WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.500 Welcome back to the Deep Dive. Today we are taking 00:00:02.500 --> 00:00:06.120 on one of the most remarkable paradoxes in American 00:00:06.120 --> 00:00:07.960 history. We really are. We're talking about a 00:00:07.960 --> 00:00:10.740 figure whose entire professional life was just 00:00:10.740 --> 00:00:14.480 this high wire act balancing between, you know, 00:00:14.500 --> 00:00:18.199 breathtaking scientific genius and and utter 00:00:18.199 --> 00:00:20.719 self -destructive chaos. It's an incredible story. 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:24.570 This is a man who charted. 1 ,500 miles of the 00:00:24.570 --> 00:00:27.929 Antarctic coastline. 1 ,500 miles. Yeah. He created 00:00:27.929 --> 00:00:30.109 navigational maps that were so accurate they 00:00:30.109 --> 00:00:32.210 were still guiding American ships through World 00:00:32.210 --> 00:00:34.869 War II. Amazing. And his collection of specimens 00:00:34.869 --> 00:00:37.710 basically founded the Smithsonian Institution. 00:00:37.869 --> 00:00:40.450 Exactly. And yet this is the very same man who 00:00:40.450 --> 00:00:42.859 faced court -martial. Multiple times. Multiple 00:00:42.859 --> 00:00:44.880 times. He nearly triggered a catastrophic war 00:00:44.880 --> 00:00:46.799 between the United States and Great Britain. 00:00:46.920 --> 00:00:49.520 And he was, you know, widely regarded by his 00:00:49.520 --> 00:00:52.399 subordinates as an autocratic, almost unbearable 00:00:52.399 --> 00:00:55.280 commander. So today we are peeling back the layers 00:00:55.280 --> 00:00:58.399 on Lieutenant Captain Commodore and eventually 00:00:58.399 --> 00:01:01.219 Rear Admiral Charles Wilkes, who lived from 1798 00:01:01.219 --> 00:01:04.480 to 1877. It's a story of a scientific visionary 00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:07.620 whose immense lasting achievements were just 00:01:07.620 --> 00:01:10.590 constantly being undermined by. personal conflict, 00:01:10.730 --> 00:01:14.810 diplomatic disasters, and an almost insatiable 00:01:14.810 --> 00:01:17.310 appetite for controversy. So our mission today 00:01:17.310 --> 00:01:20.290 is to really unpack the sources covering Wilkes' 00:01:20.409 --> 00:01:23.349 extraordinary life and try to reconcile these 00:01:23.349 --> 00:01:25.549 two opposing forces within him. Yeah, that's 00:01:25.549 --> 00:01:27.730 the challenge. We'll focus on his command of 00:01:27.730 --> 00:01:31.689 the U .S. Exploring Expedition, the famed X, 00:01:31.890 --> 00:01:35.209 which really launched U .S. scientific exploration 00:01:35.209 --> 00:01:37.890 onto the global stage. Then we'll turn to his... 00:01:38.079 --> 00:01:41.120 pivotal and i mean near catastrophic role in 00:01:41.120 --> 00:01:43.819 the civil war trent affair oh absolutely and 00:01:43.819 --> 00:01:45.939 finally we'll look at how his complicated legacy 00:01:45.939 --> 00:01:48.500 continues to resonate today from the pacific 00:01:48.500 --> 00:01:51.620 northwest all the way down to a massive geological 00:01:51.620 --> 00:01:54.120 surprise hidden right under the antarctic ice 00:01:54.120 --> 00:01:56.180 and here's the paradox we have to keep centered 00:01:56.180 --> 00:01:59.099 on as we navigate this deep dive wilkes is gravestone 00:01:59.099 --> 00:02:01.540 it's in arlington national cemetery and it proudly 00:02:01.540 --> 00:02:05.040 claims right there in permanent stone he discovered 00:02:05.040 --> 00:02:07.939 the Antarctic continent. Right. So we have to 00:02:07.939 --> 00:02:12.199 ask. How? How did a man who was repeatedly accused 00:02:12.199 --> 00:02:15.120 of insubordination, of excessive punishment, 00:02:15.439 --> 00:02:17.780 who routinely ignored naval and international 00:02:17.780 --> 00:02:20.979 law, how did he manage to become such a uniquely 00:02:20.979 --> 00:02:24.099 consequential figure in U .S. naval science and 00:02:24.099 --> 00:02:27.580 exploration? It's a profound study in that contrast 00:02:27.580 --> 00:02:31.560 between foundational lasting achievement and 00:02:31.560 --> 00:02:34.150 these fundamental character flaws. really is. 00:02:34.250 --> 00:02:36.949 Okay, let's unpack this monumental life. I think 00:02:36.949 --> 00:02:38.870 we had to start at the very beginning, setting 00:02:38.870 --> 00:02:40.990 the stage with his early life and how he developed 00:02:40.990 --> 00:02:43.210 this very specific expertise that put him in 00:02:43.210 --> 00:02:45.050 command of one of the most ambitious scientific 00:02:45.050 --> 00:02:47.610 missions in American history. A mission usually 00:02:47.610 --> 00:02:50.969 reserved for the most seasoned and politically 00:02:50.969 --> 00:02:54.280 unblemished. Line officers. Exactly. Not a guy 00:02:54.280 --> 00:02:56.300 like Wilkes. So Wilkes was born in New York City, 00:02:56.439 --> 00:02:59.759 1798, and his family pedigree was pretty notable. 00:03:00.039 --> 00:03:01.599 Right. He was the great nephew of John Wilkes. 00:03:01.740 --> 00:03:04.340 The famous radical politician, former Lord Mayor 00:03:04.340 --> 00:03:07.419 of London. Yeah. But his childhood was, it was 00:03:07.419 --> 00:03:09.479 quickly marked by a real tragedy. His mother. 00:03:09.639 --> 00:03:12.240 His mother, Mary Seton Wilkes, died in 1802. 00:03:12.319 --> 00:03:16.000 Charles was only three years old. Wow. That immediately 00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:18.159 just throws his upbringing into sharp relief. 00:03:18.439 --> 00:03:21.300 Our sources show he was then raised and home 00:03:21.300 --> 00:03:24.120 tutored. by his aunt. Elizabeth Ann Seton. Right. 00:03:24.259 --> 00:03:26.319 And this wasn't just, you know, a familial arrangement. 00:03:26.539 --> 00:03:28.500 This was a crucial intellectual influence. She 00:03:28.500 --> 00:03:31.159 was a widowed mother of five, had a strong background 00:03:31.159 --> 00:03:33.819 in the liberal arts, and importantly for later, 00:03:33.979 --> 00:03:36.120 was fluent in French from her own upbringing. 00:03:36.360 --> 00:03:38.740 And that French connection, it proved to be so 00:03:38.740 --> 00:03:41.159 much more than just a cultural footnote. It was 00:03:41.159 --> 00:03:43.719 a professional game changer for Charles. A huge 00:03:43.719 --> 00:03:45.819 one. He became fluent in the language himself. 00:03:46.099 --> 00:03:49.080 And this proficiency, it proved incredibly valuable, 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:52.479 not just socially, but strategically. How so? 00:03:52.620 --> 00:03:55.479 Well, it allowed him to engage deeply with the 00:03:55.479 --> 00:03:57.740 scientific communities in Europe during a long 00:03:57.740 --> 00:04:01.439 stay there between 1830 and 1831. That's where 00:04:01.439 --> 00:04:03.939 he acquired critical scientific instruments and 00:04:03.939 --> 00:04:06.180 a lot of knowledge. And the sources even show 00:04:06.180 --> 00:04:08.219 this skill set was still relevant later on, right? 00:04:08.300 --> 00:04:11.599 In the Pacific Northwest in 1841. Precisely. 00:04:11.699 --> 00:04:14.020 During the North American leg of the Assyrians, 00:04:14.219 --> 00:04:16.480 he was guided through the Puget Sound region 00:04:16.480 --> 00:04:19.480 by a French -speaking pioneer named Simon Plamondon. 00:04:19.660 --> 00:04:21.839 So it illustrates how that early... education 00:04:21.839 --> 00:04:24.339 from his aunt, it wasn't just academic curiosity. 