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James Cook (7 November O.S. 27 October] 1728 - 14 February 1779) was an English explorer, navigator and cartographer. He was a captain in the British Royal Navy. During his three voyages to the Pacific he achieved the first European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands. His was the first to record the circumnavigation of New Zealand. Cook died in a fight with Hawaiians during his third exploratory voyage in the Pacific in 1779.