Francisco Hudson Cárdenas (
Curaco de Vélez
Curaco de Vélez is Chilean commune in Chiloé Archipelago which is part of Chiloé Province and Los Lagos Region. The commune is located in western Quinchao Island while the eastern part is administered by the commune of Quinchao.
History
Curaco ...
, Chile, July 1, 1826 – March, 1859) was a Chilean naval officer and hydrographer notable for his explorations of Zona Sur, Southern Chile and
Zona Austral, Chilean Patagonia. Hudson sailed on behalf of the Chilean government several times to
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
and
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
, assisted the
German immigrants arrive to Valdivia but gained notoriety for his explorations and investigations of
Maullín River
Maullín River( es, Río Maullín) is a river of Chile located in the Los Lagos Region. The river originates as the outflow of Llanquihue Lake, and flows generally southwestward, over a number of small waterfalls, emptying into the Gulf of Coronad ...
,
Roca Remolino and the channels of
Aysén Region
The Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region ( es, Región de Aysén, , '), often shortened to Aysén Region or Aisén,Examples of name usage1, official regional government site refers to the region as "Región de Aysén"., Chile's of ...
. Hudson was interested in investigating the possible existence of a sailing route through internal waters from the
Chiloé Archipelago
The Chiloé Archipelago ( es, Archipiélago de Chiloé, , ) is a group of islands lying off the coast of Chile, in the Los Lagos Region. It is separated from mainland Chile by the Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and t ...
to the
Straits of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and Tierra del Fuego to the south. The strait is considered the most important natural pas ...
, but came to realize that the
Isthmus of Ofqui made this impossible. However his hydrographic works laid the groundwork for
Hans Steffen's exploration of
Aysén Region
The Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region ( es, Región de Aysén, , '), often shortened to Aysén Region or Aisén,Examples of name usage1, official regional government site refers to the region as "Región de Aysén"., Chile's of ...
in late 19th century.
Biography
Hudson was born in the town of
Curaco de Vélez
Curaco de Vélez is Chilean commune in Chiloé Archipelago which is part of Chiloé Province and Los Lagos Region. The commune is located in western Quinchao Island while the eastern part is administered by the commune of Quinchao.
History
Curaco ...
in
Quinchao Island
Quinchao Island is an island in Chiloé Province, Chile, off the east coast of Chiloé Island. It includes the communes of Quinchao and Curaco de Vélez. Main towns are Achao and Curaco de Vélez
Curaco de Vélez is Chilean commune in Chiloé A ...
of
Chiloé Archipelago
The Chiloé Archipelago ( es, Archipiélago de Chiloé, , ) is a group of islands lying off the coast of Chile, in the Los Lagos Region. It is separated from mainland Chile by the Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and t ...
to the couple Santiago (possibly a translation of "James") Hudson and Juana Cárdenas. Hudson studied at the Maritime School of Ancud (Escuela Naútica de Ancud), afterwards he was transferred to the
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed an ...
''
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...
'' where
Roberto Simpson was in command. He later explored
Maullín River
Maullín River( es, Río Maullín) is a river of Chile located in the Los Lagos Region. The river originates as the outflow of Llanquihue Lake, and flows generally southwestward, over a number of small waterfalls, emptying into the Gulf of Coronad ...
with
Francisco Vidal Gormaz but did however not reach
Llanquihue Lake, its birthplace. Hudson and Vidal Gormaz reached only to a point he observed "three cascades" in the river. Gormaz proposed to clean the river from trunks to use it for transport of wood in benefit of the
German settlers that had already settled in the shores of
Llanquihue Lake. Hudson tried later unsuccessfully to reach the "three cascades" starting from Llanquihue Lake, and was preparing a new expedition when he was ordered instead to investigate
Roca Remolino (lit. ''"whirl rock"''), a dangerous underwater rock in
Chacao Channel
The Chacao Channel ( es, Canal de Chacao) is located in Los Lagos Region, Chile and separates Chiloé Island from mainland Chile. The channel was created during the Quaternary glaciations by successive glaciers that flowed down from the Andes ...
.
After having read ''"Sailing Directions for South America"'' by
Robert FitzRoy
Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy (5 July 1805 – 30 April 1865) was an English officer of the Royal Navy and a scientist. He achieved lasting fame as the captain of during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, FitzRoy's second expedition to Tierra de ...
Francisco Hudson realized the possibility of the existence of a route that would allow traffic through the channels of Patagonia without the need of sailing through the open sea at
Tres Montes Peninsula
The Tres Montes Peninsula ( es, Península Tres Montes, English: ''Three Hills Peninsula'') is a southwestward projection of Taitao Peninsula which in turn connects to the mainland of Chile by the narrow Isthmus of Ofqui. The peninsula is situa ...
