European Settlement & Convict Colony
On January 26, 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip landed with the First Fleet — 11 ships with 778 convicts, 252 marines, and crew — in Sydney Cove. Australia became Great Britain's convict colony, a gigantic prison at the other end of the world. January 26 is now Australia's national holiday — and at the same time the country's most controversial day, as Aboriginal People refer to it as "Invasion Day."
The British Crown declared Australia to be "terra nullius" (nobody's land) — a legal fiction that ignored the existence of the Aboriginal inhabitants. The consequences were catastrophic:
- Diseases: Smallpox, influenza, measles — the Aboriginal population collapsed by 80–90% within a few decades.
- Displacement: Aboriginal People were driven from their land, forced into reserves, and culturally suppressed.
- Frontier Wars: Over 150 years of violent conflicts between settlers and Aboriginal People — an estimated 20,000–60,000 Aboriginal deaths, long erased from official history.
- Stolen Generations (1910–1970): Systematic abduction of Aboriginal children, who were "raised" in white families or church institutions. Over 100,000 children were taken from their families. In 2008, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd issued the official apology.
Between 1788 and 1868, a total of 162,000 convicts were deported to Australia — for offenses ranging from theft to political activism. Many Australians carry this heritage with pride: having a convict in the family tree is considered honorable.