00:04:24.399 --> 00:04:27.459 No, it became a necessary tool for American expansion 00:04:27.459 --> 00:04:31.100 and exploration. So after his aunt's tutelage, 00:04:31.199 --> 00:04:33.800 he went on to a more formal education at a boarding 00:04:33.800 --> 00:04:35.860 school and then Columbia College, which we now 00:04:35.860 --> 00:04:39.060 know as Columbia University. Yeah. But his life's 00:04:39.060 --> 00:04:41.779 true trajectory, that was set when he joined 00:04:41.779 --> 00:04:44.279 the Navy. He entered the U .S. Navy as a midshipman 00:04:44.279 --> 00:04:46.920 in 1818, and then he was promoted to lieutenant 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:50.259 in 1826. But the defining experience, the thing 00:04:50.259 --> 00:04:52.259 that really set him apart from a typical career 00:04:52.259 --> 00:04:55.199 officer, was his relentless focus on nautical 00:04:55.199 --> 00:04:58.379 science. On precision surveying. Exactly. This 00:04:58.379 --> 00:05:00.680 all culminated in his meticulous work charting 00:05:00.680 --> 00:05:04.399 Narragansett Bay in 1833. And this is where that 00:05:04.399 --> 00:05:06.899 meticulous nature, which is really the flip side 00:05:06.899 --> 00:05:09.240 of his controversial personality, this is where 00:05:09.240 --> 00:05:11.930 it really shone. This survey work, it wasn't 00:05:11.930 --> 00:05:14.350 just drawing lines on a map. No, it was about 00:05:14.350 --> 00:05:16.910 defining precision in a way the young US Navy 00:05:16.910 --> 00:05:19.649 desperately needed. That charting work required 00:05:19.649 --> 00:05:22.129 a high degree of technical skill, of mathematical 00:05:22.129 --> 00:05:24.649 rigor, and it led directly to his next appointment. 00:05:25.160 --> 00:05:27.500 Which was to lead the Navy's Department of Charts 00:05:27.500 --> 00:05:30.019 and Instruments. And this small department, which 00:05:30.019 --> 00:05:32.879 Wilkes effectively established and managed, is 00:05:32.879 --> 00:05:35.639 perhaps his most enduring legacy outside of the 00:05:35.639 --> 00:05:37.860 expedition. Because it evolved. It evolved into 00:05:37.860 --> 00:05:40.519 two critically important national institutions 00:05:40.519 --> 00:05:43.660 that are still central to naval operations today. 00:05:43.779 --> 00:05:47.000 The Naval Observatory and the Hydrographic Office. 00:05:47.540 --> 00:05:50.100 Wilkes was building the fundamental infrastructure 00:05:50.100 --> 00:05:52.399 of American naval science from the ground up. 00:05:52.829 --> 00:05:55.269 The significance of that just can't be overstated. 00:05:55.310 --> 00:05:57.009 And what's fascinating is the technical standard 00:05:57.009 --> 00:05:59.970 he set. He created the benchmark for physical 00:05:59.970 --> 00:06:03.990 oceanography that would be maintained and really 00:06:03.990 --> 00:06:06.149 built upon by the man who became the first superintendent 00:06:06.149 --> 00:06:08.259 of that office, Matthew Fontaine Morey. Yes, 00:06:08.399 --> 00:06:10.519 and that connection to Maury is essential for 00:06:10.519 --> 00:06:12.240 you to understand the weight of Wilkes' early 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:15.060 career. Maury later earned the title Father of 00:06:15.060 --> 00:06:17.540 Oceanography for his work organizing global wind 00:06:17.540 --> 00:06:20.639 and current data, which completely revolutionized 00:06:20.639 --> 00:06:23.439 sailing. The fact that Wilkes laid the intellectual 00:06:23.439 --> 00:06:25.800 and organizational foundation for Maury's later 00:06:25.800 --> 00:06:27.899 breakthroughs, it just underscores that before 00:06:27.899 --> 00:06:30.600 he was the controversial commander, Charles Wilkes 00:06:30.600 --> 00:06:33.500 was the essential visionary infrastructure builder 00:06:33.500 --> 00:06:36.160 for American naval science. He gave the Navy 00:06:36.730 --> 00:06:39.089 The reliable institutional scientific footing 00:06:39.089 --> 00:06:41.589 it needed? He did. And he wasn't just some technician 00:06:41.589 --> 00:06:44.310 isolated in a back room either. He was clearly 00:06:44.310 --> 00:06:47.230 moving in very influential circles. During the 00:06:47.230 --> 00:06:49.870 1820s, he was a member of the prestigious Columbian 00:06:49.870 --> 00:06:52.389 Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences. 00:06:52.569 --> 00:06:54.149 Right. And we're talking about an elite group 00:06:54.149 --> 00:06:56.430 here. It included sitting presidents like Andrew 00:06:56.430 --> 00:06:59.290 Jackson and John Quincy Adams. So this political 00:06:59.290 --> 00:07:02.230 placement is critical. Because when the call 00:07:02.230 --> 00:07:04.949 came for a major national exploration mission, 00:07:05.170 --> 00:07:08.920 the first... truly monumental scientific undertaking 00:07:08.920 --> 00:07:11.779 the country had ever funded. Wilkes was the man 00:07:11.779 --> 00:07:13.959 selected. Despite not having the seniority of 00:07:13.959 --> 00:07:16.639 many other captains, he had the naval rank, the 00:07:16.639 --> 00:07:18.939 scientific credibility backed by tangible achievements 00:07:18.939 --> 00:07:21.740 like those Narragansett charts, and, crucially, 00:07:21.899 --> 00:07:24.040 the political connections to navigate the bureaucracy. 00:07:24.540 --> 00:07:26.720 Which brings us to the centerpiece of his career, 00:07:27.019 --> 00:07:29.759 the United States Exploring Expedition, better 00:07:29.759 --> 00:07:33.500 known as the X, which ran from 1838 to 1842. 00:07:33.980 --> 00:07:37.579 This was science on a truly grand, almost unimaginable 00:07:37.579 --> 00:07:40.800 scale for the young United States. The goal was 00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:43.439 to put America on par with the great exploring 00:07:43.439 --> 00:07:46.720 nations, you know, like Britain and France. The 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:49.560 sheer ambition is just stunning. The authorization 00:07:49.560 --> 00:07:51.899 for this mammoth undertaking actually came from 00:07:51.899 --> 00:07:56.199 Congress on May 18th, 1836. It was rooted in 00:07:56.199 --> 00:08:00.100 both national pride and some very practical concern. 00:08:00.300 --> 00:08:02.120 Very practical. It was about commerce and safety. 00:08:02.420 --> 00:08:04.540 So what were those? goals exactly, because this 00:08:04.540 --> 00:08:06.779 wasn't just a flag -waving ceremonial trip, was 00:08:06.779 --> 00:08:09.019 it? Not at all. The goals were specific and instrumental. 00:08:09.279 --> 00:08:12.339 The central mandate was explicitly for the purpose 00:08:12.339 --> 00:08:14.160 of exploring and surveying the Southern Ocean, 00:08:14.279 --> 00:08:16.240 particularly looking toward the Antarctic continent. 00:08:16.480 --> 00:08:18.579 Okay. But critically, it was also focused on 00:08:18.579 --> 00:08:21.399 highly practical maritime safety, determining 00:08:21.399 --> 00:08:23.699 the existence of doubtful islands and shoals, 00:08:23.720 --> 00:08:26.360 and accurately fixing the position of newly discovered 00:08:26.360 --> 00:08:28.959 ones. Things that posed a clear hazard to global 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:32.220 shipping routes. Exactly. It's easy for us today 00:08:32.220 --> 00:08:34.580 to forget how dangerous sea travel was then. 00:08:34.799 --> 00:08:37.600 A doubtful island could sink a merchant vessel 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:41.500 and ruin an entire voyage. Wilkes' role was essentially 00:08:41.500 --> 00:08:44.220 to clear the navigational uncertainty from vast 00:08:44.220 --> 00:08:47.429 swaths of the globe. Navigational accuracy was 00:08:47.429 --> 00:08:49.950 commerce and commerce was national power. Precisely. 00:08:49.950 --> 00:08:53.129 And Wilkes was selected for command in 1838 because 00:08:53.129 --> 00:08:56.269 of that dual background. His experience in nautical 00:08:56.269 --> 00:08:58.750 survey work and his ability to collaborate, at 00:08:58.750 --> 00:09:01.350 least professionally, with civilian scientists. 00:09:01.889 --> 00:09:03.730 And that civilian collaboration was essential 00:09:03.730 --> 00:09:06.129 because the expedition was loaded with a level 00:09:06.129 --> 00:09:08.690 of expertise previously unseen in U .S. naval 00:09:08.690 --> 00:09:11.129 missions. It was a floating university and museum 00:09:11.129 --> 00:09:13.389 collection all in one. The personnel included 00:09:13.389 --> 00:09:16.110 multiple naturalists, botanists, taxidermists 00:09:16.110 --> 00:09:18.809 to preserve specimens. Artists too, right? Yes, 00:09:18.870 --> 00:09:21.769 artists like the illustrator Alfred Thomas Agate, 00:09:21.850 --> 00:09:23.990 whose sketches provided crucial visual records, 00:09:24.289 --> 00:09:27.250 a mineralogist, and significantly, a philologist. 