William Dampier

I've just been reading about a fellow called William Dampier, his writings are almost a work of art, not just in their subject which is wonderfuly fascinating but in their technique, the beautiful 18'th C sweeps of pen which make our scribblings look like the scrawlings of cack handed idiots.

In praise of … a well-placed signature | Editorial 2011

It's the story of a 17th century pirate, a man called William Dampier, whose experiences were the inspiration for writers like Swift and Dafoe, for "Gulliver's Travels" and "Robinson Crusoe" -- a man who'd begun life really, you know, bluntly as a buccaneer, as a cut-throat and a pirate, but ended up as a naturalist and really one of the first true travel writers of his time.

Lusitania: An Epic Tragedy 2002

A few real historical figures, such as William Dampier and Henry Jennings, have cameo roles.

Sea Witch Carla 2006

A few real historical figures, such as William Dampier and Henry Jennings, have cameo roles.

Archive 2006-08-01 Carla 2006

The Romans built elaborate villas here and the pirate William Dampier, the first Englishman to set foot on Australia, was born and raised in East Coker.

East Coker, TS Eliot's placid village, resists threat of housing invasion 2011

And the old church, where Eliot's ashes are buried, where crusaders have lain undisturbed for seven hundred years, and where William Dampier was finally laid to rest.

Roger Housden: T.S. Eliot's Village Bares Its Teeth Roger Housden 2011

Some incidents do stick in the memory like being stranded on a remote island off the coast of Borneo and having to hide from pirates, or, while researching William Dampier, having to dodge FARC guerrillas and Colombian paramilitaries as we crossed the Darien Isthmus in Panama on foot with local Indian guides.

The Mind Behind The Empire of Moghul: An Interview with Alex Rutherford Cindy 2010

When William Dampier first landed in Australia on his voyage in the Roebuck in 1699 and saw termite mounds, he thought they were rocks.

Wildwood Roger Deakin 2009

When William Dampier first landed in Australia on his voyage in the Roebuck in 1699 and saw termite mounds, he thought they were rocks.

Wildwood Roger Deakin 2009

The naturalist-pirate William Dampier observed seals off the Islas Marías in 1729.

Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California, Mexico 2008