Leslie Massey
Australia's history is steeped in convictism, with the country being used as a penal colony by the British for 80 years, from 1788 to 1868. During this period, an estimated 162,000 convicts were transported from Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia, with the greatest number arriving in the 1820s and '30s. The majority of these convicts were men, although there were also around 25,000 women. Most of the offenders had been convicted of non-violent crimes, such as theft, and were sentenced to hard labour. Today, it is estimated that about 20% of Australians are descendants of convicts, and attitudes towards this convict era have evolved from shame to celebration, with many Australians proud to discover a convict in their lineage.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of convicts transported from Britain and Ireland to Australia | 162,000 |
| Date range of convict transportation | 1788-1868 |
| Percentage of Australian population descended from convicts | 20% |
| Number of Britons with convict ancestry | 2 million |
| Year convict transportation to Australia peaked | 1833 |
| Number of convicts transported to Australia in 1833 | 7,000 |
| Main purpose of convict transportation | To relieve overcrowding in British prisons |
| Average convict sentence length | 7 years |
| Colony established by the British as a penal colony in 1788 | New South Wales |
| Premier site in convict Australia | Sydney, NSW |
| Convict with literary works to his name | Frank the Poet |
| Famous convict novel | For the Term of His Natural Life (1874) |
| Famous convict in fiction | Abel Magwitch in Great Expectations |
| Convict-era celebrity | Ned Kelly |
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What You'll Learn
- The First Fleet: 11 convict ships set sail for Botany Bay in 1787
- The penal colonies: New South Wales, Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania), and Swan River (Western Australia)
- Convict labour: Working from sunrise to sunset, convicts worked on government farms and for free settlers
- Convict treatment: From whippings to solitary confinement, convicts faced harsh punishments for misbehaviour
- Legacy and culture: The convict era inspired art, literature, and film, shaping Australia's national character
The First Fleet: 11 convict ships set sail for Botany Bay in 1787
The history of Australia is closely tied to its past as a penal colony. Between 1788 and 1868, the British penal system transported about 162,000 convicts from Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia. The First Fleet, consisting of 11 vessels, was a central part of this convict transportation system.
On 13 May 1787, the First Fleet set sail from Portsmouth, England, towards Botany Bay in Australia. The fleet was comprised of two Royal Navy vessels, three storeships, and six convict transports, carrying over 1,400 convicts, marines, sailors, colonial officials, and free settlers. The journey covered more than 24,000 kilometres and took over 250 days.
The fleet arrived at Botany Bay on 18 January 1788. However, Governor Arthur Phillip rejected Botany Bay as a suitable location for the new colony due to its exposed nature, shallow waters, and lack of fresh water. Instead, he chose Port Jackson, about 12 kilometres to the north, which offered sheltered anchorages, fresh water, and fertile soil. The fleet sailed to Port Jackson on 26 January 1788, and this date is now celebrated as Australia Day, marking the beginning of British settlement in Australia.
The First Fleet encountered Indigenous Australians, specifically the Cadigal people of the Botany Bay area, upon their arrival. The establishment of the colony at Port Jackson, later named Sydney, marked the beginning of European colonisation in Australia and the displacement of Indigenous peoples from their lands. The colony suffered a high mortality rate initially due to starvation from food shortages and the lack of skilled farmers and domesticated livestock.
The First Fleet was a significant event in the history of Australia, as it represented the beginning of mass convict transportation and British colonisation in the region. It is estimated that about 20% of the Australian population today are descended from convicts transported to Australia during this period.
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The penal colonies: New South Wales, Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania), and Swan River (Western Australia)
Between 1788 and 1868, about 162,000 convicts were transported from Great Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia. The first fleet of eleven convict ships set sail for Botany Bay, arriving on 20 January 1788 to found Sydney, New South Wales, the first European settlement on the continent. Initially, the colony suffered from a high mortality rate due to starvation and shortages of food.
New South Wales was the premier site of convict Australia, and it was also the first penal colony, established in 1788 and lasting until 1840. The colony was characterised by conflict between Aboriginal Australians and convict and former convict stockmen, who clashed over resources and violently competed for land. In New South Wales, Aboriginal people were rewarded for returning runaway convicts.
Van Diemen's Land, later known as Tasmania, was the second major convict colony, lasting from 1803 to 1853. The colony was established at Sullivans Cove (Hobart) with a further outpost at Patersonia (Launceston) in the north of the island. The settlement at Sullivans Cove was established in 1804, but convicts did not arrive regularly until 1818. The colony was the site of the VDL Black Line, a deliberate attempt at ethnic cleansing, which swept the country to capture and corral the island's warring peoples.
The Swan River Colony, founded in 1829, was originally intended to be a colony for free settlers. However, in 1850, it became a penal colony when the failing settlement requested an injection of convict labourers. During the period of direct transportation from 1850 to 1868, 9,668 convicts were transported to the colony on 43 convict ships. The convicts were referred to as "Exiles" or "Pentonvillians" and were allowed to work for pay within the district to which they were assigned.
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Convict labour: Working from sunrise to sunset, convicts worked on government farms and for free settlers
Between 1788 and 1868, the British penal system transported about 162,000 convicts from Great Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia. The majority of convicts were from England and Wales, with a large contingent of Irish people (24%) and a smaller number of Scots (5%). Convicts were transported as punishment for crimes committed in Britain and Ireland, although some had committed no crime and were political prisoners. Many were transported for what we would now consider minor offences, such as theft, fraud, and violence.
Convict labour was a crucial aspect of the colonial project in Australia. Convicts were sent to Australia to work from sunrise to sunset, six days a week. Their labour was used to build roads, bridges, and public buildings in the new colony. The colonial administration viewed this hard labour as a form of punishment, but also as an opportunity for redemption through "honest sweat". Convicts lived under strict rules, and breaking these regulations could result in harsh punishments such as whippings, leg irons, or solitary confinement.
