Transcript In the beginning…

In the beginning…
The first Australian Settlers arrived
in Australia in 1788.
A British sailor called Captain
Cook had arrived in Australia 18
years earlier and it had been
decided that the country was
“Terra Nullius” - literally “Land
Empty.”
In other words, the
British could claim the
land and send whoever
they liked there.
In the beginning…
The “First” Australians would be the
following people:
Embarked at Portsmouth
* Officials and passengers: 15
* Ships' crews: 323
* Marines: 247
* Marines wives and children:
46
* Convicts (males): 582
* Convicts (females): 193
* Convicts' children: 14
* Total embarked: 1420
In the beginning…
The “First” Australians would be the
following people:
Landed at Port Jackson
* Officials and passengers: 14
* Ships' crews: 306
* Marines: 245
* Marines wives and children:
54
* Convicts (males): 543
* Convicts (females): 189
* Convicts' children: 22
* Total landed: 1373
In the beginning…
Embarked at Portsmouth
The “First” Australians would be the
* Officials and passengers:
following people:
15
* Ships' crews: 323
Landed at Port Jackson
* Officials and passengers: 14
* Ships' crews: 306
* Marines: 245
* Marines wives and children:
54
* Convicts (males): 543
* Convicts (females): 189
* Convicts' children: 22
* Total landed: 1373
* Marines: 247
* Marines wives and
children: 46
* Convicts (males): 582
* Convicts (females): 193
* Convicts' children: 14
* Total embarked: 1420
During the voyage there were 22
births (13 males, 9 females), while 69
people either died, were discharged,
or deserted (61 males and 8
females).
In the beginning…
Of course, as it was, there were already people living in Australia.
The various tribes of the Aboriginal People of Australia had been living in
the country for about 40,000 to 50,000 years. Which is quite a while.
You can imagine them not being
too happy about a bunch of pale
strangers turning up and taking
their land.
This picture, an
engraving from the
1800s shows the
original Australians
kicking up a fuss as
Captain Cook arrives.
In the beginning…
What actually happened was a bit different.
A pair of Aboriginal Men came
down to meet Cook’s men as they
first set foot in Australia. The
British offered gifts, which the
Australians ignored. To be fair, a
few trinkets probably didn’t seem
that important at the time.
The British were worried
that they hadn’t taken the
gifts and fired a musket
was fired over their heads,
which wounded the older
man slightly, and he ran
towards the huts.
In the beginning…
He came back with other
men and threw spears at
Cook's men, although they
did no harm. They were
chased off after two more
rounds were fired. The
adults had left, but Cook
found several Aboriginal
children in the huts, and left
some beads with them as a
gesture of friendship.
Not a great start,
really.
What Happened After We Got
Here
The Story of Aboriginal Australia
What Happened After We Got
Here
The larger communities were worst hit,
with vast numbers of Aborigines dying.
Some tribes were practically wiped out.
What Happened After We Got
Here
The second consequence of British settlement
was appropriation of land and water resources.
The settlers took the view that Indigenous
Australians were nomads with no concept of land
ownership, who could be driven off land wanted
for farming or grazing and who would be just as
happy somewhere else. In fact the loss of
traditional lands, food sources and water
resources was usually fatal, particularly to
communities already weakened by disease.
What Happened After We Got
Here
Also, Indigenous Australians groups had a deep
spiritual and cultural connection to the land.
When they were forced out, cultural and spiritual
practices necessary to the cohesion and wellbeing of the group could not be maintained. It
would be like not being allowed to go meet your
friends in the park, or in Churches, or
restaurants. With nowhere to meet each other
for a chat or worship, societies fell apart.
What Happened After We Got
Here
1.
What were some of the main consequences for
Aboriginal People after contact with Europeans?
2.
Why was the land Aboriginal Groups lived on
so important to them?
What Happened After We Got
Here
3. What were some of the hardships Truganini had to endure?
4. What were two of Governor Arthur’s policies to help deal
with the conflict between settlers and Aborigines?
5. What was the result of declaring martial law?
What Happened After We Got
Here
Unlike in New Zealand, no treaty was ever
entered into with the indigenous peoples entitling
the Europeans to land ownership. The Europeans
just took it, claiming the Australians weren’t
really using it properly.
