Banks, Joseph: Naturalist dubbed "Father of Australia"

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Joseph Banks: Naturalist dubbed "Father of Australia"

Vivienne Smith uncovers the story of the one-time owner of Ashover’s Overton Hall who made his name as a leading naturalist on Captain Cook’s historic round-the-world voyage.

A round-the-world trip would be considered an adventure, even today. But, back in the 18th century, it was akin to travelling to Mars and back.

When Captain Cook set sail on his historic circumnavigation in 1768, he and his crew saw places never visited by Europeans before.

The ship’s complement included a young man called Joseph Banks, whose Derbyshire inheritance helped pay for the expedition.

Joseph Banks as a boy

Joseph was born in London on February 13, 1743, the only son of William Banks and his wife, Sarah, nee Bate.

Although the family’s country home was Revesby Abbey, in Lincolnshire, on the edge of the Fens, the youngster had Derbyshire blood in his veins.

His mother was originally from Foston and his paternal grandmother, Anne, had been the heiress of William Hodgkinson, a wealthy merchant and mine owner from Overton Hall, near Ashover.

In 1732, this estate duly passed to Joseph’s father, being a second son.

But then his older brother died and William Banks ended up with Revesby Abbey instead, while Overton passed to his younger sibling, Robert.

Nevertheless, the family’s Derbyshire estate was familiar to young Joseph, especially from the age of 18 when his father died.

Set to inherit all the family property at 21, the young man was given training in estate management during vacations from Oxford.

On visits to Overton, Uncle Robert was his tutor.

Together the two men held the controlling shares in various local lead mines, including the Gregory and Overton mines which provided a substantial income.

In later life, Joseph Banks inherited Overton Hall from Robert and it became his country home for more than 20 years.

Meanwhile, as a young man, it was the revenue from this and other family estates which enabled him to follow his chosen career.

Natural history had been Joseph’s obsession since the age of 14.

His first opportunity to travel abroad as a naturalist came in 1766.

He was appointed to the HMS Niger, a fishery protection vessel dispatched to Labrador and Newfoundland.

Plagued by seasickness on the voyage, he, nevertheless, succeeded in collecting many new species of plants and insects.

The specimens he brought back to England won him scientific acclaim and he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society.

Soon news of another expedition caught the young man’s interest.

The ship Endeavour, under the command of Captain James Cook, was due to leave for the southern hemisphere in August 1768.

The main objective was to observe the transit of Venus across the Sun.

With the help of money from his Derbyshire lead mines, the 25-year-old naturalist paid for his own passage and a scientific party of eight also travelled at his expense.

The voyage, which is said to have cost him £10,000, was the first ever to be undertaken with such a team of scientists.

The Endeavour’s first destination in the South Pacific was Tahiti, which was reached in April 1769.

During the three-month stay in this South Sea Island paradise, Joseph Banks had the time of his life.

As well as taking every opportunity to study the flora and fauna, he got on famously with the native Tahitians.

He learnt their language and participated in local customs.

On one occasion, the young man took part in a mourning ceremony wearing only a loin cloth and with his skin blackened.

It is even said Banks enduring the painful process of being tattooed.

One Polynesian pastime which particularly intrigued him was surfing.

He watched in amazement as the natives tackled giant breakers with only part of an old canoe.

As he noted in his journal: “With this before them, they swam out as far as the outermost breach.

Then one or two would get into it and, opposing the blunt end to the breaking wave, were hurried in with incredible swiftness.”

Once the astronomical observations of Venus were completed, the Endeavour departed for New Zealand, a country then little known.

Six months were spent mapping the previously uncharted coastline of both North and South Island.

Captain Cook also officially took possession of the territory for Great Britain. To Banks’ frustration, there were few opportunities for studying the natural history.

The aggressive reception by the Maoris, who often launched their war canoes at the ship, meant that landfalls were limited.

