Richard Walter

Anson's Voyage Around the World: in the Years, 1740-1744 Richard Walter

When Britain declared war on Spain in 1740, Commodore George Anson was sent to harass the Spanish in the Americas. His fleet was manned with the sick and infirm, and he lost the majority of his crew by the time he reached the west coast of South America. Nevertheless, the HMS Centurion sacked the city of Paita in Peru and managed to capture a Manila galleon before sailing home the rest of the way around the world. The author, Richard Walter, was chaplain aboard, and it is interesting to compare this book with Woodes Roger's account of the same voyage.