29 Facts About Nicolas Baudin

Nicolas Baudin carried a few corms of Gros Michel banana from Southeast Asia, depositing them at a botanical garden on the Caribbean island of Martinique.

Nicolas Baudin then joined the French East India Company at the age of 20 on Flamand.

Nicolas Baudin returned from India on L'Etoile and arrived at Lorient.

Since the atmosphere between the French and American crews on Lion became unbearable, Baudin was assigned by Lamotte-Picquet to Duc de Choiseul, a ship equipped by Jean Peltier Dudoyer.

Nicolas Baudin was taken to Jamaica as a prisoner, then exchanged at the request of the Comte d'Argout, the Governor of Saint-Domingue.

Nicolas Baudin returned to France on board the frigate Minerve, under the command of Captain de Grimouard, who was later guillotined at Rochefort under the Convention.

Nicolas Baudin was to form part of the convoy which took the Legion of Luxembourg to strengthen the defence of the Dutch Cape Colony at the Cape of Good Hope.

Nicolas Baudin was still accompanied by his brother Alexandre Baudin as first mate.

Nicolas Baudin signed his letter 'Commander of the private frigate Comte d'Angevilliers, Maison Peltier du Doyer quai de l'hopital'.

Nicolas Baudin was to take the last Acadians to Louisiana.

Nicolas Baudin was a few months behind his brother Alexandre who was captain of Saint Remy, built by Jean Peltier Dudoyer.

Nicolas Baudin had been given reason to hope that he would be given command of the ships of this expedition.

Later in 1788, Nicolas Baudin sailed on a commercial voyage from Trieste to Canton in Jardiniere.

Nicolas Baudin apparently arrived at Canton from Mauritius under the flag of the US, probably to avoid the possibility of having his ship seized by the Chinese for payment of the debts owed them by the Imperial Asiatic Company of Trieste.

Nicolas Baudin proceeded to Martinique, from where he addressed an offer to the Imperial government in Vienna to conduct to Canton commissioners who would be empowered to negotiate with the Chinese merchants there a settlement of the debts incurred by the Imperial Asiatic Company, which would enable the company to renew its trade with China.

Nicolas Baudin survived the wreck and made his way to the US, from where he went to France.

Nicolas Baudin believed that he was expected and offered his services and his talents.

Nicolas Baudin wrote to the Minister to give notice of his imminent arrival in Paris.

The museum and the French government accepted the proposal, and Nicolas Baudin was appointed commander of an expedition in Belle Angelique, with four assigned botanists: Rene Mauge, Andre Pierre Ledru, Anselme Riedle and Stanislas Levillain.

Nicolas Baudin took Fanny to St Thomas and St Croix, and then to Puerto Rico, specimens being collected in all three islands.

Nicolas Baudin joined Bruix on Ocean, on which Bruix was in charge of the squadron which resupplied Genoa.

In October 1800, Nicolas Baudin was selected by Bonaparte, whose wife Josephine had something of a fascination with Australia, to lead what has become known as the Nicolas Baudin expedition to map the coast of New Holland.

Nicolas Baudin had two ships, Geographe and Naturaliste captained by Hamelin, and a suite of nine zoologists and botanists, including Jean Baptiste Leschenault de la Tour.

Nicolas Baudin left Le Havre on 19 October 1800, stopped off in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, then sailed straight to the Ile de France arriving on 15 March 1801,145 days later.

Nicolas Baudin then stopped at the British colony at Sydney for supplies, and from there he sent home Naturaliste, carrying all of the specimens that had been collected by both ships up to that time.

Nicolas Baudin then headed back to Tasmania, before continuing along the southern and western coasts of Australia to Timor, mapping as he went.

Nicolas Baudin died of tuberculosis at Mauritius on 16 September 1803, at the age of 49, apparently in the home of Madame Alexandrine Kerivel.

However, the historian Edward Duyker likes to think that Nicolas Baudin was buried in Le Cimetiere de l'Ouest in the district of Port Louis, "just a few hundred metres from the explorer's certain love: the sea".

Nicolas Baudin gives and bequeaths to Citizen Ronsin, wife of Citizen Louis Peltier, his porcelain from Saxony and Chantilly, consisting of three services, one of twelve cups, one of six and one of two pieces plus his gold watch.