Letters by Johann Reinhold Forster about Captain Cook's First Voyage and the Preparations for the Second

Abstract

This essay offers translations into English from the original German of letters by Johann Reinhold Forster, a naturalist who accompanied Captain Cook's second voyage. These letters provide insight into Cook's first voyage, for which Forster seems to have had inside information, as well as preparations for the second voyage. The letters are placed here in historical context with the publication history of the primary accounts of Cook's voyages and include notes and commentary by the translator.