The tragic story of Captain Vancouver, a great explorer whose triumphs were overshadowed by public humiliations; in particular Archibald Menzies, the ship's naturalist; Thomas Pitt, a well-connected midshipman whom Vancouver flogged and sent home. Pitt publicly challenged Vancouver to several duels and then beat him in a London street with a cane when he declined. Unable to collect back pay, Vancouver was left impoverished and ill. He died just after finishing the manuscript of his voyage, scrawling out the final pages on his deathbed.
|