Joris Carolus (c. 1566–c. 1636) was a Dutchcartographer andexplorer who was employed by theNoordsche Compagnie and theDutch East India Company.[1]
Carolus apparently was a native ofEnkhuizen. After he lost a leg at theSiege of Ostend (1601–04) he turned to the art of navigation and became a pilot (Stierman). In 1614 he was pilot of the Enkhuizen shipden Orangienboom (“Orange Tree”), under Jacob de Gouwenaer, one of the two ships sent by thewhaling companyNoordsche Compagnie on a voyage of discovery. Carolus claimed to have reached 83° N, but this would have been impossible given the ice conditions described byRobert Fotherby, who was also on a voyage of discovery in the shipThomasine, sent by the rivalMuscovy Company ofEngland. According to Fotherby—who saw the Dutch ships riding offAmsterdam Island on July 6/16, "ready for the first opportunity to discover", and on August 9/19 "two ships of the Hollanders, that were appointed for northern discovery, were seene thwart of Faire Haven, sayling to the southwards"— the ice was packed along the northern coast of Spitsbergen. Even in shallops the English were only able to go as far north asCastlins Point (modern Gråhuken, at 79° 48’N).
On the same voyage Carolus came upon the island ofJan Mayen, which may have been discovered earlier the same year by the Dutchman Fopp Gerritsz., sailing in a whaleship sent by the Englishman John Clarke, ofDunkirk.[2][3] Carolus named it after himself:Mr. Joris eylandt. He also named a bayGowenaers bay (which name was moved toGouwenaerbåen) after the master of his ship, and a capeJan Meys hoeck. This latter name, in honor ofJan Jacobsz. May, master of the other ship sent on discovery,de goude Cath (“The Golden Cat”) ofAmsterdam, was later (1620) applied to the island as a whole, giving it the name it retains to this day.
Following his 1614 expedition toSpitsbergen Carolus charted a map of the islands. The map labels various features, includingGeneraels hoeck (South Cape),Bell sound (Bellsund),Greene harbergh (Grønfjorden), Mari mag. bay (Magdalenefjorden),Hollandsche bay orFeer-haven (Fairhaven), andde Reus ("The Giant", Cloven Cliff), among other things.
The map also shows what may beEdge Island’s south coast. Carolus showed the coastline split into two parts:Onbekende Cust (“Unknown Coast”) in the west, andMorfyn (a corruption ofMatsyn, part ofNovaya Zemlya) in the east. Islands are shown offshore ofMorfyn.Martin Conway argued in 1901 that Carolus’ chart indicated that he had discovered Edge Island; but, as Wielder points out, Conway was ignorant of a map (engraved in 1612) by the Dutch cartographerPetrus Plancius, which illustrated a coastline to the east of Spitsbergen. The coastline, indented, with islands offshore, was labelledGerrits Eylant. Wielder believed this to the first record of Edge Island's south coast, when in fact this coastline as well was only copied from an earlier chart which merely showed a vague mass that was supposed to represent Spitsbergen.
Edward Heawood, writing in response to Conway's claim of Carolus being the first discoverer of Edge Island, wrote a "Correspondence" refuting his claim. Carolus, who never made any claim of having discovered the said island (which is counter to his usual boastful claims of discovery), showsMorfyn (orMarfyn, which Conway said represented Edge Island) some 18° too far east (relative to the mainland), whileOnbekende Cust, which is supposed to representKvalpynten (which Heawood questioned as to why Carolus should refer to a land he allegedly discovered as “unknown”?), extends the longitude of the island to 30°, instead of its actual 4° of longitude. Heawood asserts that Carolus may have only copied both coastlines from earlier maps—in particular,Onbekende Cust may correspond to the land (without name) placed between Spitsbergen and Matsyn on a Dutch map of 1611.
The following year, 1615, Carolus was sent by theNoordsche Compagnie on a voyage to theDavis Strait region. Passing through the strait he allegedly reached the impossible latitude of 80° N. The results of this voyage were presented in a (now lost) chart to theStates General, and mentioned in a resolution of November 26, 1615. Carolus later (see below) describedBaffin Bay in a book he published, saying it extended to 79° N and was enclosed by land.
In 1617, Carolus was again sent on a voyage of discovery by theDelft,Hoorn, andEnkhuizen chambers of theNoordsche Compagnie. He claimed to have discovered two islands:New Holland, between 60° and 63° N, andOpdams island, at 66° N and twenty Dutch miles east ofIceland. Both islands were depicted on a map Carolus supplied to theNoordsche Compagnie, which applied to the States General for a monopoly on whaling rights at the islands (which was granted on October 28, 1617).
"When at length his years and growing feebleness prevented him from voyaging, he settled down at Amsterdam as teacher of navigation, and published a book of charts and sailing directions, now very rare, entitledHet nieuw vermeerde Licht, ghenaemt de Sleutel van’t Tresoor, Spiegel, Gesicht, ende vierighe Colon des Grooten Zeevaerts. Dat is claer ende seeckere beschrijcinghe van de Oost, West, Suydt ende Noordsche Navigatie, verciert met alle noodige perfecte ende duijdelycke Pas-kaarten, Opdoeninghen der Landen, Haven, Kapen ende Rivieren, aenwhsinghe der Drooghten, Landen, Clijpen ende Ondiepten; verscheijdentheijt der plaetsen, 800 deselve in mijlen, graden ende Compas-streecken van den omderen syn ghelegen. Alles van nieuws oversien, verbeetert ende vermeerdert, door Mr. Joris Carolus. Sierman. Leermeester ende Caert-schryver van de groote en cleyne Zeevaert binnen de vermaerde Coopstadt Amsteldam. Ghedruckt tot Amsteldam. By Jan Janssen Boeckvercooper op’t Water in de Paskaert. Anno 1634." This work was copied by many subsequent authors, many of whom claimed it as their own.
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