Matthew Flinders and George Bass sailed from Sydney in the sloop Norfolk in October 1798 and circumnavigated Van Diemen’s Land. Returning in January 1799, they had demonstrated to European navigators that the island was separated from the mainland by a strait.

A small vessel and a major survey

The voyage followed earlier Bass Strait work by Bass and observations by other navigators. Flinders charted coastlines, anchorages and positions from a small colonial vessel, creating evidence useful to shipping and British expansion.

Nineteenth-century general chart of Australia
Charts built on observations from many voyages, including the Norfolk circumnavigation.Capt. Hurd. Hydrographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Naming Bass Strait

Flinders recommended naming the strait for Bass. The result changed voyage planning by providing a shorter route between southern ports and the Pacific, while also increasing colonial knowledge of sea Country already known to Aboriginal people.

Granite coast on Flinders Island in Bass Strait
Bass Strait became a shorter colonial shipping route after systematic survey.Lolatravola, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

From Tasmania to continental mapping

The experience helped prepare Flinders for the later Investigator voyage around mainland Australia. His published observations and charts influenced the adoption of “Australia”, but his work was collaborative and depended on sailors, survey knowledge and earlier records.

Historic map of southern Tasmanian waters
Published mapping transformed field observations into navigational knowledge.jkokavec, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Compare the voyage with the Tasmanian islands guide and Nicolas Baudin’s expedition.