Dumont d’Urville’s Astrolabe and Zélée enter the lagoon; after a canoe attack near Fefan the French kill ten or twelve Chuukese.

What happened

The two French corvettes anchored off Siis, and for four days survey parties explored Fefan and nearby islands while trading went on aboard; the French found the men helpful but cautious. Then a survey launch was pelted with fruit and attacked with spears between Fefan and Tonowas (Dublon), and the French fired on the canoes. Dumont d’Urville concluded that “the reputation of the Carolines has been tarnished.”

Why it matters

Hezel calls d’Urville’s report the fullest and most reliable account of Chuuk until missionaries arrived in the 1880s.