Pierre Bernard Milius owes his fame to the Nicolas Baudin expedition of 1800–1804.  On 19 October 1800, Baudin and his large group of scientists left Le Havre in two ships, the Géographe and the Naturaliste to survey the coast of New Holland and the southern part of New Guinea and conduct scientific investigations as well as collect living and preserved specimens of plants and animals. Milius was promoted to commander of the Géographe following the death of Baudin.

The journal of Pierre Bernard Milius is a rare opportunity to bring to life an important but lesser-known chapter in the history of the discovery and exploration of Australia.

Milius first touched land in Australia in Geographe Bay in the south-west, and then in the Swan River district where he took a longboat ashore and was wrecked on Cottesloe Beach. Here he repaired his boat using local resources such as ‘stringy bark for caulking’ and resin and gum for sealing the seams. At Cottesloe, Milius noted children’s footprints in the sand and shell-fish debris that pointed to the presence of Aboriginal people.