When The British Exchanged Nails For “Favors” From Tahitian Women

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The HMS Dolphin became the first ship to circumnavigate the globe twice, exploring the Pacific in search of the legendary Terra Australis. From John Byron’s daring voyage to Samuel Wallis’s encounters in Tahiti, discover the fascinating story of exploration, cultural misunderstandings, and the myths born from one of Britain’s most ambitious expeditions.

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Further Reading:

“Samuel Wallis, 1728–1795 / Philip Carteret, d. 1796.” https://static-prod.lib.princeton.edu/ https://static-prod.lib.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/pacific/wallis-carteret/wallis-carteret.html

“British Sixth Rate Ship ‘Dolphin’ (1751).” Threedecks.org. https://threedecks.org/index.php?display_type=show_ship&id=3939

“History of French Polynesia.” TalesofHawaii.net. October 23, 2021. https://talesofhawaii.net/2021/10/23/history-in-french-polynesia/

“A Voyage round the world in His Majesty’s Ship the Dolphin, commanded by the Honourable Commodore Byron … / by an officer on board the said ship. 1767.” The Royal Collection Trust. https://www.rct.uk/collection/1124504/a-voyage-round-the-world-in-his-majestys-ship-the-dolphin-commanded-by-the

Tua’one, ‘Ilaheva. “HMS Dolphin: The story of the ship that lost its integrity.” Heller.uccs.edu https://heller.uccs.edu/sites/g/files/kjihxj2406/files/inline-files/Tuaone%20-%20Selected%20Writing%20-%204Nov21_watermark.pdf

Gilfoyle, Daniel. “The voyage of HMS Dolphin: The first Europeans on Tahiti.” NationalArchives.gov.uk. July 21, 2020. https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20250613151345/https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/the-voyage-of-hms-dolphin-the-first-europeans-on-tahiti/

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Tahiti.” Encyclopedia Britannica, July 9, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/place/Tahiti.

Tua’one, ‘Ilaheva. “Tahitian Beaches and London Parlors: Transpacific Literature of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries.” University of Utah, August 2020.

Credit:
Simple History Creator: Daniel Turner (B.A. (Hons) in History, University College London)
Video Directors: Anthony Barrett, Denis Blinov
Script: Robert De Graaf
Script Review: Denis Blinov
Narrator: Chris Kane (https://vocalforge.com)
Artists: ShyShelly, Arya Ahumada Lydisma
Animators: Kuldip Bheda, Krunal, Mani Kumar, Bharghavi
Editor: Alec Urbany
Brand Partnerships: Justin St-Laurent
Senior Production Manager: Umar Ijaz
Simple History Channel Manager: James Dowse