John Shortland (Royal Navy officer)
John Shortland | |
---|---|
Born | 1739 Plymouth, England |
Died | 1803 Lille, France | (aged 63–64)
Allegiance | Kingdom of Great Britain |
Service/ | Royal Navy |
Rank | Commander |
Spouse(s) |
Margarethe Rutherford
(m. 1764) |
Children | John Shortland Thomas George Shortland |
Relations | Willoughby Shortland (grandson) Peter Shortland (grandson) Edward Shortland (grandson) |
Commander John Shortland (1739–1803), was a Royal Navy officer, known for being the agent for transports of First Fleet, and for exploring and charting islands in the South Pacific.
Early life
John Shortland was born near Plymouth, England, in 1739, the son of Thomas Shortland.[1]
Entering the Royal Navy as
Transport service
Promoted to the rank of
Shortland after leaving the
During the voyage via Batavia, Shortland discovered and charted many islands and reefs. He named New Georgia, an island in the Solomons archipelago, when his ship, the Alexander, passed by it in August 1789.[3] He named the Treasury Islands, named a strait Shortland Strait, an island Shortland Island, and island group Shortland Islands after himself. During the trip to Batavia, the Friendship was scuttled near Borneo after crew numbers were reduced by scurvy. Shortland arrived back in England in May 1789. He strongly urged the Admiralty to have the eastern coast of Australia properly charted, and as a result the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs dispatched Matthew Flinders in HMS Investigator.
Later life and legacy
Shortland was promoted to commander in 1790 and, after further active service, retired to Lille, France, where he died in 1803. He was survived by his widow, two sons and two daughters. John Shortland is often confused with his son John Shortland, also a fine seaman. One mistake occurred on the celebration of the son's discovery of the Hunter River, and a second, on the 150th anniversary of the same event, when Australia Post issued a stamp that showed the face of the father instead of the son.
Family
On 5 July 1764 he married Margarethe Rutherford at Whitechapel, Middlesex. A Daughter Jane Shortland was born about 1765 and her sister Peggy Shortland followed two years later. Son John Shortland arrived in 1769 and Thomas George Shortland in 1771.
References
Bibliography
- Historical Records of New South Wales, vols 1-4
- Historical Records of Australia, Series I, vols 1-2
- J. Hunter, An Historical Journal of the Transactions at Port Jackson and Norfolk Island (Lond, 1793)
- W. Tench, A Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay (Lond, 1789)
- "Memoir of the Public Services of the Late Captain John Shortland, of the Royal Navy", Naval Chronicle, vol 24, 1810, pp 1–21
- Bonwick transcripts, biography (State Library of New South Wales)