Lexi Webster
From the late 18th century to the late 19th century, the British government transported convicts overseas to colonies in Australia. This practice began in 1787 with the departure of the First Fleet, a fleet of 11 convict ships carrying almost 1,000 convicts, and ended in 1868 with the arrival of the last convict ship in Western Australia. The decision to send convicts to Australia was driven by the need to relieve overcrowding in British prisons and hulks, which were decommissioned ships that served as floating prisons. During this period, an estimated 60,000 criminals were transported to Australia, with the majority staying in the country after serving their sentences.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of the first fleet of British ships to Australia | 13 May 1787 |
| Number of ships in the first fleet | 11 |
| Number of convicts in the first fleet | 1,000 |
| Date of arrival of the first fleet | 20 January 1788 |
| Date of the last convict ship to Australia | 10 January 1868 |
| Total number of convicts transported to Australia | 60,000 |
| Number of convicts transported to Australia between 1788 and 1852 | 24,000 |
| Percentage of female convicts transported to Australia | 14% |
| Number of political prisoners transported to Australia | 3,600 |
| Percentage of convicts transported for theft | 80% |
| Date of the peak of convict transportation to Australia | 1830s |
| Number of convicts transported to Australia in 1833 | 7,000 |
| Number of convicts transported to Western Australia between 1850 and 1868 | 9,668 |
| Number of convict ships to Western Australia between 1850 and 1868 | 43 |
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What You'll Learn
The First Fleet
On 21 January, Phillip sailed northward and entered a better harbour, where he discovered a small cove that would make a good settlement site. He named the site Sydney Cove and moved the fleet there. The Union flag was raised at Sydney Cove on 26 January 1788, marking the establishment of the colony of New South Wales, the first permanent European settlement in Australia. This date is now celebrated as Australia Day, the national day of Australia.
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Penal colonies
The British government began transporting convicts to American colonies in the early 18th century. However, this practice ended with the start of the American Revolution, which concluded British rule in North America. Prisons in Britain soon became overcrowded, and the old prison ships, known as hulks, were unable to accommodate the overflow of prisoners.
In 1770, James Cook charted and claimed possession of the east coast of Australia for Britain. In 1783, James Matra, a junior officer who had been on Cook's voyage, proposed to the British government that Botany Bay was a suitable location for a colony. This proposal was supported by Joseph Banks, who had also been on the voyage. Seeking to pre-empt the French colonial empire from expanding into the region, Britain chose Australia as the site of a penal colony.
On 13 May 1787, the First Fleet of 11 ships left Portsmouth, England, for Botany Bay, carrying around 1,000 convicts, as well as seamen, officers, and free people. The Fleet arrived at Botany Bay, Sydney, on 20 January 1788, marking the founding of the first European settlement on the continent. The colony was established as New South Wales, and Australia served as a means of offloading excess people during a period of rapid population growth, rising social and political instability, and economic downturns. The convicts transported to Australia were put to work, with their sentences stipulating labour from sunrise to sunset, Monday to Saturday. This was viewed as both a punishment and an opportunity for redemption, as Governor Phillip believed that 'honest sweat' was the convict's best chance of improvement.
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Overcrowding in prisons
The United Kingdom began sending prisoners to Australia in 1787, with the arrival of the First Fleet of 11 convict ships at Botany Bay, Sydney, on 20 January 1788. This marked the beginning of the transportation of convicts to Australia, which was implemented to address prison overcrowding in the UK.
The transportation of prisoners to Australia was a response to the issue of overcrowding in British prisons. The Industrial Revolution had led to economic displacement, resulting in an increase in petty crimes. With no modern prisons at the time, hanging was a common punishment for crimes, and prisons were filled beyond capacity. To accommodate the overflow of prisoners, old prison ships known as hulks were utilised, but they soon became inadequate as well.
The American Revolution further exacerbated the prison overcrowding crisis in Britain. Initially, Britain had been sending convicts to American colonies, with about 40,000 convicts transported to America to serve their sentences. However, when the Revolutionary War began in 1776, this option was abruptly cut off.
As a temporary solution, prisoners were crammed onto old warships, the hulks, which were moored along the Thames. This led to inhumane conditions, with prisoners suffering from a lack of space, poor sanitation, and disease.
