17 April 1833

Ten and a half manuscript pages relating to life as an astronomer at the Cape. Thomas Henderson FRSE FRS FRAS (28 December 1798 – 23 November 1844) was a Scottish astronomer and mathematician noted for being the first person to measure the distance to Alpha Centauri, the major component of the nearest stellar system to Earth, the first to determine the parallax of a fixed star, and for being the first Astronomer Royal for Scotland.

Sir Francis Beaufort KCB FRS FRGS FRAS MRIA (27 May 1774 – 17 December 1857) was an Irish hydrographer, the creator of the Beaufort cipher and the Beaufort scale, and a naval officer.

In 1831, a Scientific Branch of the Admiralty was formed, which as well as the Hydrographic Department included the great astronomical observatories at Greenwich, England, and the Cape of Good Hope, Africa, and the Nautical Almanac and Chronometer Offices, and Beaufort was responsible for the administration.[11]: 195  Beaufort directed some of the major maritime explorations and experiments of that period. He played a leading role in the search for the explorer, Sir John Franklin, who was lost during his last polar voyage to search for the legendary Northwest Passage.

185mm x 228mm

R12,500