James Hingston Tuckey facts for kids

James Hingston Tuckey (born August 1776 – died 4 October 1816) was an Irish-born British explorer. He was also a captain in the Royal Navy. Some people sometimes call him James Kingston Tuckey by mistake.

James Tuckey's Life

James Tuckey was born in August 1776 at Greenhill, near Mallow, Ireland. He started working on ships when he was very young. In 1793, he joined the navy.

Early Naval Adventures

From the start, James Tuckey was involved in many naval battles. He was hurt more than once during his service. He took part in trips to the Red Sea. In 1802, he helped expand the British colony of New South Wales in Australia. He was the first-lieutenant of the ship Calcutta.

He also mapped the area known as Port Phillip District. When he returned to England, he wrote a book. It was called Account of the Voyage to establish a Colony at Port Phillip.

In 1805, the French captured his ship, the Calcutta. This happened during a trip from St. Helena. Lieutenant Tuckey was held prisoner in France for almost nine years. While he was a prisoner, he married Miss Margaret Stuart, who was also a prisoner. He also wrote a book called Maritime Geography and Statistics. This book was published after he was set free.

Exploring the Congo River

In 1814, James Tuckey was promoted to the rank of commander. In February 1816, he set sail to explore the River Congo. He traveled on a small ship called Congo. Another ship, the Dorothy, carried supplies.

The goal of this trip was to find out if the Congo River was connected to the Niger River. These rivers are in western and central Africa. Tuckey sailed up the Congo River from its mouth. However, he found that the lower part of the river was too rough to travel on. This was because of many fast-moving rapids. These rapids were later named the Yellala Falls.

He found only old buildings from a Portuguese colony. He also saw old Catholic missions that were no longer active. He suggested that Protestant missionaries should be sent to the Congo. He explored the river as far as Isangila.

Sadly, most of the officers and crew got sick with a fever. James Tuckey himself died on 14 October 1816. He was 40 years old. He passed away in Moanda, which is on the coast of today's DR Congo. The expedition did not achieve its main goal. However, it made people more interested in exploring Africa.

Tuckey's Character

People described Tuckey as a tall man. He used to be very handsome. But his many difficult years of service made him weak. By the time he was thirty, his hair was gray and he was almost bald. People also said he had a kind and thoughtful face. He was gentle and nice to others. He was cheerful when talking and fair to those working for him.

Named after

A type of flowering plant is named after him. It is called Euphorbia tuckeyana. Philip Barker Webb named it in 1849. These plants grow naturally in the Cape Verde Islands.

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