Burke and Wills

The triumph and tragedy of Australia's most famous explorers

Peter FitzSimons

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English

Hachette Australia
26 June 2018

History; Australasian & Pacific history; Modern history to 20th century: c 1700 to c 1900; History: specific events & topics; Geographical discovery & exploration

The iconic Australian exploration story - brought to life by Peter FitzSimons, Australia's storyteller.

'They have left here today!' he calls to the others. When King puts his hand down above the ashes of the fire, it is to find it still hot. There is even a tiny flame flickering from the end of one log. They must have left just hours ago.

Melbourne, 20 August 1860. In an ambitious quest to be the first Europeans to cross the harsh Australian continent, the Victorian Exploring Expedition sets off, farewelled by 15,000 cheering well-wishers. Led by Robert O'Hara Burke, a brave man totally lacking in the bush skills necessary for his task; surveyor and meteorologist William Wills; and 17 others, the expedition took 20 tons of equipment carried on six wagons, 23 horses and 26 camels.

Almost immediately plagued by disputes and sackings, the expeditioners battled the extremes of the Australian landscape and weather: its deserts, the boggy mangrove swamps of the Gulf, the searing heat and flooding rains. Food ran short and, unable to live off the land, the men nevertheless mostly spurned the offers of help from the local Indigenous people.

In desperation, leaving the rest of the party at the expedition's depot on Coopers Creek, Burke, Wills, Charley Gray and John King made a dash for the Gulf in December 1860. Bad luck and bad management would see them miss by just hours a rendezvous back at Coopers Creek, leaving them stranded in the wilderness with practically no supplies. Only King survived to tell the tale.

Yet, despite their tragic fates, the names of Burke and Wills have become synonymous with perseverance and bravery in the face of overwhelming odds. They live on in our nation's history - and their story remains immediate and compelling.

By: Peter FitzSimons
Imprint: Hachette Australia
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions: Height: 233mm, Width: 153mm, Spine: 53mm
Weight: 920g
ISBN: 9780733640797
ISBN 10: 0733640796
Pages: 720
Publication Date: 26 June 2018
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Peter FitzSimons is Australia's bestselling non-fiction writer, and for the past 30 years has also been a journalist and columnist with the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD and the SUN-HERALD. He is the author of a number of highly successful books, including KOKODA, NED KELLY, GALLIPOLI and, most recently, BURKE AND WILLS, as well as biographies of such notable Australians as Sir Douglas Mawson, Nancy Wake and Nick Farr-Jones. His passion is to tell Australian stories, our own stories: of great men and women, of stirring events in our history. Peter grew up on a farm north of Sydney, went to boarding school in Sydney and attended Sydney University. An ex-Wallaby, he also lived for several years in rural France and Italy, playing rugby for regional clubs. He and his wife Lisa Wilkinson - journalist, magazine editor and television presenter - have three children; they live in Sydney.

Reviews for Burke and Wills: The triumph and tragedy of Australia's most famous explorers

Strongly grounded in empirical research and context, Burke & Wills has much to commend it. It will undoubtedly please the author's established readership, and its enthusiastic and colourful prose style will no doubt serve to encourage younger readers to develop a passion for Australian history. - Weekend Australian