Torres Strait
The first known European to sail through the strait was Luis Váez de Torres, a Spanish or Portuguese sailor. He was second-in-command of the Spanish expedition led by the Portuguese Pedro Fernandez de Quirós who sailed from Peru to the South Pacific in 1605. After Quiros's ship went back to Mexico, Torres kept going to the Moluccas and then to Manila. He sailed along the south coast of New Guinea. He may have seen Cape York on the Australian mainland, but there is no evidence to prove this. Torres wrote a letter to the Spanish king about his discoveries but this was kept secret until 1762.