En route back to Batavia, Tasman came across the Tongan archipelago on 20 January 1643. While passing the Fiji Islands Tasman's ships came close to being wrecked on the dangerous reefs of the north-eastern part of the Fiji group. He charted the eastern tip of Vanua Levu and Cikobia before making his way back into the open sea. He eventually turned north-west to New Guinea, and arrived at Batavia on 15 June 1643.

Tasman's routes

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Second Pacific voyage

With three ships on his second voyage (Limmen, Zeemeeuw and the tender Braek) in 1644, he followed the south coast of New Guinea eastward. He missed the Torres Strait between New Guinea and Australia, and continued his voyage along the Australian coast. He mapped the north coast of Australia making observations on the land and its people.

From the point of view of the Dutch East India Company Tasman's explorations were a disappointment: he had neither found a promising area for trade nor a useful new shipping route. For over a century, until the era of James Cook, Tasmania and New Zealand were not visited by Europeans - mainland Australia was visited, but usually only by accident.

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Later life

On 2 November 1644 Abel Tasman was appointed a member of the Council of Justice at Batavia. He went to Sumatra in 1646, and in August 1647 to Siam (now Thailand) with letters from the company to the King. In May 1648 he was in charge of an expedition sent to Manila to try to intercept and loot the Spanish silver ships coming from America, but he had no success and returned to Batavia in January 1649. In November 1649 he was charged and found guilty of having in the previous year hanged one of his men without trial, was suspended from his office of commander, fined, and made to pay compensation to the relatives of the sailor. On 5 January 1651 he was formally reinstated in his rank and spent his remaining years at Batavia. He was in good circumstances, being one of the larger landowners in the town. He died at Batavia in October 1659 and was survived by his second wife and a daughter by his first wife. His discoveries were most important but led to nothing for more than 100 years.

The Abel Tasman map 1644, also known as the Bonaparte Tasman map. This map is part of the collection of the State Library of New South Wales, Australia.

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Tasman's legacy

As with many explorers, Tasman's name has been honoured in many ways. These include:

• the island of Tasmania, including features such as
  • the Tasman Peninsula
  • the Tasman Bridge
  • the Tasman Highway
  • the passenger/vehicle ferry Abel Tasman
• the Tasman Sea
• in New Zealand:
  • the Tasman Glacier
  • Tasman Lake
  • the Tasman River
  • Mount Tasman
  • the Abel Tasman National Park
  • Tasman Bay
  • the Tasman District
• The Able Tasmans - an indie band from Auckland, New Zealand.
  • The Able Tasmans - basketball team

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References

• Serle, Percival (1949). "Tasman, Abel". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Sydney: Angus and Robertson. 

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External links

• A transcript of a paper on the voyages of Tasman, read to the Royal Society of Tasmania in 1895
• The Tasman page at Project Gutenberg of Australia This page has links to Tasman's journal and other important documents relating to Tasman
• The Huydecoper journal - Abel Tasman - The State Library of NSW
• J. W. Forsyth, 'Tasman, Abel Janszoon (1603? - 1659)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp 503-504.