Linois # Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand Linois, a French admiral who commanded the Franco-Spanish forces during the Algeciras campaign Massena Bay André Masséna, a Marshal of the Empire Massillon Island Jean Baptiste Massillon, bishop, famous for his funeral oration for Louis XIV and benign temperament Maupertuis Bay # Pierre Louis Maupertuis, early 18th century mathematician, credited with having invented the principle of least action, a version known as Maupertuis's principle Cape Missiessy Édouard Thomas Burgues de Missiessy, admiral Murat Bay # Joachim Murat, a Marshal of the Empire Cape Rabelais François Rabelais, 15th century author of Gargantua and Pantagruel Ravine des Casoars # casoar = cassowary, here referring to emus Rivoli Bay # André Masséna, Duke of Rivoli and Marshal of the Empire Cape Rouge # for red granite found nearby Cape Thevenard # Antoine-Jean-Marie Thévenard, admiral Cape Tournefort Joseph Pitton de Tournefort, botanist Tourville Bay # Anne Hilarion de Tourville, naval commander victor at the Battle of Lagos (1693) Vivonne Bay # Louis Victor de Rochechouart de Mortemart, Maréchal de Vivonne, 17th century military officer Cape Vivonne (ditto)

Many Western Australian places still have French names today from Baudin's expedition: for example, Peron Peninsula, Depuch Island, Cape Levillain, Boullanger Island and Faure Island; and the Australian plant genus Guichenotia honours the name of Antoine Guichenot.

According to researchers from the University of Adelaide, during this expedition Baudin prepared a report for Napoleon on ways to invade and capture the British colony at Sydney Cove.Jean Fornasiero and John West-Sooby (transl. and eds.), French Designs on Colonial New South Wales: François Péron’s Memoir on the English Settlements in New Holland, Van Diemen’s Land and the Archipelagos of the Great Pacific Ocean, The Friends of the State Library of South Australia Inc., Adelaide, 2014. The Baudin expedition was intended to be a voyage of discovery that would further scientific knowledge and perhaps eclipse the achievements of Captain James Cook.

Crew Among those joining the Baudin expedition were Sub-lieutenants Louis-Claude (Louis) de Saulses de Freycinet and his older brother Henri-Louis (Henri). Louis did not initially sail as a 'geographer'. Both were eventually promoted to Lieutenant, and Louis was later given command of the schooner , purchased in Sydney to enable improved inshore surveying. Another member of the expedition, someone who was ultimately to have a highly significant influence on its outcomes, was the 25-year-old assistant zoologist François Péron.

Officers and sailors Captains: Nicolas Thomas Baudin (1754–1803) (Géographe) and Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin (1768–1839) (Naturaliste).

Surgeon-Physician and naturalist: Pierre François Keraudren (1769–1858) (Le Géographe)(Preparations not on board)

Sub-lieutenants Louis de Freycinet and, his older brother, Henri-Louis de Freycinet

Sailors: Hyacinthe de Bougainville, midshipman second-class, and François-Antoine Boniface Heirisson, midshipman; Charles Baudin, midshipman. Jacques-Philippe Mérigon de Montgéry was a 2nd class midshipman aboard Géographe and landed sick at Île-de-France on 25 April 1801.

Scientists and artists