00:09:27.490 --> 00:09:29.509 A philologist. That's a deep cut for a naval 00:09:29.509 --> 00:09:32.070 exploration. What was an expert in language and 00:09:32.070 --> 00:09:34.629 textual history doing on a ship sailing toward 00:09:34.629 --> 00:09:36.850 Antarctica? It speaks to the mission's comprehensive 00:09:36.850 --> 00:09:40.509 scope. The philologist's job was to record and 00:09:40.509 --> 00:09:43.509 analyze the languages, the dialects, the vocabularies 00:09:43.509 --> 00:09:45.490 of the indigenous peoples they encountered across 00:09:45.490 --> 00:09:47.649 the Pacific. So this wasn't just mapping geography. 00:09:48.090 --> 00:09:51.009 No, it was a full cultural and biological inventory. 00:09:51.190 --> 00:09:53.309 They were aiming to capture the human landscape 00:09:53.309 --> 00:09:55.690 before Western expansion inevitably changed it 00:09:55.690 --> 00:09:57.750 forever. That vision is incredible. And the fleet 00:09:57.750 --> 00:10:00.809 itself, it was substantial. Six vessels in total. 00:10:00.909 --> 00:10:04.909 The flagship was the USS Vincennes at 780 tons. 00:10:05.210 --> 00:10:09.440 Then you had the USS Peacock. the brig USS Porpoise, 00:10:09.580 --> 00:10:12.159 the store ship USS Relief, which carried all 00:10:12.159 --> 00:10:14.960 the vast stores and equipment, and two smaller, 00:10:14.980 --> 00:10:17.279 faster schooners, the Seagull and the Flying 00:10:17.279 --> 00:10:20.399 Fish. And on August 18, 1838, they departed from 00:10:20.399 --> 00:10:22.899 Hampton Roads, Chesapeake Bay. Kicking off a 00:10:22.899 --> 00:10:25.200 four -year circumnavigation of the globe that 00:10:25.200 --> 00:10:27.500 would push man and ship to their absolute limits. 00:10:27.759 --> 00:10:30.379 Okay, let's trace this incredible, daunting route 00:10:30.379 --> 00:10:32.740 of discovery. They started in the deep South 00:10:32.740 --> 00:10:34.919 Atlantic before the real work in the Pacific 00:10:34.919 --> 00:10:37.399 began. That's right. They started in the Atlantic, 00:10:37.600 --> 00:10:40.100 hitting key resupply points like the Madeira 00:10:40.100 --> 00:10:42.879 Islands and Rio de Janeiro, before moving south 00:10:42.879 --> 00:10:45.220 to the punishing environments of Tierra del Fuego. 00:10:45.460 --> 00:10:47.899 And from there? From there, they sailed up the 00:10:47.899 --> 00:10:51.000 West Coast, stopping in Chile and Peru. Then 00:10:51.000 --> 00:10:53.559 came the vast expanse of the Pacific, visiting 00:10:53.559 --> 00:10:56.440 the Tuamotu Archipelago, Samoa, and eventually 00:10:56.440 --> 00:10:59.039 making a crucial stop for repairs and provisioning 00:10:59.039 --> 00:11:01.980 in New South Wales, Australia. But the real historical 00:11:01.980 --> 00:11:04.659 breakthrough, the one that literally cemented 00:11:04.659 --> 00:11:07.000 Wilkes' name on the map, that happened in late 00:11:07.000 --> 00:11:10.940 1839 and early 1840? Absolutely. The Antarctic 00:11:10.940 --> 00:11:13.299 breakthrough. This fulfilled the key mandate 00:11:13.299 --> 00:11:16.279 of the expedition. In December 1839, they sailed 00:11:16.279 --> 00:11:19.179 from Sydney right into the notoriously brutal 00:11:19.179 --> 00:11:21.659 Antarctic Ocean. Which was an incredibly dangerous 00:11:21.659 --> 00:11:23.799 undertaking in sailing vessels. Unbelievably 00:11:23.799 --> 00:11:27.139 dangerous. And on January 25, 1840, they sighted 00:11:27.139 --> 00:11:29.639 the coast of Antarctica west of the Baloney Islands. 00:11:30.440 --> 00:11:32.259 This was the definitive moment of discovery. 00:11:32.480 --> 00:11:34.480 This gave physical form to the long -speculated 00:11:34.480 --> 00:11:36.539 southern continent. Yes, and it led Wilkes to 00:11:36.539 --> 00:11:39.899 name the area, appropriately, Wilkes Land. And 00:11:39.899 --> 00:11:41.740 this wasn't just some brief, tentative glance 00:11:41.740 --> 00:11:44.899 through the fog. This effort was sustained, dangerous, 00:11:45.000 --> 00:11:47.559 and scientifically substantial. Oh, it was far 00:11:47.559 --> 00:11:49.779 more than a sighting. The expedition charted 00:11:49.779 --> 00:11:53.899 1 ,500 miles, or 2 ,400 kilometers, of the Antarctic 00:11:53.899 --> 00:11:56.360 coastline. They documented features like towering 00:11:56.360 --> 00:11:58.879 ice barriers and landmasses poking through the 00:11:58.879 --> 00:12:01.820 ice sheet. So this sustained mapping, this provided 00:12:01.820 --> 00:12:04.850 the substantial Irrefutable proof. Irrefutable 00:12:04.850 --> 00:12:07.429 proof that Antarctica was not merely an assortment 00:12:07.429 --> 00:12:10.350 of islands or a massive floating ice shelf, but 00:12:10.350 --> 00:12:13.330 a true continent. This data was revolutionary 00:12:13.330 --> 00:12:15.909 at the time. So after that harrowing, freezing 00:12:15.909 --> 00:12:18.990 southern journey, they turned back north to warmer 00:12:18.990 --> 00:12:21.889 waters. Where did the focus shift then? They 00:12:21.889 --> 00:12:24.549 moved through Fiji, and then they spent a significant, 00:12:24.710 --> 00:12:27.009 intense period in the Hawaiian Islands between 00:12:27.009 --> 00:12:30.789 1840 and 1841. And that stop yielded immediate 00:12:30.789 --> 00:12:33.159 and practical results for navigation. and science 00:12:33.159 --> 00:12:35.659 in the burgeoning Pacific trade routes. Let's 00:12:35.659 --> 00:12:37.259 talk about the North American Lake, because that 00:12:37.259 --> 00:12:39.340 often gets overlooked by the dramatic Southern 00:12:39.340 --> 00:12:43.000 Ocean narrative. But it was crucial for defining 00:12:43.000 --> 00:12:45.639 American territory. It was strategically vital. 00:12:46.009 --> 00:12:49.570 In 1841, the expedition extensively explored 00:12:49.570 --> 00:12:52.169 the entire West Coast. They were systematically 00:12:52.169 --> 00:12:55.269 surveying and mapping the Strait of Juan de Fuca, 00:12:55.389 --> 00:12:58.470 the massive expanse of Puget Sound. The Columbia 00:12:58.470 --> 00:13:00.889 River. The Columbia River, San Francisco Bay, 00:13:01.129 --> 00:13:03.830 and the Sacramento River area. They were literally 00:13:03.830 --> 00:13:06.409 mapping what would become the future boundaries 00:13:06.409 --> 00:13:08.970 of the United States on the Pacific Rim. And 00:13:08.970 --> 00:13:11.740 you find these great... humanizing details in 00:13:11.740 --> 00:13:13.559 the source material, things that contrast with 00:13:13.559 --> 00:13:16.440 the sheer scale of the mission. The sources note 00:13:16.440 --> 00:13:18.559 they held the first American Independence Day 00:13:18.559 --> 00:13:21.580 celebration west of the Mississippi River. Yes, 00:13:21.720 --> 00:13:24.240 that small detail. It took place at DuPont, Washington 00:13:24.240 --> 00:13:28.100 on July 5, 1841, and it perfectly grounds the 00:13:28.100 --> 00:13:30.539 grand scientific mission in the context of American 00:13:30.539 --> 00:13:33.139 expansion and settlement. It was a projection 00:13:33.139 --> 00:13:35.740 of national identity through scientific endeavor. 00:13:36.039 --> 00:13:37.899 And following the West Coast, they finished the 00:13:37.899 --> 00:13:40.059 circumnavigation. They did. They sailed through 00:13:40.059 --> 00:13:42.379 the Elise Islands, which are now Tuvalu, then 00:13:42.379 --> 00:13:44.759 pushed on to Borneo, Singapore, the Philippines, 00:13:45.100 --> 00:13:48.000 the volatile Sulu Archipelago, back through Polynesia, 00:13:48.019 --> 00:13:50.379 around the Cape of Good Hope, and finally reached 00:13:50.379 --> 00:13:53.720 New York. on June 10, 1842. So four years later, 00:13:53.820 --> 00:13:56.480 having successfully circumnavigated the globe, 00:13:56.740 --> 00:13:59.799 and the sources note this was the last all -sail 00:13:59.799 --> 00:14:02.820 U .S. naval mission to do so, they had logged 00:14:02.820 --> 00:14:06.879 an astonishing 87 ,000 miles. Colossal success, 00:14:07.019 --> 00:14:09.519 but it came at an immense cost. They lost two 00:14:09.519 --> 00:14:12.399 ships. Right, one of them, the Peacock. On that 00:14:12.399 --> 00:14:14.580 notorious bar at the mouth of the Columbia River. 