Settlement
The British empire's settlement of Australia began as a way of punishment for the overflowing convicts and prisoners in European prisons. Australia started as a penal colony. Before the American Revolution, Britain would send their excess convicts to America, but after the Declaration of Independence in 1776 this was no longer possible. Australia was also a way for the British empire to expand their already large empire. This is because during the time of the end of the 18th and into the 19th century was a time of imperial expansion for all of the empires that had been developed at the time. Britain wanted to maintain its role as the leading seafaring and colonial nation. having a colony in the 'Great South Land' was a good way to secure this position. The settlement of Australia was also a chance for Europeans to start new lives in a place of new beginnings. Life in great Britain at the time was 'great' for the rich and powerful. They had everything they needed. But for the poor life was hard. They would have to work hard every day earning way bellow the bare minimum and only just managing their families. Men and women would be sent to prison for stealing a loaf of bread to feed their families. So for them Australia was a new start. Australia not only helped with people but it helped with Europe's growing Industrial revolution. Because of the Industrial revolution, Europe's land was getting covered in factories, mines as well as all the new buildings that came with the revolution. Therefore Australia offered land for Europe's growing civilization. Land for not only the wealthy but the poor as well. The land that Australia had to offer also allowed for the Europeans to grow cotton which increased in demand as Europe was expanding and evolving. Australia's settlement started with the First Fleet. The first fleet compromised of 11 ships that sailed from Portsmouth on 13th May 1787. It was run by the government of Britain and not private slavers. The first fleet arrived at Botany bay on the 18th January 1788. However the area was declared unsuitable for settlement so they kept sailing for another 8 days and arrived at Sydney Cove. The first fleet's ships' conditions were very crowed. Convicts spent most of their time locked together with chains or in crowded hatches. Down in the hulls of the ships were very stuffy, dark and disease ridden. The diseases came from the ships infestations of rat's cockroaches and fleas. During the journey because of the conditions disease could easily spread. On the other hand Captain Arthur Phillip was concerned about the convicts health and wellbeing. To help with the darkness he let the convicts have regular periods of time on deck to get fresh air and daily light. The convicts on the first fleet were lucky in the fact that they got feed everyday and had access to a litre of water per day for themselves. The second fleet arrived in Sydney in 1770. It was undertaken by private slavers. They were paid a fixed sum before hand that and didn't care wether they survived or not. The conditions on board were horrific, nearly 30% of the convicts died and 50% became sick from the health conditions like scurvy, dysentery and fever. The authorities were shocked by what had happened to the convicts and over the following 10 years rules were put in place that made sure all convicts being transported to Australia were kept safe and healthy. Convicts continued to be sent to the eastern colonies between 1788 and 1850. As convicts they had many assigned jobs and tasks to do. Some of them included making buildings like local government buildings and roads. Even after convicts had completed their time most of them still stayed in Australia because of the wide range of opportunities it granted people.
|
Source Analysis
1) What can I see?
-A British flag on a pole
-The ocean
-People
-Gum Trees
-Boats
-Tree stumps
-Tents
-Small Barrels
-Grass
-Clouds
-Rifles
-Swords
2) What can I infer?, I can infer that.....
-They are Europeans
-The British army is well funded, organised and care about their presentation (Clothing, Weapons)
-The weapons that they have could be musket guns
-The soldiers in blue have more duties and are the leaders
3) What questions do I have?
-Where are they in Australia?
-What is the boat in the background?
-Who is the man dressed in white
-Could that be a group of convicts in their uniforms in the background (Bottom, right)
4) What does this tell me about society at the time?
-As the Europeans were settling everything was going well
-A British flag on a pole
-The ocean
-People
-Gum Trees
-Boats
-Tree stumps
-Tents
-Small Barrels
-Grass
-Clouds
-Rifles
-Swords
2) What can I infer?, I can infer that.....
-They are Europeans
-The British army is well funded, organised and care about their presentation (Clothing, Weapons)
-The weapons that they have could be musket guns
-The soldiers in blue have more duties and are the leaders
3) What questions do I have?
-Where are they in Australia?
-What is the boat in the background?
-Who is the man dressed in white
-Could that be a group of convicts in their uniforms in the background (Bottom, right)
4) What does this tell me about society at the time?
-As the Europeans were settling everything was going well