Trim's statue by John Cornwell behind Matthew Flinders's own in Sydney, AustraliaPlaque dedicated to Trim at Mitchell Library, SydneyTrim. Flinders' faithful boat cat. Port Lincoln, South Australia
Trim was born in 1799 aboard the ship HMS Reliance on a voyage from the Cape of Good Hope to Botany Bay.[1] The kitten fell overboard, but managed to swim back to the vessel and climb aboard by scaling a rope; taking note of his strong survival instinct and intelligence, Flinders and the crew made him their favourite.[2]
Trim sailed with Flinders on HMS Investigator on his voyage of circumnavigation around the Australian mainland[3][4] and survived the shipwreck of HMS Porpoise on Wreck Reef in 1803.[4] When Flinders was accused of spying and imprisoned by the French in Mauritius on his return voyage to England, Trim shared his captivity until his unexplained disappearance,[5] which Flinders attributed to his having been stolen and eaten by a hungry slave.[6]
Descriptionedit
Trim was a bicolour cat, being black with white paws, chin and chest. He was named after the butler in Laurence Sterne's novel Tristram Shandy, because Flinders considered him to be a faithful and affectionate friend.[2] During his imprisonment, Flinders wrote a biographical tribute to Trim in which he described him as "one of the finest animals I ever saw... [his] robe was a clear jet black, with the exception of his four feet, which seemed to have been dipped in snow and his under lip, which rivaled them in whiteness. He had also a white star on his breast."[2]
Legacyedit
Flinders wrote of Trim while still captive on the Isle de France in 1809.[7]
In 1996, a bronze statue of Trim by sculptor John Cornwell was erected on a window ledge of the Mitchell Library in Sydney, directly behind a statue of his owner that was erected following the donation of Flinders' personal papers to the Library by his grandson in 1925. The popularity of the statue has since led to the development of a range of Trim merchandise by the State Library of New South Wales.[8] The Library's cafe is also named after the cat.[9]
The plaque under it says:
TO THE MEMORY OF TRIM The best and most illustrious of his race The most affectionate of friends, faithful of servants, and best of creatures He made the tour of the globe, and a voyage to Australia, which he circumnavigated, and was ever the delight and pleasure of his fellow voyagers Written by Matthew Flinders in memory of his cat Memorial donated by the North Shore Historical Society
which is a part of the epitaph that Flinders had promised Trim.[10]
Trim also features on the first statue of Flinders to be erected in England, which can be found in Donington, Lincolnshire, the birthplace of Flinders, and where it is planned that he will be reburied.
Trim, the boat cat, with Flinders. Port Lincoln, South Australia
Courtenay, Bryce (2002). Matthew Flinders' Cat. New York: Viking. ISBN0-670-91061-9.
Flinders, Matthew (1977). Trim: Being the True Story of a Brave Seafaring Cat. London: Collins. ISBN0-00-185028-8.
Flinders, Matthew (2019). Trim, the Cartographer's Cat. London: Adlard Coles. ISBN9781472967220.
Fenton, Corinne (2019). A Cat Called Trim. Sydney. ISBN978-1760631840.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Referencesedit
^Higgitt, Rebekah (18 June 2014). "Matthew Flinders bicentenary: statue unveiled to the most famous navigator you've probably never heard of". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
^ abc"FLI/11 Matthew Flinders' biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 (FLI11) Page 1". flinders.rmg.co.uk. National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^"FLI/11 Matthew Flinders' biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 (FLI11) Page 6". flinders.rmg.co.uk. National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^ ab"FLI/11 Matthew Flinders' biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 (FLI11) Page 7". flinders.rmg.co.uk. National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^"Matthew Flinders (1774-1814)". Slsa.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
^Matthew Flinders (26 April 2012). Terra Australis: Matthew Flinders' Great Adventures in the Circumnavigattion of Australia. Text Publishing Company. pp. 30–. ISBN978-1-921922-40-4.
