The life of the English explorer is not only crowned by the naming of Australia - "Austral-Land" - but also shaped by his acquaintance with many other great explorers: Flinders sails twice under William Bligh, and with the naval surgeon George Bass, he reaches the southeast coast of Australia. During an expedition in 1801, he is supported by the botanist Robert Brown and his nephew, the later polar explorer John Franklin. Thanks to his sea voyages to Australia, he becomes the first person to circumnavigate Australia and can meticulously fill in the large white spots on the map of Australia with color. His travels in the Pacific and along the Australian coast are eventful and culminate on the return journey in an arrest by France, which is at war with England, and more than six years of imprisonment in Mauritius.