00:14:14.700 --> 00:14:17.299 Exactly. And 28 men perished over the course 00:14:17.299 --> 00:14:19.820 of the mission. The loss of life and equipment 00:14:19.820 --> 00:14:22.159 was just part of the price of venturing into 00:14:22.159 --> 00:14:24.919 the truly unknown. But the lasting dividend was 00:14:24.919 --> 00:14:27.679 the data. So beyond the Antarctic discovery, 00:14:27.860 --> 00:14:29.659 what are the biggest scientific achievements 00:14:29.659 --> 00:14:32.360 that still resonate? Well, we can point to several 00:14:32.360 --> 00:14:35.259 concrete, practical outcomes. In Hawaii, for 00:14:35.259 --> 00:14:36.960 example, they made the first measurements of 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:38.519 the height of the major mountains, including 00:14:38.519 --> 00:14:41.200 Mauna Loa, using sophisticated instruments for 00:14:41.200 --> 00:14:43.799 the time. And the charts. Yes. More importantly, 00:14:43.899 --> 00:14:46.200 for the Navy and for commerce, they produced 00:14:46.200 --> 00:14:48.879 incredibly detailed nautical charts of those 00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:51.340 coastlines. Our sources confirm these charts 00:14:51.340 --> 00:14:53.279 were so accurate and well vetted that they were 00:14:53.279 --> 00:14:55.299 still in regular use by naval and commercial 00:14:55.299 --> 00:14:57.740 vessels up to World War II. That's incredible 00:14:57.740 --> 00:15:00.799 staying power. Nearly a century of reliable navigation 00:15:00.799 --> 00:15:03.519 based on Wilkes's 19th century mapping effort. 00:15:03.659 --> 00:15:06.279 And then there's the administrative legacy. Wilkes, 00:15:06.440 --> 00:15:08.799 despite his volatile temperament, was absolutely 00:15:08.799 --> 00:15:11.480 tireless in editing the official scientific reports 00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:13.879 afterward. This was a huge undertaking. Immense, 00:15:13.879 --> 00:15:16.500 sustained labor. He oversaw the production of 00:15:16.500 --> 00:15:20.679 19 massive volumes and 11 atlases between 1844 00:15:20.679 --> 00:15:24.000 and 1874. He even personally authored technical 00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:26.919 volumes on meteorology and hydrography. And the 00:15:26.919 --> 00:15:29.360 narrative of the United States exploring expedition. 00:15:29.620 --> 00:15:32.639 The five -volume narrative was published in 1844, 00:15:32.860 --> 00:15:35.639 and it detailed everything from ethnography to 00:15:35.639 --> 00:15:37.779 the political conditions in the places they visited. 00:15:38.000 --> 00:15:41.539 So he was capable of both breathtaking ambition 00:15:41.539 --> 00:15:45.039 at sea and this obsessive, meticulous administrative 00:15:45.039 --> 00:15:47.779 labor for nearly three decades afterward. It's 00:15:47.779 --> 00:15:49.379 almost like he was two different people. That's 00:15:49.379 --> 00:15:51.399 the core of the paradox. And the intellectual 00:15:51.399 --> 00:15:54.700 legacy, it really culminated in one major institutional 00:15:54.700 --> 00:15:57.259 foundation that every American knows today. The 00:15:57.259 --> 00:16:00.159 Smithsonian. Precisely. The immense collection 00:16:00.159 --> 00:16:02.679 of specimens and artifacts brought back by the 00:16:02.679 --> 00:16:05.340 scientists. I mean... James White Dana's foundational 00:16:05.340 --> 00:16:09.580 studies on zoophytes, geology, and crustacea 00:16:09.580 --> 00:16:12.799 came from this. It was overwhelming. Just the 00:16:12.799 --> 00:16:15.440 sheer quantity. The sheer quantity and quality 00:16:15.440 --> 00:16:18.240 of this material demanded a proper repository. 00:16:18.779 --> 00:16:21.500 That collection led directly to the establishment 00:16:21.500 --> 00:16:24.559 of the Smithsonian Institution Collection. We 00:16:24.559 --> 00:16:26.700 can say without hyperbole that without Wilkes' 00:16:26.820 --> 00:16:29.440 expedition, the Smithsonian as we know it would 00:16:29.440 --> 00:16:32.279 fundamentally not exist. He didn't just explore. 00:16:33.199 --> 00:16:35.419 He stocked the nation's scientific storehouse. 00:16:35.480 --> 00:16:37.279 That's a perfect way to put it. This is where 00:16:37.279 --> 00:16:38.679 it gets really interesting, though. Yeah. And 00:16:38.679 --> 00:16:40.480 where the sources begin to pivot. We have this 00:16:40.480 --> 00:16:42.779 image of the meticulous cartographer, the institution 00:16:42.779 --> 00:16:45.159 builder, the visionary. But the moment he stepped 00:16:45.159 --> 00:16:47.899 back on U .S. soil, the scientific triumphs were 00:16:47.899 --> 00:16:50.039 immediately eclipsed by the shadow of his command. 00:16:50.509 --> 00:16:53.049 A professional success, but a personal disaster. 00:16:53.470 --> 00:16:55.710 Exactly. The controversy that had been brewing 00:16:55.710 --> 00:16:57.909 throughout the four -year expedition, it just 00:16:57.909 --> 00:17:00.870 hit the moment they docked. The tension and the 00:17:00.870 --> 00:17:03.149 disciplinary issues were so severe that he was 00:17:03.149 --> 00:17:05.890 almost instantly court -martialed. The Navy didn't 00:17:05.890 --> 00:17:07.990 even wait for the full scientific reports to 00:17:07.990 --> 00:17:09.849 be filed before addressing the complaints about 00:17:09.849 --> 00:17:12.009 his leadership. So let's detail some of the high 00:17:12.009 --> 00:17:13.869 -handed actions that led to this, because they 00:17:13.869 --> 00:17:16.250 speak to an autocratic command style that was... 00:17:16.430 --> 00:17:18.910 absolutely ruthless, especially when dealing 00:17:18.910 --> 00:17:21.410 with indigenous populations. The expedition's 00:17:21.410 --> 00:17:23.309 interactions with people in the Pacific were 00:17:23.309 --> 00:17:26.309 marked by severity. In Fiji, for example, they 00:17:26.309 --> 00:17:28.869 kidnapped the chief Rovadovi, charging him with 00:17:28.869 --> 00:17:31.430 the murder of American whalers. This was just 00:17:31.430 --> 00:17:33.730 an act of unilateral power projection. Into a 00:17:33.730 --> 00:17:37.079 sovereign system, yes. But... The Malolo Island 00:17:37.079 --> 00:17:40.779 Massacre in July 1840 is the incident that truly 00:17:40.779 --> 00:17:43.759 exemplifies the level of retribution he was capable 00:17:43.759 --> 00:17:46.460 of exacting. It's the darkest mark on his record. 00:17:46.619 --> 00:17:49.720 It is. Two sailors, and one of them was Wilkes' 00:17:49.819 --> 00:17:53.339 own nephew, midshipman Wilkes Henry. They were 00:17:53.339 --> 00:17:55.200 killed while they were attempting to barter for 00:17:55.200 --> 00:17:58.200 food. Wilkes' response was immediate, punitive, 00:17:58.220 --> 00:18:01.319 and overwhelming. He called it swift and severe 00:18:01.319 --> 00:18:04.220 retribution. And our sources include testimony 00:18:04.220 --> 00:18:07.140 from an old man from Malolo Island who claimed 00:18:07.140 --> 00:18:10.140 that some 80 Fijians were killed in the resulting 00:18:10.140 --> 00:18:13.279 military assault. This wasn't justice. It was 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:16.160 a military reprisal intended to establish fear 00:18:16.160 --> 00:18:18.759 and total submission. And this high handedness 00:18:18.759 --> 00:18:21.559 wasn't just reserved for foreign conflict. It 00:18:21.559 --> 00:18:24.759 extended to his own crew, often the name of scientific 00:18:24.759 --> 00:18:28.619 rigor. The Mauna Loa charting in Hawaii is a 00:18:28.619 --> 00:18:31.420 perfect, painful microcosm of his leadership 00:18:31.420 --> 00:18:34.289 style. That's a key anecdote. Wilkes needed to 00:18:34.289 --> 00:18:36.869 haul a delicate, heavy pendulum up the side of 00:18:36.869 --> 00:18:39.349 Mauna Loa to measure gravity, a crucial scientific 00:18:39.349 --> 00:18:42.930 task. To do this, he employed hundreds of native 00:18:42.930 --> 00:18:45.269 Hawaiian porters. But instead of using the existing, 00:18:45.329 --> 00:18:48.109 established footpath, he insisted on trailblazing 00:18:48.109 --> 00:18:51.119 his own, much more difficult route. Why? Why 00:18:51.119 --> 00:18:53.720 create unnecessary hardship when an easier path 00:18:53.720 --> 00:18:56.099 existed? It seems to have been rooted in control, 00:18:56.400 --> 00:18:58.460 an insistence on his personal method being the 00:18:58.460 --> 00:19:00.779 only correct one. The decision unnecessarily 00:19:00.779 --> 00:19:03.000 prolonged the effort, turning a difficult trek 00:19:03.000 --> 00:19:05.599 into a dangerous ordeal. And his crew and the 00:19:05.599 --> 00:19:08.309 porter suffered for it. Heavily. The sources 00:19:08.309 --> 00:19:11.150 describe men suffering from snow blindness, crippling 00:19:11.150 --> 00:19:13.549 altitude sickness, and serious foot injuries 00:19:13.549 --> 00:19:15.730 because their shoes were being destroyed on the 00:19:15.730 --> 00:19:18.630 razor -sharp lava rock. He was willing to inflict 00:19:18.630 --> 00:19:21.650 immense avoidable suffering on others to satisfy 00:19:21.650 --> 00:19:24.710 his own meticulous yet imperious command decisions. 