^"Biographical tribute to Trim the Cat, by Matthew Flinders, Isle de France Dec 1809". collections.rmg.co.uk. Royal Museums Greenwich. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^"Gifts: Trim - Matthew Flinders cat". sl.nsw.gov.au. State Library of New South Wales. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^"State Library of NSW". lonelyplanet.com. Lonely Planet. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^"The Flinders Papers: FLI/11 Matthew Flinders' biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 (FLI11) Page 8". flinders.rmg.co.uk. National Maritime Museum. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
^"Matthew Flinders Memorial Website – Memorial Statue".
^"Trim, The Cartographer's Cat". lincolncathedral.com. Lincoln Cathedral. Retrieved 30 July 2021. ... and one (statue) in the Seaman's Chapel right here in Lincoln Cathedral.
Wikisource has original text related to this article:
A biographical tribute to the memory of Trim
Trim the Ship's Cat
Fictional circumnavigational log.
Review of "Matthew Flinders' Cat"
Purr 'n' Fur: Matthew Flinders' cat, Trim
Trim the Cat. State Library of NSW
A biographical tribute to the memory of Trim / by Matthew Flinders ; illustrated by Annette Macarthur-OnslowFlinders, Matthew, 1774–1814
April 11, 2024
trim, trim, 1799, 1804, ship, accompanied, matthew, flinders, voyages, circumnavigate, coastline, australia, 1801, 1803, trimstatue, trim, with, matthew, flinders, donington, lincolnshire, flinders, birthplacespeciesfelis, catusbreedmixedsexmaleborn1799at, sea. Trim 1799 1804 was a ship s cat who accompanied Matthew Flinders on his voyages to circumnavigate and map the coastline of Australia in 1801 1803 TrimStatue of Trim with Matthew Flinders in Donington Lincolnshire Flinders birthplaceSpeciesFelis catusBreedMixedSexMaleBorn1799At seaDied1804 aged 4 5 MauritiusNation fromEnglandOccupationShip s cat companionEmployerMatthew FlindersKnown forAccompanying Flinders on trips between England and Australia circumnavigation of AustraliaAppearanceBicolour black with white paws chin and a white star on chest Named afterCharacter from Tristram ShandyTrim s statue by John Cornwell behind Matthew Flinders s own in Sydney AustraliaPlaque dedicated to Trim at Mitchell Library SydneyTrim Flinders faithful boat cat Port Lincoln South Australia Contents 1 Biography 2 Description 3 Legacy 4 See also 5 Further reading 6 References 7 External linksBiography editTrim was born in 1799 aboard the ship HMS Reliance on a voyage from the Cape of Good Hope to Botany Bay 1 The kitten fell overboard but managed to swim back to the vessel and climb aboard by scaling a rope taking note of his strong survival instinct and intelligence Flinders and the crew made him their favourite 2 Trim sailed with Flinders on HMS Investigator on his voyage of circumnavigation around the Australian mainland 3 4 and survived the shipwreck of HMS Porpoise on Wreck Reef in 1803 4 When Flinders was accused of spying and imprisoned by the French in Mauritius on his return voyage to England Trim shared his captivity until his unexplained disappearance 5 which Flinders attributed to his having been stolen and eaten by a hungry slave 6 Description editTrim was a bicolour cat being black with white paws chin and chest He was named after the butler in Laurence Sterne s novel Tristram Shandy because Flinders considered him to be a faithful and affectionate friend 2 During his imprisonment Flinders wrote a biographical tribute to Trim in which he described him as one of the finest animals I ever saw his robe was a clear jet black with the exception of his four feet which seemed to have been dipped in snow and his under lip which rivaled them in whiteness He had also a white star on his breast 2 Legacy editFlinders wrote of Trim while still captive on the Isle de France in 1809 7 In 1996 a bronze statue of Trim by sculptor John Cornwell was erected on a window ledge of the Mitchell Library in Sydney directly behind a statue of his owner that was erected following the donation of Flinders personal papers to the Library by his