What Happened After We Got
Here
Another big problem for the Indigenous
Australians was that the new arrivals brought
along sex and drugs (but no rock n’ roll).
Indigenous Australians weren’t used to the
alcohol, opium and tobacco the settlers
brought and had no tolerance. European
society had used these things for hundreds of
years and had “grown up” with them. Giving
them to Aborigines was like giving them to
children.
Substance abuse has remained a chronic problem
for indigenous communities ever since.
What Happened After We Got
Here
The combination of disease, loss of land and
direct violence reduced the Aboriginal population
by an estimated 90% between 1788 and 1900.
Entire communities in the moderately fertile southern
part of the continent simply vanished without trace,
often before European settlers arrived or recorded
their existence.
The indigenous people in Tasmania were particularly hard-hit,
with the last full-blood indigenous Tasmanian, Truganini, dying
in 1876.
Truganini
Truganini was born around 1812 on Bruny Island,
south of today's Tasmanian capital Hobart. Before she
was eighteen, her mother had been murdered by
whalers, her first fiance died while saving her from
abduction, and, in 1828, her two sisters, Lowhenunhue
and Maggerleede, were abducted and taken to
Kangaroo Island, off South Australia and sold as
slaves. She soon married Woorrady; although, he
would die when she was still in her twenties.
When Lieutenant-Governor George Arthur arrived in Van Diemen's
Land in 1824, he implemented two policies to deal with the growing
conflict between settlers and the Aborigines.
First, bounties were awarded for the capture of Aboriginal adults and
children.
Truganini
At the same time, Arthur tried to establish friendly
relations to lure the aborigines into camps, where they
would be out of the way of White Settlers. He started
this campaign on Bruny Island where there had been
fewer hostilities than in other parts of Tasmania.
Truganini ended up being moved to a camp on Flinders
Island.
Not all settlers were happy about what was happening to
the land’s original inhabitants. Some non-Aboriginal
people were so horrified by what was happening to the
Indigenous people they wrote to England seeking action
to stop it, from the British Government.
Governor Arthur, declared martial law against the Aboriginal
people in 1828. This basically meant the Europeans were now
at war with the Aboriginals. Lots of massacres followed.
Truganini
Lots of histories suggest the Aborigines were
passive figures who allowed themselves to be
overrun by the Europeans. Others suggest
they were barbarians who attacked innocent
white settlers. Neither is entirely true. The
truth is more complex.
Aborigines generally greeted new arrivals in a
friendly way, taking advantage of new goods
they brought. Not understanding the European
idea of ownership, they would often ‘hunt’
cattle. Although the slow-moving cow rarely
posed a problem.
Truganini
A kind of war had broken out in areas of
settlement, particularly in Tasmania. Many
Aborigines were massacred, while Aboriginal
groups would launch ‘guerilla’ attacks on
White Settlements.
The battle in Tasmania was called the “Black
War”, in which Truganini played some part,
despite also helping Governor Arthur to reach a
settlement with some tribes.
By the time Truganini died in 1876, the Aboriginal
Population of Tasmania had been all but obliterated.
What Happened Next:
◊ By the early 20th century the indigenous
population had declined (from possibly 1
Million) to between 50,000 and 90,000. Even
those White Settlers sympathetic to their
plight assumed they would soon die out
altogether.
◊ However, by the end of World War II, birthrates were
on the rise again. Also many indigenous men had
served in the military and were among the few
Indigenous Australians to have been granted
citizenship; although they were obliged to carry
papers, known as a "dog licence".
The Original Citizens become
Citizens:
◊ Aboriginal Australians were gradually being looked
upon more kindly. At the same time, Indigenous
workers were basically paid slave wages and had no
rights as a citizen.
◊ It was 1963 before Aboriginal Australians could vote
and 1967 before they were treated as “people” under
Australian law.
◊ The 1967 referendum that allowed Aborigines to be
treated as people under Australian law saw 90% of
Australians support it.
◊ This is the largest “Yes” vote in Australian History.
◊ The Aboriginal People have yet to receive an official
apology or acknowledgement for how the white
settlers treated them.
The Original Citizens become
Citizens:
◊ What was a ‘dog licence’?
◊ Why do you think it took so long to treat Aboriginal
people as ‘people’ under Australian law?
◊ Why do you think no apology has been officially
given for how they were treated?