Genealogy and How

by Jim Schneider

Captain Arthur Phillip (1786 portrait by Francis Wheatley, National Portrait Gallery, London)

In 1770, Captain James Cook began the daunting task of mapping the east coast of Australia. Up until that time, that section of Australia was unknown to the European world. In fact, during his travels, Captain Cook not only began mapping the area, but he claimed eastern Australia for King George III on August 22, 1779.

So with this beginning, the First Fleet was dispatched. It comprised of 11 ships and over 1,300 people. In January of 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip and his cargo of British prisoners, landed at Port Jackson, site of the what is now Sydney.

Until the U.S. War of Independence, England had sent their prisoners to America. American independence halted that and Britain decided to begin the practice of sending their prisoners to Australia. So, the 11 ships under the command of Captain Phillip had their hulls brimming with English convicts.

Since the new settlers had little knowledge of the land or climate and how to survive on it, they found themselves grossly unprepared for life there. They knew nothing of the plant or animal life. Also, they had to contend with the hostile Aboriginal population.

As a result of an unknown and hostile environment, and due to poor soil conditions in the area, food shortages were severe. These early pioneers had to contend with near starvation issues and everyone eagerly awaited the arrival of the Second Fleet.

The Second Fleet arrived in 1790. Although it provided some badly needed food and supplies, the Second Fleet also brought with it problems of its own. The First Fleet had some 48 people who died on the voyage. This number rose to 278 on the voyage of the Second Fleet.

In fact, since sickness and disease were so prevalent on the Second Fleet, it became known as the "Death Fleet". The horrible conditions onboard the ships were largely due to the lack of safeguards which had been in place for transporting prisoners to America were absent on the long voyage to Australia.

Although the British government did have regulations for the transport of convicts, these regulations were mostly ignored. Prisoners were to be fed, given access to fresh air, cleaned and fumigated daily, but due to either ignorance or inefficiency on the part of the crew, the precautions were neglected.

Upon the ships return to England, an inquest into the treatment of the prisoners was held to determine who was to blame for the high rate of death on the voyage. Although charges were brought against the ships' masters and surgeons, only Donald Trial, master of the ship Neptune and his chief mate were ever tried. All of the other culprits disappeared before any arrest could be made.

In spite of these and other problems, however, the small settlement which was to become Sydney grew and prospered. Australia Day is celebrated on January 26 to commemorate the founding of what is now Australia.