The First Fleet
Over 252 days without losing a ship, the journey of the First Fleet from England to New South Wales brought over 1500 men, women and children half way around the world.
Detail from Botany Bay; Sirius & Convoy going in ... 21 January 1788.
from 'A Voyage to New South Wales' by William Bradley, December 1786 - May 1792, Safe 1/14
On the 13 of May 1787, a fleet of 11 ships set sail from Portsmouth, England. Led by Captain Arthur Phillip, this historic convoy which later became known as the First Fleet, carried officers, crew, marines and convicts away from the security of English life to a distant and unknown land on the far side of the world.
The Fleet consisted of a pair of the Royal Navy escort ships, HMS Sirius and HMS Supply. They accompanied six convict transports, the Alexander, Charlotte, Friendship, Lady Penrhyn, Prince Of Wales and the Scarborough, and three store ships, the Borrowdale, Fishburn and Golden Grove.
Get the latest Flash player to view this interactive content.
From Portsmouth the Fleet travelled via Tenerife and Rio de Janeiro to the Cape of Good Hope, the Fleet's last port of call before striking out for Terra Australis.
The Fleet arrived first in Botany Bay on 18 January, but despite Captain Cook's glowing recommendation it proved to be unsuitable for a permanent settlement.
Then on 26 January, the Fleet arrived at the new anchorage, Port Jackson. The new site had everything our first settlers needed; deep water close to the shore, shelter and fresh water. Phillip named it Sydney Cove, after Lord Sydney the British Home Secretary and today this date is still celebrated as Australia Day, marking the beginnings of our first European settlement.
The Founding of Australia, Jan. 26th 1788, by Capt. Arthur Phillip R.N. Sydney Cove
Original oil sketch [1937] by Algernon Talmadge R.A. ML 1222
