225th Anniversary of the Malaspina's Expedition visit to Sydney

On the 30th of July 1789, Alejandro Malaspina and Jose de Bustamante y Guerra set sail from the port of Cádiz and embarked on one of the most important adventures produced by the Spanish Enlightenment. Upon their return on the 18th of September 1794, both Malaspina and Bustamante were unaware of the real magnitude of their periplus and the contribution that it would make not only to the Spanish Crown, but also to science more generally.
Carlos III authorised Malaspina’s expedition, which aimed not only to produce a new sketch of the political and economic order in the Americas, but also to carry out the necessary studies to enhance the precision of existing cartographic representations of the world, accounting for the places that they visited and adding newly discovered species to botanical and zoological inventories.
Descubierta and Atrevida were the names of the corvettes with which Malaspina and Bustamante began their great voyage; approximately 200 men, sailors, naval officers, scientists and draftsmen navigated over five years from Spain to the Americas and from there to China, the Philippines, Australia, and again to South America from which they returned to Spain, thereby concluding the most important adventure of the Spanish XVIII century.
Sydney was a part of this long voyage. For a month between March and April of 1793, the Corvettes commanded by Malaspina were anchored in Botany Bay. During this time, the commanding officers, as well as part of the crew, were able to take in their surroundings from Parramatta to Port Jackson through the eyes and using the voices of scientists, anthropologists, economists, geographers, sailors and even diplomats. Their Australian periplus was fruitful: the manuscripts, drawings and maps which we can see here today make up the material that describes in detail what these men observed.