Rear Admiral John Moresby (15 March 1830 – 12 July 1922) was a British naval officer who explored the coast of

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

and was the first European to discover the site of

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...

Life and career

Moresby was born in

Allerford Allerford is a village in the county of Somerset, England, located within Exmoor National Park, and is part of the parish of Selworthy in the district of Somerset West and Taunton. It appears in Domesday Book as "Alresford – forda Ralph d ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, the son of Eliza Louisa and Admiral of the Fleet Sir

Fairfax Moresby Admiral of the Fleet Sir Fairfax Moresby GCB (29 November 1786 – 21 January 1877) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he took part in the unsuccessful expedition to capture Ferrol in Spain during the French Revolutionary Wars. He ...

. He joined the navy at an early age as a Volunteer 1st Class in HMS ''Victor'', and rose to be in charge of the 1,031 ton

paddle steamer A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses we ...

cruiser HMS ''Basilisk'' in which he made hydrological surveys around eastern New Guinea. During the survey of the southern coast he discovered the harbour which he named Fairfax after his father. The town established there, based on already existing native villages (principally

Hanuabada Hanuabada is a coastal village in Papua New Guinea in the outskirts of the nation's capital, Port Moresby. It is the biggest village in the Motuan tribe and is often known by its locals as "HB." Hanuabada means "big village" (''hanua'' "village" ...

) was named Port Moresby and is now the nation's capital. John Moresby was also searching for a shorter route between Australia and China and on the eastern tip of the island he discovered the

China Strait The China Strait is a navigable strait in the Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea between mainland New Guinea and Samarai Island. The strait, in length and wide, connects the Solomon Sea with the Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a m ...

. He continued exploring along the north west coast as far as the

Huon Gulf Huon Gulf is a large gulf in eastern Papua New Guinea. It is bordered by Huon Peninsula in the north. Both are named after French explorer Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec. Huon Gulf is a part of the Solomon Sea. Its northern boundary is marked by ...

. On 29 September 1876, Moresby took command of , remaining in this position until 6 March 1878. He was later promoted to rear admiral and died on 12 July 1922 in Fareham,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

, England.

Family

In 1859 he married Jane Willis Scott (? – 1876) of Queenstown,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and had six children: * Walter Halliday Moresby CBE (9 November 1861 – 24 April 1951), lawyer and spy * Elizabeth Louisa Moresby (1862 – 3 January 1931), became a well-known writer under a variety of pseudonyms, married Edward Western Hodgkinson and Ralph Coker Adams Beck ** Harry Drake Hodgkinson * Ethel Fortescue Moresby (1865 – ?), married Frederick Haines * Georgina Moresby (23 July 1867 - 1953?), married Peyton Temple Mackeson (1854–1918) ** Donald Fairfax Mackeson * Hilda Fairfax Moresby (16 December 1868 – 16 August 1893), accidentally drowned * Gladys Moresby (5 April 1870 - ?) During the 1890s he lived on Tower Street in

Chichester Chichester () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publi ...

.Moresby in Chichester
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Works

*''New Guinea and Polynesia...'', John Moresby, John Murray 1876 (reprinted 2002, Elibron Classics, ) *''Two Admirals, Admiral of the Fleet, Sir Fairfax Moresby (1786–1877), and His Son, John Moresby. A Record of Life and Service in the British Navy for a Hundred Years'', John Moresby, Murray, London 1909

Notes and references

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moresby, John 1830 births 1922 deaths People from West Somerset (district) English explorers English explorers of the Pacific History of Papua New Guinea Royal Navy rear admirals Port Moresby Military personnel from Somerset