James Cook's third and final voyage (12 July 1776 – 4 October 1780) was a British attempt to discover the Northwest Passage between the Atlantic ocean and the Pacific coast of North America. The attempt failed and Cook was killed at Hawaii in a violent dispute with the local inhabitants.
The ostensible purpose of the voyage was to return Omai, a young man from Raiatea, to his homeland, but the British Admiralty used this as a cover for their plan to send Cook on a voyage to find the Northwest Passage, should it exist. HMS Resolution, to be commanded by Cook, and HMS Discovery, commanded by Charles Clerke, were prepared for the voyage which started from Plymouth in 1776.