Frederick Rushbrook Clause (2 December 1791 – 10 November 1852) was a

naval surgeon A naval surgeon, or less commonly ship's doctor, is the person responsible for the health of the ship's company aboard a warship. The term appears often in reference to Royal Navy's medical personnel during the Age of Sail. Ancient uses Specialis ...

, an early explorer in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, and an artist. Clause was born on 2 December 1791, and was appointed a surgeon with the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

on 15 September 1813. In February 1826 he joined James Stirling's ship , serving with it until August 1828. Consequently, he was on board ''Success'' in March 1827 when it arrived at the Swan River, on an exploration expedition for the purpose of assessing the area's suitability for establishing a British colony there. After exploring the coastal waters off the Swan River, Stirling selected a party of eighteen men, including Clause, to explore up the river. About north of the present-day location of

the Causeway The Causeway is an arterial traffic crossing in Perth, Western Australia, linking the inner-city suburbs of East Perth, Western Australia, East Perth and Victoria Park, Western Australia, Victoria Park. It is carried over the Swan River (Weste ...

, a fresh water brook and lagoon was discovered, which Stirling named ''Clause's Brook'' and ''Clause's Lagoon'' respectively. These are now known as ''

Claise Brook Claise Brook is a stream which empties into Claisebrook Cove before running into the Swan River in Perth, Western Australia. The area surrounding the stream is on the outskirts of the Perth CBD and is part of the suburb of East Perth. Claise ...

'' and ''Claisebrook Cove''. The party camped at that lagoon on their first night. The party eventually travelled up the Swan River as far as the junction with

Ellen Brook Ellen Brook is an ephemeral stream which runs from south of Gingin to the Swan River in Western Australia. Overview The headwaters of Ellen Brook start south of Gingin, in the Wheatbelt region. From there, Ellen Brook travels south, gener ...

. Before turning back, Stirling divided the party into three groups, sending them in different directions. Stirling and Clause explored to the west, where they found a fresh water brook, probably Bennett Brook. At the end of the expedition, Clause wrote a letter on the healthiness of the climate, in support of Stirling's observations on the territory, and Charles Frazer's comments on the soil. Some time later, Clause painted an oil painting of the party's camp at Clause's Brook. Believed to be based on a sketch by the expedition's artist

Frederick Garling Frederick Garling (17 February 1775 – 2 May 1848) was an English attorney and solicitor, and was one of the first solicitors admitted in Australia and was regarded as the first senior solicitor of the second Supreme Court established in the co ...

, it was etched and

lithographed Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

by the marine artist

William John Huggins William John Huggins (1781 – 19 May 1845) was a British marine painter who won royal patronage for his work. Life Little is known of Huggins' early life. He made one voyage between December 1812 and August 1814 as an ordinary seaman on ...

, and published under the name ''Setting Camp of the Naval Survey Expedition at Clause's Lagoon, Western Australia''. As Garling's paintings were considered part of the official correspondence of the expedition, they were not published, so Clause's painting was the only painting of the Swan River area to be published before the establishment of the

Swan River Colony The Swan River Colony, also known as the Swan River Settlement, or just ''Swan River'', was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth, an ...

in 1829. Little is known of Clause's later life. In 1836 he married Mary Brooks at Hackney,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He was still on the navy lists as late as 1841, but was then listed as unfit for active duties. He died on 10 November 1852 at

Milton-next-Gravesend Milton-next-Gravesend is an area and ecclesiastical parish, part of the Gravesend built-up area, in the Gravesham district, north-west of Kent, England. History Feudal ownership of land in the parish was the subject of a legal action of 1076, ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

at the age of 60.

General references

* *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clause, Frederick Rushbrook 1791 births 1852 deaths 19th-century Australian artists British surgeons Explorers of Western Australia Royal Navy Medical Service officers People from Milton, Kent