James Cook
Also called: Captain Cook · Topic: Settler Colonialism: Native Peoples of America and Australia · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 6 "Displacing Indigenous Peoples"
Meaning
James Cook was a British navigator. In 1770 he reached Botany Bay in Australia and named the area New South Wales. His voyage opened the way for British settlement, which began with the penal colony at Sydney in 1788. His first reports praised how friendly the native peoples were.
Example
Cook was later killed by a native, but this happened in Hawaii, not Australia. Even so, British feelings towards native peoples changed sharply after his death. This one incident was later used to justify violence against natives.
Don't confuse with
- Abel Tasman: he was a Dutch navigator who landed on Tasmania in 1642 and first sighted New Zealand. Cook came later, in 1770, and was British.