History
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In 18th-century France, there was a widespread belief in a vast southern land, often referred to as Gonneville Land. This continent was considered to be distinct from New Holland, the position of which was only roughly known and marked on the charts of the day. Even after James Cook returned from the Pacific in 1770, the identification of this land remained one of the most important discoveries still to be made.
During an interlude of peace following the Seven Years War, the French Government decided to support an expedition which would hopefully equal Cook's achievements, solve the mystery of the Utopian land filled with gold and other riches and restore the prestige of the French navy following defeats during the war.
In 1771, a young, ambitious, naval officer and Breton noble, Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen-Trémarec, was given permission by the King of France, Louis XV, to undertake a voyage of exploration to the Southern Ocean with the aim of discovering the 'Terres Australes'. His second-in-command was fellow Breton Louis François Marie Aleno de Saint Aloüarn.
Bad weather and poor rigging led de Kerguelen and de Saint Aloüarn's ships to become separated. In command of the Gros Ventre, de Saint Aloüarn managed to round Cape Leeuwin and sailed north.
On the evening of 29 March 1772, the ship entered Shark Bay and anchored in Turtle Bay and the following day de Saint Aloüarn sent the ship's boat (pinnace) ashore with officer Mengaud de la Hage, the boat's crew and five soldiers to reconnoitre the land and claim possession. After walking about 3 leagues (lieues) (12km) inland, finding little evidence of human occupation, they returned to the coast and took possession of the land.
The 'Prise de Possession' took place on the northern cliff of Dirk Hartog Island, overlooking 'La Baie des Tortues' (Turtle Bay). The annexation was commemorated by raising a flag, firing a volley of rifle shots and reading a prepared document written in the usual terms in such circumstances. It was then inserted into a bottle which was buried at the foot of a small shrub or tree. Near it they placed 'deux écus de six francs' (two six franc coins).
On 8 April, the Gros Ventre left Shark Bay and headed for Timor arriving on 3 May 1772, with many of the crew sick. As he was unable to get the necessary provisions in Dili, de Saint Aloüarn left on 1 July for Batavia to get them there and then make the journey back to Ile de France (Mauritius). He managed to supply the ship and set sail for Mauritius on 8 August, but by then both he and Mengaud de la Hage were sick from fevers contracted in Batavia.
Early September the Gros Ventre finally arrived back in Mauritius, but de Saint Aloüarn was ailing fast and died on 27 October 1772 in Port Louis, Ile de France (Mauritius), his 34th birthday celebrated just a few weeks earlier as he sailed through the Sunda Strait.
