Subscribe in a reader
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Remembering the passing of the First Fleet
Furious battles, patriotic displays and frenetic trading, the harbour of Santa Cruz has certainly witnessed some sights over the past five hundred years or so. But when it came to the one week visit of the First Fleet – exactly 219 years ago this month – it must have been quite an experience.
The First Fleet set sail from Portsmouth on Sunday, May 13 1787, first port of call, Tenerife and it would have been with no little relief that on June 3, land hove into view in the majestic shape of Mount Teide and the Anaga mountains. It was a welcome pause on what was to be the longest voyage ever attempted up to then by such a large group of civilians.
The agrarian revolution and the population explosion in British cities had resulted in an increase in crime. The American Revolution had put paid to the off-loading of convicts on the other side of the Atlantic. The only way, as the authorities saw it, to ease the overcrowding of prisons was to send their occupants to establish a penal colony in the land discovered by Captain Cook.
The fleet was in Santa Cruz for a week, taking on water and provisions, providing locals with trade and plenty to talk about. On the morning of June 10, 1787, with a fair wind behind them, the fleet sailed out of Santa Cruz bay. They arrived in another, Botany Bay, on January 18 1788.
Remembering the passing of the First Fleet
Related resources:
Biography of George Raper 1769–1797
First Fleet Artwork Collection
William Dawes - This website is dedicated to William Dawes, 1762 - 1836, Marine, surveyor / astronomer on the “First Fleet” to Australia, teacher, Governor of Sierra Leone, and missionary to Antigua.
First Fleet 1788 Story - Between 1788 and 1850 the English sent over 162,000 convicts to Australia in 806 ships. The first eleven of these ships are today known as the First Fleet and contained the convicts and marines that are now acknowledged as the Founders of Australia. This is their story.
First Fleet - The First Fleet is the name given to the 11 ships which sailed from the United Kingdom in May 1787 to establish the first European colony in New South Wales. It was a convict settlement, marking the beginnings of transportation to Australia. The fleet of 11 ships was led by Captain (later Admiral) Arthur Phillip.