When the first free settlers arrived in New South Wales in 1793, convicts were also sent to work on their farms. Free settlers could petition the government to assign convicts to their farms. Convicts could be assigned to private individuals as a form of indentured labour, and they could also be set to work creating infrastructure for the convict system itself, such as the Convict Establishment in Fremantle, Western Australia.
By the 1830s, only about 6% of convicts were locked up, with the majority working for the government or free settlers. Well-behaved convicts could earn special permission to work for wages and earn their own living. Convicts who served their sentences could be granted a ticket of leave, conditional pardon, or absolute pardon. Once emancipated, most ex-convicts stayed in Australia and joined the free settlers, with some even rising to prominent positions.
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Convict treatment: From whippings to solitary confinement, convicts faced harsh punishments for misbehaviour
Australia was once a country of convicts, with about 162,000 convicts transported from Great Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia between 1788 and 1868. The First Fleet of eleven convict ships set sail for Botany Bay, arriving on 20 January 1788 to found Sydney, New South Wales, the first European settlement on the continent. Today, it is estimated that 20% of the Australian population are descendants of people transported as convicts.
Convict treatment in Australia involved harsh punishments for misbehaviour, including whippings and solitary confinement. The convict ballad "Moreton Bay" details the brutal punishments meted out by commandant Patrick Logan and his death at the hands of Aboriginal people. Convicts were either retained by the government for public works or assigned to private individuals as a form of indentured labour. They faced inhumane treatment, with limited oversight.
In the early 1840s, the Probation System was introduced, where convicts initially spent around two years in public works gangs outside the main settlements before being allowed to work for wages within a set district. Convicts who were well-behaved could be granted a ticket of leave, providing some freedom. At the end of their sentence, they were issued a Certificate of Freedom.
Solitary confinement was also used as a punishment for convicts. In Western Australia, the law allows for up to 23 hours of solitary confinement for prisoners, which has been deemed ""cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment" by the UN special rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment or punishment.
The treatment of convicts in Australia was a dark chapter in the country's history, involving mass exile, coerced labour, invasion, dispossession, and genocide. It has been a source of shame and cultural cringe for some Australians, but attitudes have become more accepting in recent times, with many now celebrating their convict ancestry.
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Legacy and culture: The convict era inspired art, literature, and film, shaping Australia's national character
Between 1788 and 1868, the British penal system transported about 162,000 convicts from Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia. The legacy of this convict era has been explored and celebrated in Australian art, literature, and film, shaping the country's national character.
Literature
The poems of Frank the Poet are among the few surviving literary works written by a convict while still incarcerated. His best-known work is "A Convict's Tour of Hell", a version of the convict ballad "Moreton Bay", which details the brutal punishments meted out by commandant Patrick Logan. Other convict ballads include "Jim Jones at Botany Bay" and "Botany Bay", which describes the sadness felt by convicts forced to leave their loved ones in England.
The convict era has inspired many famous novels, including Marcus Clarke's "For the Term of His Natural Life" (1874), followed by John Boyle O'Reilly's "Moondyne" (1879). "The Broad Arrow" by Caroline Woolmer Leakey was one of the first novels to depict the convict experience, featuring a female convict as its protagonist. Thomas Keneally explores the convict era in his novels "Bring Larks and Heroes" (1967) and "The Playmaker" (1987). Convictism is also a theme in Bryce Courtenay's "Australian trilogy": "The Potato Factory" (1995), "Tommo & Hawk" (1997), and "Solomon's Song" (1999).
Film and TV
The convict era has also inspired Australian film and TV. "For the Term of His Natural Life" (1927) is a landmark silent film inspired by Clarke's novel, depicting the life of a convict. W. J. Lincoln directed many convict melodramas, including "It Is Never Too Late to Mend" (1911), an adaptation of Charles Reade's 1856 novel about the cruelties of the convict system. Other early titles from 1911 include "Sentenced for Life", "The Mark of the Lash", "One Hundred Years Ago", "The Lady Outlaw", and "The Assigned Servant".
The Australian New Wave of the 1970s, with its emphasis on Australia's colonial past, largely avoided the convict era in favour of nostalgic period pieces set in the bush. However, the film "Rogue Nation" explores the transformation of Australia from a penal settlement to a land with rights and opportunities. It examines the power struggle between landowners and the offspring of convict settlers, introducing well-known figures such as pastoralist John Macarthur and barrister William Wentworth.
Art
The art created during the convict era in Australia is less well-known, but one notable example is the work of convict artist William Buelow Gould, whose imprisonment at Macquarie Harbour is fictionalised in Richard Flanagan's novel "Gould's Book of Fish" (2001).
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Frequently asked questions
Yes and no. While it is true that Australia was founded as a penal colony, and that convictism carried a social stigma for many years, it is now considered a source of celebration to discover a convict in one's lineage. In 2007, it was estimated that approximately four million Australians were related to convicts, which amounts to about 20% of the population.
Britain had been sending convicts to its American colonies since the 17th century, but this practice ended with the American Revolution (1775-83). With its prisons becoming overcrowded, Britain needed a new penal colony and Australia was chosen partly because of its remoteness.
Many of the convicts were sentenced for what we would consider minor offences today, such as petty theft, fraud, and violence. However, more serious crimes were also committed, including murder.
Convicts in Australia lived under very strict rules and were punished for offences such as drunkenness, swearing, and stealing with whippings, solitary confinement, or being put in leg irons. Convicts were also forced to work from sunrise to sunset, Monday to Saturday.
