Early Settlement of Australia

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Early Settlement of Australia
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Why choose Australia?

• Place to dump convicts or secure a supply base
  for the British Navy in Asia-Pacific?
• The British government had the largest Navy and
  empire in the world, and were scared other
  European powers might challenge their claims

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World Map European Empire
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Good excuse

• Australia provided a safe harbour as well as wood
  and flax for fixing sails and ships
• Transporting convicts to American colonies and
  then Australia provided England with cheap labour
• Convicts could work for their freedom and help
  England consolidate their claim on the valuable
  Australia
• So Australia seemed a place to kill three birds
  with one stone very handy!

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The First Fleet

• The first fleet of ships arrived in Sydney in
  1788, with 11 ships carrying 212 marines,
  officials and their families, 579 male convicts
  and 192 female convicts.
• They found Australian conditions hard, with the
  weather, the bush and soil not helping to
  establish a settlement

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Sydney 1789
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HMS Sirius
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The official version of the British arrival in
Australia
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Governor Leader of the colony

• Arthur Phillip was the first governor of NSW for
  4 years. He was appointed to run a prison not a
  settlement. He had to
• Maintain law and order
• Grant land for cultivation
• Maintain good relations with the aborigines
• Erect forts for protection
• Control Commerce and spending
• Make all decisions for the colony
• Explore the coast for further settlement

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Early Problems of NSW

• Governor Phillip faced many problems
• Lack of women to control men
• Lack of skilled workers (builders and farmers)
• Growing enough food to stop scurvy
• Housing had to be built from scratch
• Transport took months to sail anywhere!
• Aborigines resented invasion of their land

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Questions to do NOW (or will have to be finished
for homework)

1. Who appointed Phillip as Governor, and what were
   his responsibilities?
2. What was the main advantage of having one person
   in charge of the settlement?
3. What problems did Phillip face in the early
   months of settlement? Explain each problem in
   depth.