1616day.year
Dutch sea-captain Dirk Hartog makes the second recorded landfall by a European on Australian soil, at the later-named Dirk Hartog Island off the West Australian coast.
Dutch captain Dirk Hartog made the second European landfall in Australia at a remote island off Western Australia.
On October 25, 1616, Captain Dirk Hartog of the Dutch East India Company landed on a small island off the coast of what is now Western Australia, marking the second European visit to the continent. Sailing aboard the ship Eendracht, Hartog and his crew spent a short time collecting water and provisions. He left behind a pewter plate inscribed with details of his visit, which remained the oldest known European artifact in Australia until its discovery in 1697. This encounter provided valuable navigational data for future voyages to the East Indies and advanced European understanding of the Indian Ocean coasts. The island was later named Dirk Hartog Island in his honour. Hartog’s voyage contributed to the early mapping of Australia’s western shores and the era of global maritime exploration.
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Dirk Hartog