Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec

Who was Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec?

Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec was an 18th-century French navigator. In September 1791 he was chosen to command the Espérance on the Bruni d'Entrecasteaux expedition to find the lost expedition of Jean-François de La Pérouse. The expedition explored Australia and the South Pacific. Kermadec died of tuberculosis on 6 May 1793 at Balade in New Caledonia.

The Kermadec Islands northeast of New Zealand are named for Huon de Kermadec, as are Kermadec Trench, Huonville, the Huon Valley, and Huon River of Tasmania, and the Huon Peninsula and Huon Gulf of Papua New Guinea.

Several plants bear his name, including the Huon Pine of Tasmania, the Proteaceae genus Kermadecia of New Caledonia, and the tree Metrosideros kermadecensis of the Kermadec Islands.