Robert Moresby Begins The Survey of The Red Sea
Drastic measures were clearly needed to prevent these disasters and two small brigs were made ready for cartographical work despite the reluctance of the East India Company in London to provide finance. One was HMS Palinurus, the same vessel that had transported the Elphinstone party to Qusayr in 1827. She was captained by Robert Moresby, who had already gained experience from having surveyed the Laccadive Islands. The second vessel was HMS Benares, under the captaincy of Thomas Elwon. Each had a complement of around ten officers. Initially Moresby was appointed to the far less known northern half of the Red Sea. His base was at Suez, seen as the terminus of Waghorn's much trumpeted Overland Route, which connected the Mediterranean with the Indian Ocean via Egypt and the Red Sea. Elwon was despatched to the south, but in 1833 he was transferred to the Persian Gulf leaving Moresby to complete the full survey.
From 1829 to 1833 Moresby never left the Red Sea.
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