www.monumentaustralia.org.au

Tricentenary of Vlamingh`s Visit to Dirk Hartog IslandPrint Page Print this page

04-November-2015
04-November-2015

Photographs supplied by Cameron Byers

The memorial commemorates tricentenary of the visit of Willem de Vlamingh to the island in 1697. The plaque also acknowledges the visit to the island by Dirk Hartog in 1616. 

In 1696, Willem de Vlamingh commanded a rescue mission to Australia's west coast to find the survivors of a VOC (Dutch East India Company) ship that had gone missing two years earlier. The mission proved fruitless, but along the way de Vlamingh charted parts of the continent's western coast and named Rottnest Island and the Swan River.

Location

Address:Cape Inscription Lighthouse, Dirk Hartog Island, 6537
State:WA
Area:AUS
GPS Coordinates:Lat: -25.481976
Long: 112.972003
Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.
View Google Map

Details

Monument Type:Monument
Monument Theme:Landscape
Sub-Theme:Exploration
Actual Event Start Date:02-February-1697
Actual Event End Date:02-February-1697

Dedication

Actual Monument Dedication Date:Wednesday 12th February, 1997
Front Inscription

Willem de Vlamingh explored the coast of Western Australia from December 1696 To February 1697.  On 2 February, crew of his ship, the Geelvinck, climbed the cliff near this spot, finding a flattened pewter plate inscribed with a record of Dirk Hartog`s visit in 1616, lying beside a post fixed in a cleft in the rock, Vlamingh replaced Hartog`s plate with one of his own, nailed to a new post and inscribed as follows

Vlamingh`s Plate was removed by Louis De Freycinet In 1818 and taken to Paris.  After World War II it was donated to Australia by the French Government.

This memorial was unveiled by the Hon Richard Court MLA, Premier of Western Australia on 12 February 1997, to mark the Tricentenary of Vlamingh`s visit to this place. 

Round Plaques in Centre of Inscription:
Plaque I:

[Dutch Inscription]
Plaque 2:
1616
The 25 October Is Here Arrived The Ship The Eendracht Of Amsterdam  The Upper Merchant Gilles Meibais Of Leige Skipper Dirk Hartog Of Amsterdam  The 27 Ditto Made Sail For Bantam The Under-Merchant Jan Stins The Upper Steersman Pieter Doekes Van Bilanno 1616 :-

1697 The 4 February Is Here Arrived The Ship The Geelvinck For Amsterdam  The Commodore And Skipper Willem De Vlamingh Of Vlielandt  Assistant Joannes Bremer of Copenhagen  Upper-Steersman Michel Bloem Of The Bishopric Bremen  The Hooker The Nyptangth Skipper Gerrit Collaart Of Amsterdam  Assistant Theodoris Heirnabs Of Ditto  Upper-Steersman Gerrit Geritsen Of Bremen The Galliot  The Weseltje Commander Cornelis De Vlamingh Of Vlielandt  Steersman Coert Gerritsen Of Bremen And Sailed From Here With Our Fleet The [12 ditto] Also The Southland Further To Explore And Bound For Batavia

 

Source: MA
Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au
Exploration
Exploration
Settlement
Settlement