00:19:25.190 --> 00:19:28.029 So the court -martial, upon his return in 1842, 00:19:28.430 --> 00:19:31.250 led by charges from officers like the ship doctor 00:19:31.250 --> 00:19:34.410 Charles Guyoux, was clearly unavoidable. What 00:19:34.410 --> 00:19:36.829 was the scope of that legal challenge? The charges 00:19:36.829 --> 00:19:39.950 were comprehensive and serious. The loss of one 00:19:39.950 --> 00:19:41.730 of his ships on the bar at the mouth of the Columbia 00:19:41.730 --> 00:19:44.109 River, general mistreatment of his subordinate 00:19:44.109 --> 00:19:46.269 officers, including verbal and psychological 00:19:46.269 --> 00:19:49.069 abuse, and most centrally, excessive punishment 00:19:49.069 --> 00:19:51.630 of the sailors in his squadron. And Dr. Gu was 00:19:51.630 --> 00:19:54.410 a major witness. A major witness, yeah. Detailing 00:19:54.410 --> 00:19:56.769 the abuses from a medical perspective. So wait, 00:19:56.829 --> 00:19:59.029 if the allegations were so severe and the evidence 00:19:59.029 --> 00:20:01.049 of mistreatment was so clear, especially after 00:20:01.049 --> 00:20:03.400 the Malolo incident, what was the outcome? This 00:20:03.400 --> 00:20:05.539 is where the political dimension comes in. He 00:20:05.539 --> 00:20:07.740 was acquitted on almost all charges, including 00:20:07.740 --> 00:20:10.099 the ship loss and the more serious charges of 00:20:10.099 --> 00:20:12.240 mistreatment of officers. But not everything. 00:20:12.480 --> 00:20:15.460 No. The Navy did find him guilty of one thing. 00:20:16.119 --> 00:20:18.599 Excessive punishment of men in his squadron. 00:20:18.740 --> 00:20:22.299 It was a formal, public repudiation of his conduct 00:20:22.299 --> 00:20:25.119 towards the enlisted men. So he was vindicated 00:20:25.119 --> 00:20:27.640 on command decisions, but formally reprimanded 00:20:27.640 --> 00:20:30.650 for being a cruel taskmaster. It sounds like 00:20:30.650 --> 00:20:32.450 the Navy was struggling to balance the scientific 00:20:32.450 --> 00:20:34.630 genius with the administrative headache. They 00:20:34.630 --> 00:20:37.109 absolutely were. He was too successful to fully 00:20:37.109 --> 00:20:39.890 dismiss. So following the controversy, he spent 00:20:39.890 --> 00:20:44.630 nearly two decades, 1844 to 1861, chiefly engaged 00:20:44.630 --> 00:20:47.210 in preparing and editing the official reports. 00:20:47.589 --> 00:20:49.750 It was almost a form of house arrest for the 00:20:49.750 --> 00:20:53.069 brilliant, difficult Offiker. sidelined to administrative 00:20:53.069 --> 00:20:56.210 duties while his intellectual output was monetized 00:20:56.210 --> 00:20:57.750 by the nation. That's a great way of looking 00:20:57.750 --> 00:20:59.789 at it. Okay, let's pause on the man and pivot 00:20:59.789 --> 00:21:02.309 back to his greatest enduring positive achievement 00:21:02.309 --> 00:21:04.569 at Antarctica. Because despite the courts martial, 00:21:04.769 --> 00:21:07.789 the planet still holds his name in highest honor. 00:21:08.160 --> 00:21:10.500 Absolutely. The vast region of East Antarctica, 00:21:10.720 --> 00:21:13.539 which he defined, is named Wilkes Land after 00:21:13.539 --> 00:21:16.440 him. And this naming specifically recognizes 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:18.940 his charting of that 2 ,400 kilometers, that 00:21:18.940 --> 00:21:22.420 1 ,500 miles of coast, which provided the substantial 00:21:22.420 --> 00:21:24.980 and necessary proof needed to define Antarctica 00:21:24.980 --> 00:21:28.380 as a continent. Not just scattered ice -bound 00:21:28.380 --> 00:21:31.200 islands. And that distinction providing proof 00:21:31.200 --> 00:21:34.700 is so critical to his legacy. He confirmed a 00:21:34.700 --> 00:21:37.559 geographical hypothesis. Geographically, Wilkes 00:21:37.559 --> 00:21:40.160 -Land is immense. It extends from Cape Horton 00:21:40.160 --> 00:21:42.700 to Porcourt -Pas Point, covering a sector that 00:21:42.700 --> 00:21:45.440 reaches 2 ,600 kilometers toward the South Pole. 00:21:45.720 --> 00:21:49.220 The estimated glaciated area is 2 .6 million 00:21:49.220 --> 00:21:52.259 square kilometers. It's a huge chunk of the continent. 00:21:52.460 --> 00:21:54.720 And the granularity of their survey work is still 00:21:54.720 --> 00:21:56.539 reflected in the names of the smaller regions 00:21:56.539 --> 00:21:59.000 within Wilkes -Land. Correct. We still refer 00:21:59.000 --> 00:22:01.140 to the Knox Coast, the Budd Coast, the Sabrina 00:22:01.140 --> 00:22:03.140 Coast, the Benzar Coast, and the Clary Coast, 00:22:03.319 --> 00:22:05.000 sometimes just known as the Wilkes Coast. And 00:22:05.000 --> 00:22:07.079 there's a political note here, too. There is. 00:22:07.240 --> 00:22:09.519 This territory is formally claimed by Australia 00:22:09.519 --> 00:22:12.140 as part of the Australian Antarctic Territory, 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:14.740 but that claim is held in abeyance under the 00:22:14.740 --> 00:22:16.759 cooperative framework of the Antarctic Treaty 00:22:16.759 --> 00:22:19.440 System, ensuring it remains focused on peaceful 00:22:19.440 --> 00:22:22.720 scientific exploration. Now here's where 19th 00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:25.759 century exploration intersects with mind -boggling 00:22:25.759 --> 00:22:29.099 modern science. Under the ice that Wilkes charted, 00:22:29.119 --> 00:22:31.759 modern researchers discovered a geological feature 00:22:31.759 --> 00:22:34.750 far older than any human history. This is perhaps 00:22:34.750 --> 00:22:37.869 the most incredible twist in his legacy. In 2006, 00:22:38.049 --> 00:22:40.490 a team of researchers used sophisticated gravity 00:22:40.490 --> 00:22:42.910 measurements taken from NASA's GRACE satellites, 00:22:43.230 --> 00:22:45.289 that's the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, 00:22:45.549 --> 00:22:48.029 and they discovered something massive hidden 00:22:48.029 --> 00:22:50.630 beneath the ice sheet, the Wilkes Land Crater. 00:22:50.769 --> 00:22:52.390 Okay, for the listener, can you explain briefly 00:22:52.390 --> 00:22:54.630 how those satellites can see something hundreds 00:22:54.630 --> 00:22:57.190 of feet beneath the ice? Sure. The GRACE mission 00:22:57.190 --> 00:23:00.109 used two twin satellites that orbit the Earth, 00:23:00.250 --> 00:23:02.369 constantly measuring the distance between them 00:23:02.369 --> 00:23:05.170 with extreme precision. When the leading satellite 00:23:05.170 --> 00:23:07.609 passes over a region of slightly higher mass, 00:23:07.650 --> 00:23:10.529 a massive structure buried in the crust, it feels 00:23:10.529 --> 00:23:13.569 a tiny gravitational tug. Pulling it slightly 00:23:13.569 --> 00:23:16.450 away from its twin. Exactly. By charting these 00:23:16.450 --> 00:23:18.910 tiny shifts in gravity, scientists can essentially 00:23:18.910 --> 00:23:21.769 map the mass distribution on the planet. And 00:23:21.769 --> 00:23:23.589 this allowed them to see the subtle gravitational 00:23:23.589 --> 00:23:26.849 signature of this massive 300 -mile -wide structure. 