The decision to transport convicts to Australia was intended to alleviate the overcrowding crisis. The First Fleet transported around 1,000 convicts, and over time, the number of convicts transported to Australia increased, with 36 ships transporting nearly 7,000 convicts in 1833.
However, prison overcrowding remained a persistent issue in Britain, and it continued to impact the transportation of convicts. In the 1840s, with overcrowding in British gaols, transportation was revived as a deterrent to crime.
Even today, prison overcrowding remains a concern in Australia, with prison populations on an upward trajectory. This has led to human rights violations, with prisoners' rights to privacy being infringed upon due to the sharing of cells and a lack of access to adequate sanitation and medical care.
To address prison overcrowding, it is important for governments to invest in prison infrastructure, ensure adequate staffing, and promote alternatives to incarceration, such as rehabilitation and community service programs. By addressing the underlying social issues that contribute to crime, such as poverty and unemployment, societies can also work towards reducing recidivism and the overall prison population.
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Convict labour
The British government began sending convicts overseas to American colonies in the early 18th century. However, this practice ended with the American Revolution, which saw the end of British rule in North America. Prisons in Britain began to fill up, and the old prison ships, known as hulks, were unable to accommodate the overflow.
In 1770, James Cook charted and claimed possession of the east coast of Australia for Britain. Seeking to beat the French colonial empire to the region, Britain chose Australia as the site of its next penal colony. On 13 May 1787, the First Fleet of 11 ships left Portsmouth, England, for Botany Bay, Sydney, carrying around 1,000 convicts, seamen, officers, and free people. The fleet arrived on 20 January 1788, founding the first European settlement on the continent.
The convict system was used to establish the foundation European population in Australia. Between 1788 and 1868, Britain transported approximately 171,000 male and female convicted felons to Australia. The majority of convicts were transported for petty crimes, particularly theft. About 80% of convicts were thieves, and approximately one in seven were women.
In Western Australia, there was a great demand for public infrastructure. Many convicts were stationed in remote areas and set to work creating infrastructure for the convict system, including the construction of the Convict Establishment, the colony's convict prison. Wealthy landowners called for inexpensive convict labour, and the British authorities responded by sending nearly 10,000 male convicts to Western Australia between 1850 and 1868.
The transportation penal system reached its peak in the 1830s, after which the numbers dwindled. The last convict ship to arrive in Western Australia was the Hougoumont, which arrived on 10 January 1868.
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End of convict transportation
The transportation of convicts from Britain to Australia ended in the mid-19th century. The last convict ship to Western Australia, Hougoumont, left Britain in 1867 and arrived in Western Australia on 10 January 1868.
The transportation of convicts to Australia began in the late 18th century when British prisons became overcrowded following the American Revolutionary War, which halted transportation to North America. The British government sought an alternative location to send convicts and, in 1787, the First Fleet of 11 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.
In the years that followed, penal colonies were established in Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) in 1803, Queensland in 1824, and Western Australia in 1850. Penal transportation to Australia peaked in the 1830s and dropped off significantly in the following decade as protests against the convict system intensified throughout the colonies.
The suspension of convict transportation to New South Wales in 1840 is attributed to figures such as Lieutenant-General Sir Richard Bourke and Australian-born lawyer William Charles Wentworth, who opposed the excessive use of force and violence against prisoners. In 1850, the Australasian Anti-Transportation League was formed to lobby for the permanent cessation of transportation. The last convict ship to be sent from England, the St. Vincent, arrived in 1853.
The end of convict transportation to Australia was also influenced by the increasing number of free settlers entering colonies such as New South Wales and Tasmania in the mid-1830s, which led to growing opposition to the transportation of felons into the colonies. Newspaper proprietors who were members of the Independent Congregational Church, such as John Fairfax in Sydney and the Reverend John West in Launceston, argued against convicts as competition to free labourers and as the source of crime and vice within the colony.
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Frequently asked questions
The UK started shipping prisoners to Australia in 1787.
The UK had previously sent prisoners to North America, but this practice ended with the American War of Independence. With prisons in the UK becoming overcrowded, Australia was chosen as the new site for a penal colony.
The UK stopped sending prisoners to Australia in 1868.