. Sailing at the open sea in the
roaring 40s
Roaring 40s was an electricity generator formed in 2005 as a joint venture between Hydro Tasmania, Australia and Hong Kong-based China Light & Power (CLP). Roaring 40s had 13 sites in operation or in planning in Australia, India, Hong Kong and ...
was dangerous and finding such route would significantly improve the traffic between the Chilean settlement of
Punta Arenas
Punta Arenas (; historically Sandy Point in English) is the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. The city was officially renamed as Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to "Punta Are ...
in the
Straits of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and Tierra del Fuego to the south. The strait is considered the most important natural pas ...
on one hand and
Chiloé and
Central Chile
Central Chile (''Zona central'') is one of the five natural regions into which CORFO divided continental Chile in 1950. It is home to a majority of the Chilean population and includes the three largest metropolitan areas—Santiago, Valparaí ...
on the other.
In 1857 he is sent to explore the possible inner passage he had inferred from Fitz Roy's writings. He sailed off Ancud with the
brigantine
A brigantine is a two-masted sailing vessel with a fully square-rigged foremast and at least two sails on the main mast: a square topsail and a gaff sail mainsail (behind the mast). The main mast is the second and taller of the two masts.
Ol ...
''Janaqueo'' and the
sloop-of-war
In the 18th century and most of the 19th, a sloop-of-war in the Royal Navy was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. The rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above; thus, the term ''sloop-of-war'' en ...
''Emprendedora'' but had to send back ''Janaqueo'' due to its bad maintenance after many years of service. The expedition sailed thought
Moraleda Channel to
San Rafael Lagoon where they explored by foot the
Isthmus of Ofqui without finding any passage to the
San Quintín Bay of
Gulf of Penas. In this explorations he was accompanied by young German immigrant
Francisco Fonck.
After this expedition he mapped
Dalcahue Channel near his hometown and explored once again
Maullín River
Maullín River( es, Río Maullín) is a river of Chile located in the Los Lagos Region. The river originates as the outflow of Llanquihue Lake, and flows generally southwestward, over a number of small waterfalls, emptying into the Gulf of Coronad ...
with Vidal Gormaz.
Death
In 1858 he was put in command of the brigantine ''
Pizarro'' and sailed south from
Valparaíso
Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...
with the governor of Punta Arenas on board. In Punta Arenas he met his
brother-in-law
A sibling-in-law is the spouse of one's sibling, or the sibling of one's spouse, or the person who is married to the sibling of one's spouse.Cambridge Dictionaries Online.Family: non-blood relations.
More commonly, a sibling-in-law is referre ...
Martín Aguayo who was in command of the brigantine ''
Meteoro
A meteoroid () is a small rocky or metallic body in outer space.
Meteoroids are defined as objects significantly smaller than asteroids, ranging in size from grains to objects up to a meter wide. Objects smaller than this are classified as micr ...
'' and had like Hudson to sail north, so they decided to sail together. They then tried to sail through the western section of the Strait of Magellan but decided instead, due to the strong winds, to sail first eastwards and to enter the
Pacific
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...
through
Cape Horn
Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramí ...
. After having passed the
Le Maire Strait
The Le Maire Strait (''Estrecho de le Maire'') (also the Straits Lemaire) is a sea passage between Isla de los Estados and the eastern extremity of the Argentine portion of Tierra del Fuego.
History
Jacob Le Maire and Willem Schouten discov ...
the two ships separated in a storm and while the more robust ''Meteoro'' managed to sail back to Punta Arenas for reparations, ''Pizarro'' and Francisco Hudson were never seen again. On July 1, 1860, the government issued a decree where he was declared dead.
Legacy
Francisco Hudson contributed substantially to the exploration and mapping of southern Chile, improving navigation around
Chiloé Archipelago
The Chiloé Archipelago ( es, Archipiélago de Chiloé, , ) is a group of islands lying off the coast of Chile, in the Los Lagos Region. It is separated from mainland Chile by the Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and t ...
and in the Patagonian channels through his maps. His works were essential for the later inland exploration of
Aysén Region
The Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region ( es, Región de Aysén, , '), often shortened to Aysén Region or Aisén,Examples of name usage1, official regional government site refers to the region as "Región de Aysén"., Chile's of ...
by
Hans Steffen. Hudson did also outline several projects to improve fluvial and maritime traffic but most of them were never applied. Francisco Hudson had
Mount Hudson
Mount Hudson ( es, Volcán Hudson, es, Monte Hudson, label=none) is a stratovolcano in southern Chile, and the site of one of the largest eruptions in the twentieth century. The mountain itself is covered by a glacier. There is a caldera at the ...
, the most active volcano of Aysén Region is named after him as well as one of several headlands in at the entrance of
San Rafael Lagoon and the
Oceanographic and Hydrographic service of the
Chilean Navy
The Chilean Navy ( es, Armada de Chile) is the naval warfare service branch of the Chilean Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of National Defense. Its headquarters are at Edificio Armada de Chile, Valparaiso.
History
Origins and the War ...
have one of its buildings named "Don Francisco Hudson".
Sources
*Sepúlveda, Jorge
Francisco Hudson, un destacado marino poco conocido en nuestra historia ''
Revista de Marina''.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hudson, Francisco
19th-century Chilean Navy personnel
19th-century explorers
Chilean Navy officers
Chilean hydrographers
Chilean explorers
Explorers of Chile
1826 births
1859 deaths
People lost at sea
People from Chiloé Province
Chilean people of English descent