Aboriginal Australians In The 18th Century

On 13 of May 1787, the fleet of 11 ships set sail from Portsmouth, England. Led by Captain Arthur Philip, the historic convoy, which later became known as the First Fleet, carried officers, crew, marines and their families, and convicts from Britain to a distant and little known land on the far side of the world. Around the end of the eighteenth century, English towns and cities were overflowing with people, many of whom could not find work. Stealing and other criminal activities resulted and became a way of life, taking the place of work. The British government had no choice but to issue more policemen and tougher penalties; therefore the convicts were transported, never to return to Britain. The Aboriginal Australians had lived in Australia
Aboriginal Australians were defined to be British subjects and entitled to the protection of British law. However, the reality was the exact opposite. As the frontiers of settlement expanded more and more Aboriginal land was taken and violence often erupted. As shown in source 4, “the settlers had no idea that some places were sacred. The conflicts that resulted were often cruel and violent…’. The relationship became hostile when Aboriginal people realised that the colonisers would seriously disturb their lives by taking away land, natural food sources and the order of nomadic life, as depicted in sources 1 and 2. The clashes increased when Macquarie became governor in 1810. Governor Macquarie invited them “…relinquish their wandering, idle and predatory habits of life, and to become industrious and useful members of a community where they will find protection and encouragement’ as shown in source 3. He then decided that the best way to treat the aborigines was to civilise them. After all his failures, he then made laws to place Aboriginal people under the British control, where it was permitted to shoot aborigines if they didn’t obey