Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne aka Marion Dufresne | |
|---|---|
 Du Fresne, as imagined by Charles Meryon | |
| Born | 22 May 1724 Saint Malo, France |
| Died | 12 June 1772 (aged 48) Assassination Cove, Bay of Islands, New Zealand |
| Cause of death | Murder |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation(s) | Explorer, navigator, cartographer |
| Title | Capitaine de frégate |
| Spouse | Julie Bernardine Guilmaut de Beaulieu |
Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne (22 May 1724 – 12 June 1772) was a French privateer, East India captain and explorer. The expedition he led to find the hypothetical Terra Australis in 1771 made important geographic discoveries in the south Indian Ocean and anthropological discoveries in Tasmania and New Zealand. In New Zealand they spent longer living on shore than any previous European expedition. Half way through the expedition's stay Marion was killed during a military assault by the Ngare Raumati iwi (tribe) of Maoris.[1][2]
He is commemorated with the toponyms Marion Island, South Africa and Marion Bay, Tasmania, as well in the name of two successive French oceanic research and supply vessel the Marion Dufresne (1972) and the Marion Dufresne II, which service the French Southern Territories of Amsterdam Island, the Crozet Islands, the Kerguelen Islands, and Saint Paul Island.
- ^ Salmond 1991, pp. 400–401.
- ^ "Marion du Fresne | NZHistory, New Zealand history online". nzhistory.govt.nz. Retrieved 8 July 2021.