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The French Collector

Journal and Letters of Theodore Leschenault, Botanist of the Baudin Expedition
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The French Collector presents the vivid journal and letters of French botanist Theodore Leschenault, who journeyed with Nicolas Baudin's expedition to Australia from 1800 to 1803. Through his observations, Leschenault captures the rich natural world of plants and animals, and his encounters with Indigenous peoples, while reflecting on themes such as slavery, colonialism, and environmental impact. This first complete English translation includes previously unknown chapters and extensive commentary on his troubled life during the French Revolution and the wider scientific context of his time.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$4499

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book will appeal to readers interested in historical travelogues, botanical exploration, Enlightenment-era science, and the early history of European encounters with Australia. It is suited for those who appreciate detailed primary sources and thoughtful reflections on colonial history.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

It is only with difficulty that I may describe for you the sensations I felt the first time I went ashore on an unknown coast. My whole being was filled with confused pleasure, everything around me sparked my curiosity—pebbles, shells washed up on the beach, plants. I collected all with wild enthusiasm...

The French botanist Theodore Leschenault (1773–1826) travelled with Nicolas Baudin's voyage of discovery to Australia from 1800 to 1803. His journal and letters vividly record his impressions of the plant life and animals he encountered, along with dramatic and unsettling meetings with Indigenous peoples. Shaped as much by Enlightenment ideas as by his painful experience of the French Revolution, Leschenault weaves through his travelogue reflections on topics ranging from slavery and colonialism to plant systematics and environmental damage.

Long thought lost, Leschenault's original manuscript journal was rediscovered only in 2016. The French Collector offers the first complete English translation of this journal, including two previously unknown chapters recounting his experiences in Le Havre, Tenerife, and Mauritius, along with various letters relating to the expedition. This edition also provides extensive explanatory notes and an introduction which details Leschenault's early life in Burgundy and imprisonment during the Revolution, setting his activities against the backdrop of French science and exploration in the period.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781760802165

Publisher: UWA Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 February 2023

Country: Australia

Imprint: UWA Publishing

Illustration: Illustrations

Contributors:

  • Translated by Paul Gibbard

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 156.0mm

Height: 234.0mm

Weight: 0g

Pages: 350

Collections

History & Archaeology History & Military Non-Fiction

About the Author

Dr Paul Gibbard completed his doctorate on late nineteenth-century French and English literature at Oxford University and worked as a researcher on the scholarly edition of the Complete Works of Voltaire at the Voltaire Foundation in Oxford. He has taught French at the universities of Adelaide and Melbourne, and has been involved in a pair of research projects funded by the Australian Research Council: the 'Baudin Legacy' project with the University of Adelaide, and a project on 'Eighteenth-Century Women's Political Thought' at Monash University. Dr Gibbard is a Senior Lecturer for European Languages and Studies at The University of Western Australia.

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