00:23:27.250 --> 00:23:29.390 So they were essentially able to weigh the crust 00:23:29.390 --> 00:23:32.170 beneath the ice. And this impact structure is 00:23:32.170 --> 00:23:35.109 how old? Truly ancient. The crater is estimated 00:23:35.109 --> 00:23:37.569 to be about 300 miles across, and geologists 00:23:37.569 --> 00:23:40.910 believe it likely formed about 250 million years 00:23:40.910 --> 00:23:44.089 ago, possibly linked to the Permian -Triassic 00:23:44.089 --> 00:23:47.500 extinction event. the Great Dying. It just shows 00:23:47.500 --> 00:23:49.799 that the territory Wilkes defined holds secrets 00:23:49.799 --> 00:23:52.720 far older and on a far more volatile scale than 00:23:52.720 --> 00:23:55.319 humanity itself. It puts the entire concept of 00:23:55.319 --> 00:23:58.200 the deep dive into a new context. And besides 00:23:58.200 --> 00:24:00.539 this continental scale, what else carries his 00:24:00.539 --> 00:24:02.339 name? Well, we have Wilkes Island, one of the 00:24:02.339 --> 00:24:04.819 three islands at Wake Atoll, named for him in 00:24:04.819 --> 00:24:07.339 1923, honoring his charting work in the Pacific. 00:24:07.640 --> 00:24:10.500 And in Hawaii, the unique plant genus Wilkesia 00:24:10.500 --> 00:24:13.599 is named in his honor. His scientific and geographical 00:24:13.599 --> 00:24:17.319 imprint is utterly permanent. So Wilksman's the 00:24:17.319 --> 00:24:20.660 1840s and 50s immersed in data, charting the 00:24:20.660 --> 00:24:24.039 world and editing his massive reports. Then the 00:24:24.039 --> 00:24:26.240 American Civil War erupts and he is suddenly 00:24:26.240 --> 00:24:28.599 thrust back into active command. Right back into 00:24:28.599 --> 00:24:30.619 the fire. And it was almost predictable that 00:24:30.619 --> 00:24:32.880 if you put a difficult man in a high stakes diplomatic 00:24:32.880 --> 00:24:35.920 situation, things would explode. And they did. 00:24:36.079 --> 00:24:38.279 His rank had risen. He was promoted to commander 00:24:38.279 --> 00:24:42.500 in 1843 and captain in 1855. When the war began, 00:24:42.759 --> 00:24:45.599 he was given command of the USS San Jacinto with 00:24:45.599 --> 00:24:47.920 the mission of hunting down the Confederate commerce 00:24:47.920 --> 00:24:51.599 destroyer, CSS Sumter. A standard, if difficult, 00:24:51.700 --> 00:24:54.400 mission, which led directly to the near disaster 00:24:54.400 --> 00:24:58.380 known as the Trent Affair in November 1861. Give 00:24:58.380 --> 00:25:00.339 us the sequence of events. Wilkes learned that 00:25:00.339 --> 00:25:03.579 two extremely high -value Confederate commissioners, 00:25:03.579 --> 00:25:06.019 James Murray Mason, destined for Britain, and 00:25:06.019 --> 00:25:08.519 John Sladell, destined for France, were sailing 00:25:08.519 --> 00:25:10.940 to Europe on a British mail packet boat, the 00:25:10.940 --> 00:25:13.720 RMS Trent. And these men were crucial for the 00:25:13.720 --> 00:25:15.839 Confederacy's plan to gain European recognition 00:25:15.839 --> 00:25:18.779 and aid. Absolutely. And this ship, the Trent, 00:25:19.000 --> 00:25:21.240 was a neutral British vessel. This is where the 00:25:21.240 --> 00:25:23.740 core legal problem arises. He's on a collision 00:25:23.740 --> 00:25:26.779 course with international law. Absolutely. The 00:25:26.779 --> 00:25:29.359 ship was neutral, but Wilkes, operating on his 00:25:29.359 --> 00:25:32.319 own somewhat faulty interpretation of maritime 00:25:32.319 --> 00:25:35.380 law, decided to act. He believed that the men, 00:25:35.480 --> 00:25:38.619 as official agents of a belligerent power, constituted 00:25:38.619 --> 00:25:41.400 embodied dispatches or contraband that could 00:25:41.400 --> 00:25:44.079 be seized. From a neutral vessel. So what action 00:25:44.079 --> 00:25:47.160 did he take? On November 8th, 1861 he ordered 00:25:47.160 --> 00:25:50.039 the san jacinto to intercept the trent he fired 00:25:50.039 --> 00:25:53.079 two shots across its bow a clear act of aggression 00:25:53.079 --> 00:25:55.720 against a british vessel forcing it to stop and 00:25:55.720 --> 00:25:57.539 then he boarded the ship He boarded the vessel, 00:25:57.700 --> 00:26:00.460 arrested Mason and Seidel, and took them as prisoners 00:26:00.460 --> 00:26:03.299 of war to Fort Warren in Boston Harbor. And while 00:26:03.299 --> 00:26:05.960 the northern public saw this as a heroic, patriotic 00:26:05.960 --> 00:26:09.180 capture, it was a staggering violation of British 00:26:09.180 --> 00:26:11.759 neutrality. And of the accepted legal principle 00:26:11.759 --> 00:26:14.480 of freedom of the seas for non -contraband items, 00:26:14.740 --> 00:26:17.740 it caused an explosion. Wilkes, whom Bermuda 00:26:17.740 --> 00:26:20.339 Media branded the Notorious Wilkes, brought the 00:26:20.339 --> 00:26:22.799 United States and the United Kingdom perilously 00:26:22.799 --> 00:26:25.279 close to full -scale war. How close did they 00:26:25.279 --> 00:26:28.460 actually come to war? What were the stakes? Extremely 00:26:28.460 --> 00:26:31.759 close. Britain immediately issued an ultimatum 00:26:31.759 --> 00:26:33.819 demanding the release of the commissioners and 00:26:33.819 --> 00:26:36.420 a formal apology. And they backed it up with 00:26:36.420 --> 00:26:39.119 an enormous show of force. They sent troops to 00:26:39.119 --> 00:26:41.880 Canada. They did. The sources note that Britain 00:26:41.880 --> 00:26:44.859 dispatched 11 ,000 troops to Canada ready to 00:26:44.859 --> 00:26:48.150 fight. diplomatic relations were frozen and the 00:26:48.150 --> 00:26:50.730 threat of immediate British intervention on the 00:26:50.730 --> 00:26:53.609 side of the Confederacy was real and terrifying. 00:26:53.930 --> 00:26:56.630 The political contradiction in the U .S. response 00:26:56.630 --> 00:26:59.789 is fascinating. given Wilkes' history. It is 00:26:59.789 --> 00:27:03.230 the ultimate paradox. Congress officially thanked 00:27:03.230 --> 00:27:06.269 Wilkes for his brave, adroit, and patriotic conduct, 00:27:06.569 --> 00:27:09.250 recognizing the intense public fervor for the 00:27:09.250 --> 00:27:11.829 capture. But President Lincoln, cooler heads 00:27:11.829 --> 00:27:13.970 prevailing in Washington, understood that war 00:27:13.970 --> 00:27:16.349 with Britain was a far greater threat than the 00:27:16.349 --> 00:27:18.730 escape of two Confederate agents. Lincoln reportedly 00:27:18.730 --> 00:27:20.809 said that Wilkes had captured the Confederate 00:27:20.809 --> 00:27:23.490 diplomats, but he also captured the Union's neutral 00:27:23.490 --> 00:27:25.650 rights, handing Britain a weapon against them. 00:27:25.750 --> 00:27:28.720 So he had to disavow the action. Following fierce 00:27:28.720 --> 00:27:31.519 diplomatic protests, Lincoln disavowed Wilkes' 00:27:31.660 --> 00:27:33.940 action, stating they had to stick to the old 00:27:33.940 --> 00:27:36.400 rules and the diplomats were speedily released 00:27:36.400 --> 00:27:40.200 in January 1862, easing the international crisis. 00:27:40.579 --> 00:27:43.740 So he's lauded by the legislature, but rebuked 00:27:43.740 --> 00:27:46.500 and effectively sidelined by the executive branch 00:27:46.500 --> 00:27:50.089 to prevent a global conflict. It's hard to imagine 00:27:50.089 --> 00:27:52.869 a more volatile set of mixed signals for a naval 00:27:52.869 --> 00:27:55.170 commander. It had immediate career consequences. 00:27:55.670 --> 00:27:57.950 The Navy placed Wilkes on the retirement list 00:27:57.950 --> 00:28:01.250 in December 1861, just weeks after the incident. 