Ruqayyah Snyder
Australia's history of imperialism began in the 16th century when it was first discovered by European explorers. The British Admiralty sent Captain James Cook on three voyages, the first of which sighted southeastern Australia in 1770. In 1788, the British settled in Australia, using it as a penal colony, and over time, the native Aboriginal people were pushed aside as capitalism developed. The British invested a lot of capital in Australia, particularly in land, banking, and insurance. Australia gained independent sovereign nation status after World War I, but it continued to have ties to Britain, as seen during World War II when Australia joined Britain in declaring war on Germany.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Reason for colonisation | To use as a penal colony |
| Date of colonisation | 1788 |
| Colonising country | Britain |
| Native population | Aboriginal Australians |
| Economic philosophy | Protectionism |
| Economic activity | Export of capital |
| Investment destinations | Land, banking, insurance, finance institutions, industry |
| Labour | Imported from British Isles and Pacific |
| Local sentiment | Anti-imperialist |
| Religious influence | Presbyterian Church |
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What You'll Learn
Australia as a penal colony
Australia was first settled by the ancestors of Aboriginal Australians from Maritime Southeast Asia between 50,000 and 65,000 years ago. However, in 1788, Britain seized the continent and settled it as a penal colony.
The use of Australia as a penal colony was the result of the American Revolutionary War. Prior to this conflict, the American colonies served as the destination for British convicts. However, with American independence, this route was closed off, leading to a rapid increase in the prison population in Britain. The government considered alternative locations such as Africa and the Caribbean, but these were deemed unsuitable. In 1783, James Matra, who had previously visited the Pacific with James Cook, proposed that Botany Bay would be a suitable location for a penal colony. Subsequently, in 1785, the British government issued orders to create a penal colony in New South Wales.
The founding of this penal colony was not without difficulty. The first governor of New South Wales, Royal Navy Captain Arthur Phillip, faced challenges such as disease, pests, and hostility from the Aboriginal people. The convicts themselves were mostly from impoverished backgrounds and had committed minor crimes, with 80% being thieves. Many convicts also died during their transportation to Australia or soon after arriving, due to the harsh conditions.
Over time, additional 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, with nearly 7,000 convicts arriving in a single year. However, as protests against the convict system intensified, transportation began to be phased out from 1840 onwards. The last convict ship arrived in Western Australia in 1868, marking the end of Australia's era as a penal colony.
In the following years, the Australian colonies attempted to distance themselves from their founding legacy as a penal colony. However, in recent times, there has been a shift towards embracing this part of their history, with many Australians proud of their convict ancestry.
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Indigenous displacement
The Indigenous population of Australia has faced a long history of displacement and injustice since the arrival of European colonisers in the 18th century. Prior to colonisation, the Aboriginal Australians had lived in the region for tens of thousands of years, with some estimates placing their arrival between 43,000 to 65,000 years ago. They had established diverse cultural groups, languages, and traditions, and managed their land using fire-stick farming practices to ensure sustainable food production.
The British Empire established a penal colony in Australia in 1788, marking the beginning of a devastating era for the Indigenous population. The British operated under the assumption of 'terra nullius', considering the land as uninhabited and belonging to no one. This notion contradicted the reality of a thriving Indigenous population, but it served as the justification for seizing the continent and displacing its native people.
The establishment of the colony led to a sharp decline in the Indigenous population over the following 150 years. Introduced diseases like smallpox, influenza, and measles, to which the Indigenous people had no resistance, took a devastating toll. Additionally, violent conflict with the colonists, random killings, punitive expeditions, and organised massacres, such as the Myall Creek Massacre in 1838, further contributed to the loss of Indigenous lives.
The British also evicted Indigenous people from their traditional territories, forcing them onto reserves and missions, or to the fringes of cities and towns. The dispossession of their land disrupted their connection to their ancestral homelands and severely impacted their way of life. The Indigenous people resisted the colonial occupation, but they were no match for the superior weaponry and power of the Europeans.
The forced removal of Indigenous children from their communities during the early days of colonisation, up until the 1970s, also had intergenerational impacts. This practice, known as the "stolen generations", severed spiritual, familial, and cultural ties, causing long-lasting trauma and contributing to the loss of cultural knowledge and traditions.
Despite the immense challenges and injustices faced by Indigenous Australians, their resilience and determination have kept their customs, traditions, and kinship systems alive. Today, they continue to fight for their rights and work towards reclaiming and preserving their cultural legacy.
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Economic opportunities
The economic opportunities presented by Australia during imperialism were significant, and they played a crucial role in attracting people to the continent.
Firstly, the export of capital from Britain to Australia was substantial. As the earliest capitalist country, Britain had accumulated a large amount of capital, and Australia presented an opportunity for investment. This capital was invested in various sectors, including land, banking, insurance, and other financial institutions. The development of infrastructure, such as the construction of railways and irrigation projects, also attracted investment. It is estimated that more than 25% of British capital exported went to Australia.
Secondly, the establishment of a penal colony in Australia in 1788 provided economic opportunities for some. While the primary purpose was to provide a place of punishment and exile for convicts, it also created a market for goods and services to support the colony. This likely attracted people with entrepreneurial spirits and those seeking economic opportunities in providing for the colony's needs.
