James Cook's first journey departed in 1768. He commanded the'Endeavour' on an expedition to chart the transit of Venus. Cookwent on to search for Terra Australis Incognita, the greatcontinent which some believed to extend round the pole. He firstcame across New Zealand, which had already been discovered by AbelTasman in 1642. He spent some months there, charting the coastline.Nearly a year later, he set sail east, becoming the first knownEuropean to sight the Eastern coast of Australia, in April 1770. Hecontinued north, charting the coast in some detail, beforereturning a favourable report to England. It was this report whichconvinced the authorities to colonise the Australian continent withconvicts.On Cook's second journey which lasted from 1772-1775, hecommanded the 'Resolution' and the 'Adventure' on an expedition tothe South Pacific, disproving the rumour of a great southerncontinent, exploring the Antarctic Ocean, New Hebrides and NewCaledonia.On his third journey, commencing in 1776, Cook visited and namedthe Sandwich Islands, now known as Hawaii, and unsuccessfullysought a northwest passage along the coast of North America. On hisway back to England, he stopped at Hawaii again. After a boat wasstolen by natives, he and his crew had an altercation with theHawaiians. On 14 February 1779, Cook was speared by Hawaiiannatives.