00:28:01.430 --> 00:28:03.849 But he came back. Incredibly, yes. Less than 00:28:03.849 --> 00:28:07.170 a year later, in July 1862, he was promoted to 00:28:07.170 --> 00:28:09.609 Commodore on the retired list and reassigned 00:28:09.609 --> 00:28:11.609 to duty pursuing blockade runners in the West 00:28:11.609 --> 00:28:14.309 Indies. He was too aggressive and too effective 00:28:14.309 --> 00:28:16.779 at certain tasks to be totally ignored. even 00:28:16.779 --> 00:28:19.119 if he was diplomatically dangerous. And his tenure 00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:20.980 as commander of the West Indies Squadron was 00:28:20.980 --> 00:28:23.079 where the high -handedness just continued its 00:28:23.079 --> 00:28:25.680 relentless escalation. It seems he viewed the 00:28:25.680 --> 00:28:28.640 Trent incident not as a near miss, but as a confirmation 00:28:28.640 --> 00:28:30.839 that his independent judgment was superior to 00:28:30.839 --> 00:28:33.799 naval regulations. Exactly. He viewed himself 00:28:33.799 --> 00:28:37.259 as a man above standard rules. And he immediately 00:28:37.259 --> 00:28:39.740 drew heavy criticism for failing in his primary 00:28:39.740 --> 00:28:42.759 operational task, capturing the legendary Confederate 00:28:42.759 --> 00:28:46.400 commerce raiders, CSS Alabama and CSS Florida. 00:28:47.079 --> 00:28:49.519 And his own decisions undermined his effectiveness, 00:28:49.799 --> 00:28:51.539 right? You mentioned a critical command decision 00:28:51.539 --> 00:28:53.700 concerning one of his best ships. That's right. 00:28:53.779 --> 00:28:57.319 He retained the powerful USS Vanderbilt, a fast, 00:28:57.359 --> 00:29:00.279 high -quality steamship that was perfectly suited 00:29:00.279 --> 00:29:02.880 to hunt the Raiders for use as his personal flagship. 00:29:03.180 --> 00:29:05.019 Instead of assigning it to the necessary task 00:29:05.019 --> 00:29:08.109 force hunting the Alabama. Right. And that decision 00:29:08.109 --> 00:29:10.250 later became a major point of contention with 00:29:10.250 --> 00:29:12.609 the secretary of the Navy, Gideon Wells. And 00:29:12.609 --> 00:29:15.089 beyond the operational failures, his diplomatic 00:29:15.089 --> 00:29:17.990 behavior in the Caribbean was atrocious, systematically 00:29:17.990 --> 00:29:20.529 undermining U .S. relations with neutral powers. 00:29:20.730 --> 00:29:24.210 The sources are clear. Wilkes continually exacerbated 00:29:24.210 --> 00:29:26.410 diplomatic relations with every single provincial 00:29:26.410 --> 00:29:29.009 government in the region. British, Spanish, Dutch, 00:29:29.190 --> 00:29:32.069 French, Danish and Mexican. It was a never ending 00:29:32.069 --> 00:29:34.410 stream of complaints generated entirely by his 00:29:34.410 --> 00:29:37.109 imperious and autocratic. actions. Give us some 00:29:37.109 --> 00:29:39.490 concrete examples of these international law 00:29:39.490 --> 00:29:42.289 violations. He was systematically and repeatedly 00:29:42.289 --> 00:29:44.829 violating international law regarding belligerent 00:29:44.829 --> 00:29:47.430 nations in neutral waters. He was setting up 00:29:47.430 --> 00:29:50.029 coal depots on neutral islands without authorization. 00:29:50.589 --> 00:29:53.730 He was cited lingering outside neutral ports, 00:29:54.049 --> 00:29:56.470 essentially establishing informal blockades, 00:29:56.589 --> 00:29:58.710 which was highly provocative. He was treating 00:29:58.710 --> 00:30:01.150 the entire neutral Caribbean as an extension 00:30:01.150 --> 00:30:04.430 of the Union operational zone. He was the British 00:30:04.430 --> 00:30:07.140 authorities. in Nassau and St. George's and the 00:30:07.140 --> 00:30:09.299 French and Martinique, they all accused him of 00:30:09.299 --> 00:30:12.660 establishing illegal, unofficial blockades. They 00:30:12.660 --> 00:30:15.319 suspected he'd been sent intentionally to provoke 00:30:15.319 --> 00:30:18.400 them. And even his successful captures caused 00:30:18.400 --> 00:30:20.940 problems. Yes. His captures of ships like the 00:30:20.940 --> 00:30:24.279 Peterhof, Dolphin and Springbok resulted in diplomatic 00:30:24.279 --> 00:30:26.740 objections specifically directed against his 00:30:26.740 --> 00:30:28.740 quality of leadership and defiance of international 00:30:28.740 --> 00:30:31.920 norms, not just the legitimacy of the prize claims. 00:30:32.160 --> 00:30:35.079 And this never ending stream of complaints, as 00:30:35.079 --> 00:30:37.480 the sources describe it, ultimately led to his 00:30:37.480 --> 00:30:40.740 definitive removal from command. Precisely. The 00:30:40.740 --> 00:30:42.759 Union couldn't afford a second major diplomatic 00:30:42.759 --> 00:30:45.619 crisis while fighting the Confederacy. He was 00:30:45.619 --> 00:30:49.779 recalled in June 1863. The diplomatic fallout, 00:30:49.799 --> 00:30:52.240 the sheer volume of outrage coming from every 00:30:52.240 --> 00:30:54.839 neutral nation he encountered, was the overwhelming 00:30:54.839 --> 00:30:57.240 reason for his immediate removal. But Charles 00:30:57.240 --> 00:31:00.259 Wilkes was not a man to go quietly. This conflict 00:31:00.259 --> 00:31:03.000 with Secretary of the Navy Gideon Wells escalated, 00:31:03.059 --> 00:31:05.559 leading to his final. most comprehensive court 00:31:05.559 --> 00:31:09.019 -martial in 1864. Wells had initially supported 00:31:09.019 --> 00:31:11.599 Wilkes in some actions, but his patience broke 00:31:11.599 --> 00:31:14.400 when he publicly criticized Wilkes in the December 00:31:14.400 --> 00:31:18.019 1863 annual report over that decision to retain 00:31:18.019 --> 00:31:21.180 the Vanderbilt. And Wilkes, seeing this criticism 00:31:21.180 --> 00:31:24.200 in print, reacted violently. He wrote a scathing, 00:31:24.200 --> 00:31:26.819 highly critical public response to his superior 00:31:26.819 --> 00:31:29.119 officer that quickly found its way into the newspapers. 00:31:29.759 --> 00:31:32.039 This was an intolerable act of insubordination. 00:31:32.480 --> 00:31:34.819 A court of inquiry was immediately convened, 00:31:34.819 --> 00:31:36.740 which led directly to a court -martial in March 00:31:36.740 --> 00:31:39.740 1864. What was the full list of charges this 00:31:39.740 --> 00:31:41.880 time? It sounds like the Navy was determined 00:31:41.880 --> 00:31:44.019 to catalog his entire history of professional 00:31:44.019 --> 00:31:46.759 misconduct. It was an exhaustive indictment of 00:31:46.759 --> 00:31:49.329 his character and command style. disobedience 00:31:49.329 --> 00:31:52.710 of orders, insubordination, disrespect of a superior 00:31:52.710 --> 00:31:56.150 officer, disobedience of naval regulations, and 00:31:56.150 --> 00:31:59.190 conduct unbecoming an officer. And the verdict. 00:31:59.470 --> 00:32:01.690 He was found guilty of all charges. It was the 00:32:01.690 --> 00:32:05.309 ultimate professional repudiation. So after the 00:32:05.309 --> 00:32:08.549 immense success of the charts, the Smithsonian, 00:32:08.970 --> 00:32:12.329 he ends his active career being found guilty 00:32:12.329 --> 00:32:15.180 on every count of insubordination. What was the 00:32:15.180 --> 00:32:17.559 sentence? He was sentenced to a public reprimand 00:32:17.559 --> 00:32:19.420 and suspension from service for three years. 00:32:19.680 --> 00:32:22.339 But even in this moment of professional collapse, 00:32:22.640 --> 00:32:25.019 the shadow of Lincoln returns. Lincoln intervened 00:32:25.019 --> 00:32:27.500 again. He did. President Lincoln, once again 00:32:27.500 --> 00:32:29.339 intervening in the affairs of the rogue genius, 00:32:29.660 --> 00:32:32.180 reduced the suspension to one year and dropped 00:32:32.180 --> 00:32:34.779 the balance of charges. It's almost as if no 00:32:34.779 --> 00:32:36.640 one in the administration could decide whether 00:32:36.640 --> 00:32:39.000 to salute him or jail him. He was eventually 00:32:39.000 --> 00:32:41.279 promoted to Rear Admiral on the retired list 00:32:41.279 --> 00:32:44.819 on July 25, 1866, marking the end of his official 00:32:44.819 --> 00:32:47.160 service. So what happened in his later life? 00:32:47.339 --> 00:32:50.079 Did he find peace in writing? He certainly maintained 00:32:50.079 --> 00:32:52.900 his intellectual focus. He returned to his scientific 00:32:52.900 --> 00:32:55.400 labor. In addition to his official narrative, 00:32:55.700 --> 00:32:58.059 he wrote an autobiography and other scientific 00:32:58.059 --> 00:33:00.619 works like Western America, including California 00:33:00.619 --> 00:33:03.640 and Oregon and Theory of the Winds. He continued 00:33:03.640 --> 00:33:06.240 to process and share the vast store of knowledge 00:33:06.240 --> 00:33:08.460 he had gathered. Wilkes died in Washington, D 00:33:08.460 --> 00:33:12.779 .C. on February 8, 1877. And his physical resting 00:33:12.779 --> 00:33:15.819 place has that final, defiant historical footnote. 