grandson in 1925 The popularity of the statue has since led to the development of a range of Trim merchandise by the State Library of New South Wales 8 The Library s cafe is also named after the cat 9 The plaque under it says TO THE MEMORY OF TRIM The best and most illustrious of his race The most affectionate of friends faithful of servants and best of creatures He made the tour of the globe and a voyage to Australia which he circumnavigated and was ever the delight and pleasure of his fellow voyagers Written by Matthew Flinders in memory of his cat Memorial donated by the North Shore Historical Society which is a part of the epitaph that Flinders had promised Trim 10 Trim also features on the first statue of Flinders to be erected in England which can be found in Donington Lincolnshire the birthplace of Flinders and where it is planned that he will be reburied nbsp Trim the boat cat with Flinders Port Lincoln South AustraliaIn addition a large bronze statue of Matthew and Trim 11 stands at Euston Railway Station in London near where he was originally buried A cast of the same statue is in Port Lincoln South Australia and another cast of the same statue is also at the Flinders University campus in Adelaide South Australia A smaller version is on display in Lincoln Cathedral 12 In Australian author Bryce Courtenay s 2002 novel Matthew Flinders Cat both the cat and the library statue feature as major characters See also editList of individual catsFurther reading editCourtenay Bryce 2002 Matthew Flinders Cat New York Viking ISBN 0 670 91061 9 Flinders Matthew 1977 Trim Being the True Story of a Brave Seafaring Cat London Collins ISBN 0 00 185028 8 Flinders Matthew 2019 Trim the Cartographer s Cat London Adlard Coles ISBN 9781472967220 Fenton Corinne 2019 A Cat Called Trim Sydney ISBN 978 1760631840 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link References edit Higgitt Rebekah 18 June 2014 Matthew Flinders bicentenary statue unveiled to the most famous navigator you ve probably never heard of The Guardian Retrieved 11 February 2017 a b c FLI 11 Matthew Flinders biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 FLI11 Page 1 flinders rmg co uk National Maritime Museum Retrieved 24 August 2018 FLI 11 Matthew Flinders biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 FLI11 Page 6 flinders rmg co uk National Maritime Museum Retrieved 24 August 2018 a b FLI 11 Matthew Flinders biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 FLI11 Page 7 flinders rmg co uk National Maritime Museum Retrieved 24 August 2018 Matthew Flinders 1774 1814 Slsa sa gov au Retrieved 11 February 2017 Matthew Flinders 26 April 2012 Terra Australis Matthew Flinders Great Adventures in the Circumnavigattion of Australia Text Publishing Company pp 30 ISBN 978 1 921922 40 4 Biographical tribute to Trim the Cat by Matthew Flinders Isle de France Dec 1809 collections rmg co uk Royal Museums Greenwich Retrieved 24 August 2018 Gifts Trim Matthew Flinders cat sl nsw gov au State Library of New South Wales Retrieved 24 August 2018 State Library of NSW lonelyplanet com Lonely Planet Retrieved 24 August 2018 The Flinders Papers FLI 11 Matthew Flinders biographical tribute to his cat Trim 1809 FLI11 Page 8 flinders rmg co uk National Maritime Museum Retrieved 24 August 2018 Matthew Flinders Memorial Website Memorial Statue Trim The Cartographer s Cat lincolncathedral com Lincoln Cathedral Retrieved 30 July 2021 and one statue in the Seaman s Chapel right here in Lincoln Cathedral External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Trim cat category nbsp Wikisource has original text related to this article A biographical tribute to the memory of Trim Trim the Ship s Cat Fictional circumnavigational log Review of Matthew Flinders Cat Purr n Fur Matthew Flinders cat Trim Trim the Cat State Library of NSW A biographical tribute to the memory of Trim by Matthew Flinders illustrated by Annette Macarthur OnslowFlinders Matthew 1774 1814 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Trim cat amp oldid 1191319053, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
