The first voyage of Kerguelen was an expedition of the French Navy to the southern Indian Ocean conducted by the fluyts Fortune and Gros Ventre, under Lieutenant Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen-Trémarec. The aims of the expedition were to survey recently discovered sea routes between Isle de France (now Mauritius) and India, to seek the postulated Terra Australis Incognita (undiscovered Southern land), and to explore Australia.
After successfully completing the first part of the mission, Fortune and Gros Ventre sailed south, and discovered the Kerguelen Islands. After the two ships were separated in the fog, Fortune aborted her mission and returned to Isle de France, where the news of the discovery led to vastly overenthusiastic descriptions of the new lands. Meanwhile, Gros Ventre continued on her mission, reaching Australia and surveying part of its northern coast before returning to Isle de France.