Although relatively unknown to today’s public, Alexander
Dalrymple led a life exemplifying service to his country during the
age of Enlightenment. His influential role in Britain’s maritime
history makes him an outstanding historical figure.
In 1795, at the age of 58, Scottish-born Dalrymple’s became the
first Hydrographer to the Admiralty. Hydrography is the science
that maps, measures and describes water, and is vital for the safe
navigation of vessels at sea.
Having spent his youth in the Far East in the service of the
East India Company, his experience enabled him to organise a vast
governmental library of maps in London for the benefit of British
traders and travellers.
He is credited with the creation and design of the Admiralty
Chart, which was subsequently developed over 150 years to form a
body of more than 4,000 charts. These charts provided a guide to
safe navigation of the world’s oceans by naval and merchant
shipping. In this way, he helped to lay one of the secure
foundations upon which the far-flung trading posts of the British
Empire was based.
Double-page hand-coloured engraved chart of
Felicia and plan of the Island of Balambangan (off modern Borneo),
by Alexander Dalrymple, 1770.
Amazing discovery
Whilst translating some Spanish documents captured in the
Philippines in 1752, Dalrymple found evidence that showed a passage
south of New Guinea, now known as the Torres Strait. The discovery
led Dalrymple to publish a book which aroused widespread interest
in his claim of the existence of an unknown southern continent.
This resulted in Captain Cook undertaking another voyage of
exploration into the South Pacific which eventually led in 1770 to
the British discovery and charting of the Eastern coastline of
Australia.
Today, the headquarters of the United Kingdom Hydrographic
Office in Taunton are named after Dalrymple and his papers are
deposited in the National Archives at Kew. However, the only other
original likeness of Dalrymple is a pencil profile held in the
collections of the National Library of Australia, which makes this
portrait a rare and important addition to the Museums’
collections.
Where can I see the portrait?
The portrait hangs in the Discoveries gallery, which
commemorates the lives of Scottish pioneers and innovators.