But, occasionally, more friendly tribes were encountered, enabling trips to be made ashore.

One such group of natives were even persuaded to sing their war song. Banks wrote of the performance: “They distorted their faces most hideously, rolling their eyes and putting out their tongues, but they kept very good time.”

A further treat was in store for the young naturalist as the ship sailed down the east coast of South Island.

Captain Cook named what appeared to be a large island after him. It was actually a wide promontory, which today bears the name of Banks Peninsula in the vicinity of Christchurch.

Banks in later life

From New Zealand, the Endeavour continued westwards towards Australia. The ship dropped anchor off the unexplored east coast on April 28, 1770.

As Cook and his men attempted to go ashore, two Aborigines approached them waving spears and gesticulating angrily for the strangers to leave.

The offer of gifts failed to appease them and they only retreated when muskets were fired.

There was little further contact with the native people, much to Banks’ disappointment.

Nevertheless, he had a field day collecting plants.

A wealth of unique botanical specimens were discovered by him and his party in the area.

To this day, shrubs and trees of the genus Banksia still bear the naturalist’s name.

Indeed, Banks’ plant hunting proved so successful that Captain Cook decided to name the place Botany Bay.

The voyage of discovery proceeded northwards up Australia’s east coast.

Then, late at night on June 11, disaster struck.

The Endeavour ran aground on the Great Barrier Reef some 20 miles from the mainland.

With water pouring in, it was all hands to the pumps and heavy items were thrown overboard to lighten the load.

Cook knew that if they were forced to abandon ship, there were not enough boats to take everyone ashore.

Yet, although the situation seemed desperate, there was no panic.

In his journal, Banks praised the seamen, recording that they worked “with surprising cheerfulness and alacrity, with no grumbling or growling to be heard – no, not even an oath (though the ship in general was as well furnished with them as most in His Majesty’s Service).”

The crew eventually managed to refloat the vessel on the tide. Miraculously, a piece of coral snapped off and partially plugged the hole long enough for the ship to be sailed to shore.

While the Endeavour underwent repairs, Banks occupied his time searching for more specimens.

The wildlife proved quite unlike anything they had encountered before.

Particularly intriguing were the sightings of a strange animal with a large tail, which moved swiftly on its hind legs in giant leaps.

The chance to see a specimen up close came when one was shot.

Banks struggled to describe the beast in his journal: “What to liken him to I could not tell. Nothing certainly that I have seen at all resembles him.”

It transpired the native people called them kangaroos.

With the ship in need of a complete overhaul, the expedition was all but over. After claiming the east coast of Australia for Britain, Cook sailed for Batavia (now Jakarta).

Tragically, in the disease-ridden Indonesian capital, 30 of the crew died of fever.

Banks himself fell seriously ill and was only saved by being removed to the Javanese countryside.

The Endeavour finally arrived back in England in June 1771, having been away for almost three years.

Joseph Banks became a celebrity overnight.

Among the multitude of specimens he had brought back with him were more than 1,000 new species of plants, 500 fish and 500 skins of birds as well as countless insects.

King George III was keen to hear a first-hand account of the voyage, and the naturalist was only too happy to oblige.

The two men ended up firm friends. The King appointed Banks as director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, which he proceeded to transform into a world centre for studying plants.

In 1778, he was made president of the Royal Society, a post he held to the end of his days. A baronetcy soon followed.

Dedicated to furthering the cause of science, Banks went on to initiate many successful projects.

They included the idea of transporting breadfruit from Tahiti to the West Indies, which, unfortunately, resulted in the Mutiny on the Bounty.

By the time of his death on June 19, 1820, Sir Joseph Banks had yet another claim to fame.

Using the first-hand knowledge of Botany Bay acquired in his early years, he recommended the area to the House of Commons as a suitable location for a penal settlement.

This, together with his great enthusiasm for the development of the new colony, earned the owner of Overton Hall the epithet “Father of Australia”.

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