Home > Willem de Vlamingh

In 1696 de Vlamingh's expedition left Amsterdam to chart the south-west coast of New Holland to aid navigation on the Indian Ocean route from African Cape. There were three ships under his command: the Geelvink, Nyptangh and the Wezeltje.

• On December 29 1696, he discovered Rottnest Island. He named the island from the number of rats (actually the native marsupial quokkas), observed.
• On January 10 1697, he discovered the Swan River. He named the river after the Black Swans which he observed in large numbers.
• On February 4 1697, he landed at Dirk Hartog Island, Western AustraliaWestern Australia State flag ( In detail) Coat of Arms ( In detail) Capital Perth Governor HE Lieutenant General John Sanderson Premier Dr Geoff Gallop Area — Land — Marine — Total 2 529 875 km² 115 740 km² 2 645 615 km² Population Density 1 952 280 (2003, and replaced Dirk HartogDirk Hartog Dutch sea captain, was one of the first Europeans to see the mainland of Australia. In October 1616, Hartog, captain of the Eendracht was sailing from Cape Town to Batavia ( Jakarta) when he was blown off course and came upon an island off the’s pewterPewter is an alloy, traditionally of anywhere between three and nine parts tin, and one part lead. Modern pewter mixes the tin with copper, antimony and/or bismuth, as opposed to lead. The metal is gray in colour and generally has a dull finish. A pewter plate with one bearing a record of both visits. The original plate is preserved in the Rijksmuseum1642 1658- 1660 The Rijksmuseum is the national museum of the Netherlands, located in Amsterdam. It is dedicated to arts, crafts and history. The museum was founded in 1800 in The Hague to exhibit the collections of the Dutch stadholders. It was inspired.

De Vlamingh's name is preserved in the names of a number of geographical features in Western Australia.