Matthew Flinders

Born at the end of the Age of Enlightenment and growing up as Romanticism took hold of European culture, Matthew Flinders was the embodiment of these seemingly irreconcilable movements. His achievements as a navigator and leader are impressive, but he was much more than an action hero, idolised by generations of admirers.

In Matthew Flinders: The Man behind the Map Gillian Dooley looks to the primary sources to discover Flinders as a friend; a son, a brother, a father and a husband; as a writer, a researcher, a reader, and a musician - and above all as a romantic scientist. 

The Journal begins on the first day of Flinders' detention at Ile de France (Mauritius) in December 1803 and continues after his return to England in 1810. The final entry, dated 10 July 1814, was written nine days before his death in London. Its only previous publication was as a limited edition facsimile of the hand-written original held by the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales.

The Journal presents a fascinating portrait of Flinders the private man, viewed first through the prism of Flinders the prisoner, unjustly detained for more than six years by Captain General Decaen, and later of Flinders the family man, cartographer and writer, struggling against debilitating illness to complete his life's work before his tragic death at age 40. It is essential reading for all those interested in the 'Great Denominator' who put 'Australia' on the map and named many hundreds of its geographical features.