Many people know the first British settlement in Australia was a penal colony, but few know the details. Well, it was on May 13, 1787, that Captain Arthur Phillip set sail for Aussie with a cargo of convicts.
Captain Phillip left Portsmouth in command of eleven ships, (known as the First Fleet), carrying over 1,000 prisoners. This followed orders issued in London, for the British to establish a penal colony in what is now the state of New South Wales.
A week after arriving in Australia, the fleet sailed to Port Jackson, and anchored in a small cove. Captain Phillip named this Sydney Cove, in honour of the British Home Secretary, Lord Sydney. The date was January 26, which is still celebrated as Australia Day.
The voyage was a massive, yet successful undertaking, as no vessels were lost despite a 252-day trip of over 15,000 miles. Although no accurate figures are available, there were a total of some 1,500 persons on the fleet, of whom 48 died before reaching Australia. Considering that they had encountered a variety of health risks, including smallpox, that is a surprisingly low number.
So, there we have the birth of the land Down Under.
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