00:33:15.960 --> 00:33:18.279 He was originally interred at Oak Hill Cemetery, 00:33:18.480 --> 00:33:21.640 but in August 1909, the United States, in recognition 00:33:21.640 --> 00:33:24.319 of his immense contributions, moved his remains 00:33:24.319 --> 00:33:27.460 to Arlington National Cemetery. And that is where 00:33:27.460 --> 00:33:30.160 his famous gravestone lies with that proud, if 00:33:30.160 --> 00:33:33.079 perhaps contested, declaration. He discovered 00:33:33.079 --> 00:33:36.180 the Antarctic continent. A final, lasting claim 00:33:36.180 --> 00:33:38.259 to the monumental achievement that defined his 00:33:38.259 --> 00:33:41.450 life. Let's discuss the cultural and naval echoes 00:33:41.450 --> 00:33:43.730 he left behind, because his personality seems 00:33:43.730 --> 00:33:46.309 to have leaked into American folklore, defining 00:33:46.309 --> 00:33:48.599 the archetype of the obsessive sea captain. There 00:33:48.599 --> 00:33:51.980 is a strong historical speculation that his obsessive 00:33:51.980 --> 00:33:54.619 behavior and harsh code of shipboard discipline, 00:33:54.980 --> 00:33:57.200 the very traits that led to the court -martials, 00:33:57.359 --> 00:33:59.960 may have directly influenced Herman Melville's 00:33:59.960 --> 00:34:02.460 characterization of Captain Ahab in Moby Dick. 00:34:02.700 --> 00:34:05.400 The driven, uncompromising commander. Exactly. 00:34:05.500 --> 00:34:08.699 Wilkes' reputation for a relentless, almost manic 00:34:08.699 --> 00:34:11.579 command, regardless of the cost to his men, certainly 00:34:11.579 --> 00:34:14.300 fits that literary mold. And whether or not he 00:34:14.300 --> 00:34:16.719 influenced Ahab, the U .S. Navy has certainly 00:34:16.719 --> 00:34:19.869 honored the explosion. Regardless of the temperament 00:34:19.869 --> 00:34:22.690 of the man who led it. Absolutely. Four different 00:34:22.690 --> 00:34:25.900 U .S. Navy ships have carried his name. a torpedo 00:34:25.900 --> 00:34:29.139 boat, two destroyers in the World Wars, and finally, 00:34:29.219 --> 00:34:32.159 the oceanographic survey vessel USS Wilkes launched 00:34:32.159 --> 00:34:35.760 in 1969. The Navy consistently honors the legacy 00:34:35.760 --> 00:34:38.179 of scientific discovery, implicitly separating 00:34:38.179 --> 00:34:40.440 the achievement from the long list of disciplinary 00:34:40.440 --> 00:34:42.860 issues. The distinction between the man and the 00:34:42.860 --> 00:34:45.460 mission is key to understanding his modern legacy, 00:34:45.739 --> 00:34:47.840 which is still being debated in the very communities 00:34:47.840 --> 00:34:50.360 that encountered his expedition 180 years ago. 00:34:50.539 --> 00:34:53.019 And this brings us right up to the present day. 00:34:53.530 --> 00:34:56.949 We see that complex legacy playing out on Bainbridge 00:34:56.949 --> 00:34:59.889 Island, Washington, near the waters he charted. 00:35:00.219 --> 00:35:02.579 The Captain Charles Wilkes Elementary School 00:35:02.579 --> 00:35:07.099 was renamed in 2023 to Alec or Haliltz Elementary 00:35:07.099 --> 00:35:09.980 School. And that name change wasn't just administrative, 00:35:10.119 --> 00:35:12.360 was it? It represents a contemporary reckoning 00:35:12.360 --> 00:35:14.440 with the historical violence we discussed. It 00:35:14.440 --> 00:35:16.340 absolutely does. It reflects the mixed public 00:35:16.340 --> 00:35:19.199 reception regarding his past actions, particularly 00:35:19.199 --> 00:35:21.980 the severity of the violence exacted in the Pacific, 00:35:22.260 --> 00:35:25.380 the Malolo incident, and his general high -handed 00:35:25.380 --> 00:35:27.980 treatment of indigenous peoples. The renaming 00:35:27.980 --> 00:35:30.550 signals a necessary shift. While we acknowledge 00:35:30.550 --> 00:35:32.849 his pioneering role, society is now refusing 00:35:32.849 --> 00:35:36.090 to valorize the violence and cultural insensitivity 00:35:36.090 --> 00:35:38.150 that came with it. So what does this all mean 00:35:38.150 --> 00:35:40.070 when we summarize the life of Charles Wilkes? 00:35:40.389 --> 00:35:43.130 We started with a paradox, and we end with a 00:35:43.130 --> 00:35:45.550 figure who was foundational to the institutionalization 00:35:45.550 --> 00:35:48.230 of American science, yet fundamentally incapable 00:35:48.230 --> 00:35:51.590 of managing himself or his relationships. He 00:35:51.590 --> 00:35:54.250 gave the world foundational, lasting knowledge. 00:35:54.449 --> 00:35:57.090 The specimens that built the Smithsonian, the 00:35:57.090 --> 00:35:59.670 charts that guided ships for generations, and 00:35:59.670 --> 00:36:01.809 the irrefutable proof for the existence of the 00:36:01.809 --> 00:36:04.269 Antarctic continent. That scientific infrastructure 00:36:04.269 --> 00:36:07.250 and global knowledge outlived all his political 00:36:07.250 --> 00:36:10.269 failures, his courts martial, his command controversies. 00:36:10.409 --> 00:36:13.170 The sources show a man capable of global feats, 00:36:13.329 --> 00:36:17.510 logging 87 ,000 miles, bringing back unparalleled 00:36:17.510 --> 00:36:20.670 data, yet who consistently failed in the simple... 00:36:20.679 --> 00:36:22.980 management of his own subordinates and in respecting 00:36:22.980 --> 00:36:25.840 basic diplomatic relations. It suggests a complete 00:36:25.840 --> 00:36:28.300 failure of temperament contained within a mind 00:36:28.300 --> 00:36:31.739 of staggering scientific rigor. Wilkes is a perfect 00:36:31.739 --> 00:36:33.820 example for you, the learner, of how foundational 00:36:33.820 --> 00:36:36.880 knowledge can be a lasting, permanent good, even 00:36:36.880 --> 00:36:39.199 when the person who delivered it was deeply flawed, 00:36:39.420 --> 00:36:42.340 prone to insubordination, and capable of extreme 00:36:42.340 --> 00:36:45.239 documented violence. The critical analysis here 00:36:45.239 --> 00:36:47.320 is that we have to separate the quality of the 00:36:47.320 --> 00:36:50.079 discovery from the character of the discoverer 00:36:50.079 --> 00:36:53.579 to understand his true legacy, a difficult but 00:36:53.579 --> 00:36:56.159 necessary process. Despite proving the existence 00:36:56.159 --> 00:36:58.579 of the Antarctic continent and creating charts 00:36:58.579 --> 00:37:01.360 that lasted into the World War II era, Charles 00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:03.840 Wilkes was never far from conflict. And this 00:37:03.840 --> 00:37:05.900 leads us to our final provocative thought for 00:37:05.900 --> 00:37:08.289 you to consider. Given the discovery of that 00:37:08.289 --> 00:37:12.110 immense 300 mile wide, 250 million year old crater 00:37:12.110 --> 00:37:15.070 under the ice of Wilkes land, a terrain defined 00:37:15.070 --> 00:37:18.369 by cataclysmic impact, we have to ask, was Charles 00:37:18.369 --> 00:37:21.090 Wilkes personality truly the anomaly in his time 00:37:21.090 --> 00:37:23.869 or was the sheer volatile and unexplored scale 00:37:23.869 --> 00:37:26.369 of the territory he sought to define destined 00:37:26.369 --> 00:37:29.550 to attract and be defined by such stormy, explosive 00:37:29.550 --> 00:37:32.070 and uncompromising characters? That's a fascinating 00:37:32.070 --> 00:37:34.610 question. Perhaps the chaos he brought was merely 00:37:34.610 --> 00:37:36.920 a reflection of the unbridled. chaos of the world 00:37:36.920 --> 00:37:39.480 he was attempting to measure and tame. Something 00:37:39.480 --> 00:37:41.739 profound to think about as you navigate your 00:37:41.739 --> 00:37:44.519 own deep dives. Thank you for joining us for 00:37:44.519 --> 00:37:47.039 this intense look at a truly paradoxical and 00:37:47.039 --> 00:37:49.480 foundational American pioneer. We'll see you 00:37:49.480 --> 00:37:50.619 next time on The Deep Dive.