Narrative of the Surveying Voyages of His Majesty's Ships Adventure and Beagle : Between the Years 1826 and 1836

In the years leading up to Charles Darwin's 1832-6 voyage on the Beagle, the ship and its captain Robert Fitzroy (1805-65) had participated in an expedition to the desolate southern coast of South America.This three-volume work, published in 1839, describes both voyages.Volumes 1 and 2, compiled by Fitzroy, contain accounts by professional mariners.Volume 3 is the first published version of the young Darwin's now famous journal.It later appeared as a free-standing publication (1840) and in a more popular second edition (1845), both reissued in this series.Darwin's preface refers to the detailed scientific publications resulting from his research: the geological studies of volcanic islands and coral reefs (also available in the Cambridge Library Collection), and the co-authored, multi-volume zoology.Darwin expresses thanks to Fitzroy for his 'most cordial friendship', to the ship's officers for their 'undeviating kindness', and particularly to his Cambridge mentor John Stevens Henslow.