Thirdly, the availability of land and labour was a significant economic opportunity. The transformation of land into a commodity and the mobilisation of a labour force to extract wealth from the soil were key aspects of establishing capitalism in Australia. While there was resistance from the Aboriginal people, the influx of labour from the British Isles and indentured labour from the Pacific helped drive economic growth.
Lastly, the discovery of gold and the development of agricultural industries brought prosperity to Australia. The gold rushes attracted people from all over the world in search of economic opportunities, and the development of agriculture, including the export of wheat and wool, became a significant part of Australia's economy.
Overall, the economic opportunities presented by Australia during imperialism were diverse and far-reaching. The investment of capital, the establishment of a market economy, and the exploitation of natural resources all contributed to making Australia an attractive destination for those seeking economic prosperity.
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Military presence
The British established a military presence in Australia from the very beginning of the colonisation process. In December 1788, just months after the arrival of the First Fleet, the commandant of Norfolk Island, Phillip Gidley King, ordered his six free male settlers to practise musketry on Saturdays. This marked the beginning of colonial military forces in Australia.
The first military unit raised on the Australian mainland appeared in September 1800 when Governor Hunter requested that 100 free male settlers in Sydney and Parramatta form Loyal Associations (English volunteer units) and practice military drills in case of a convict rebellion. Six years later, Governor King recruited six ex-convicts as the nucleus of a military bodyguard, creating the first full-time military unit in Australia. These groups joined British troops in suppressing the Castle Hill uprising in 1804.
The need for a large British military presence in Australia diminished over time, particularly as convict transportation to New South Wales ended in 1840 and colonial police forces were established. The last British regiment left Australia in 1870, leaving the colonies to assume responsibility for their own defence. However, British soldiers remained involved in suppressing convict rebellions and civil unrest, such as the "Ribbon Gang" outbreak in 1829 and the Eureka Stockade rebellion in 1854.
During the two world wars, Australia fought as part of the British Empire and later the Commonwealth. In the lead-up to World War II, a volunteer military force was recruited for service at home and abroad, known as the 2nd Australian Imperial Force. With the threat of Japan imminent, Prime Minister Menzies called for "all-out war", increasing federal powers and introducing conscription.
In more recent times, Australia has relied on protection from powerful allies such as Britain and the United States to pursue its own regional imperial designs. This has included the presence of US spy bases, the interoperability of militaries, and Australia's capacity to host nuclear-capable US bombers. Australia's military has also been involved in regional interventions, such as in East Timor in 1999.
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Missionary activity
The colonisation of Australia by the British in the 18th and 19th centuries was accompanied by a wave of Christian missionary activity. This was driven by a new interest in overseas missionary work among European Christians, particularly Protestants, who were keen to convert the 'heathen', fuelled by the exploration and imperialism of the time.
The first Aboriginal Christian missions in Australia were established by the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society (WMMS) in 1818, with the first missionary, William Walker, arriving in 1821. However, Walker was opposed by Samuel Marsden of the Church of England, who had Aboriginal children living with him and supported the missionary idea but felt his authority as a cleric was being undermined. The WMMS was followed by the London Missionary Society (LMS) in 1795, and the Church Missionary Society (CMS) in 1799.
In the 1830s, German Protestant missionaries arrived, and in the 1840s, Roman Catholic missionary work began in Western Australia, though this was primarily undertaken by male orders. The Moravians, who arrived in the 1850s, gave a boost to missionary efforts in the Australian colonies. These missions were generally in remote locations, established and supported by settler churches and funded by colonial governments and European mission organisations. They included Aboriginal schools in Sydney, Adelaide, and Perth, as well as independent missions established by individual Christian couples, often in alliance with local Indigenous people.
The theology of some missionary societies, such as the UAM and AIM, emphasised individual salvation over social improvement, but some missionaries, such as Mary Montgomerie Bennett of the UAM, became advocates for the rights of Aboriginal people, particularly in addressing child removal and the mistreatment and misrepresentation of Aboriginal women.
It is worth noting that these missionary efforts were not always successful or well-received. John Harris, in his book 'One Blood', describes the first Aboriginal Christian missions as failures, but he acknowledges that they did bring the knowledge of Christ to Australia. Similarly, Rev. Marsden of Parramatta in 1831 criticised the idea that "much money has been thrown away" on the Aborigines, suggesting that they were being "spoon-fed".
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Frequently asked questions
Britain colonized Australia as a penal colony, sending convicts to the continent.
The dominant economic philosophy was protectionism, which was used to protect investments abroad and prevent rivals like the French from gaining a foothold in the region.
Missionaries presented themselves as humanitarian but often used force to establish themselves and brought an imperial military presence to the region. They also demanded imperial intervention to bolster their position.
The leaders of local settler populations were often the most enthusiastic imperialists, driven by their commercial and political ambitions. However, they also feared the consequences of a rival power establishing itself in the region.
The British imperialists ruthlessly pushed aside the Aboriginal people as capitalism developed in Australia. They used various methods to displace them, including shooting, poisoning, starving, and "assimilation". The Aboriginal people resisted the imperialist occupation and formed an important component of the independence movement in Australia.
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