What year did the British sent convicts to Australia?

Between 1788 and 1868 more than 162,000 convicts were transported to Australia. Of these, about 7000 arrived in 1833 alone. The convicts were transported as punishment for crimes committed in Britain and Ireland.

When did Britain start send criminals to Australia?

Hundreds of thousands of convicts were transported from Britain and Ireland to Australia between 1787 and 1868. Today, it's estimated that 20% of the Australian population are descended from people originally transported as convicts, while around 2 million Britons have transported convict ancestry.

How many years were British prisoners shipped to Australia?

As part of their punishment they were sentenced to penal transportation for seven years, fourteen years or even life, despite the crimes that they had committed being generally low-grade. The prisoners were transported on ships in appalling conditions; many of them would not survive the journey.

What were the 19 crimes to be sent to Australia?

Who was the most famous convict?

What Actually Happened To Prisoners Sent To Australia?

What did female convicts do in Australia?

Convict women were employed in domestic service, washing and on government farms, and were expected to find their own food and lodging. Punishment for those who transgressed was humiliating and public. Exile itself was considered a catalyst for reform.

What did convicts do after their sentence?

As convicts either finished their sentence, or were pardoned, they were able to earn a living and sustain themselves through jobs and land grants. By the mid-1830s, most convicts were assigned to private employment. The easiest way for a convict to reduce their sentence was to work hard and stay out of trouble.

Why did the British bring convicts to Australia?

The convicts were transported as punishment for crimes committed in Britain and Ireland. In Australia their lives were hard as they helped build the young colony. When they had served their sentences, most stayed on and some became successful settlers.

How many hours did convicts work a day?

Such long hours led to the formation of the Early Closing Movement, which in 1844 sought to have working hours reduced from 14 to 12 hours a day. Convict transportation to New South Wales ceased in 1840.

What happened 1901 Australia?

Australia became a nation on 1 January 1901, when the British Parliament passed legislation enabling the six Australian colonies to collectively govern in their own right as the Commonwealth of Australia. It was a remarkable political accomplishment that had taken many years and several referenda to achieve.

How long did it take for the First Fleet to get to Australia?

After a voyage of three months the First Fleet arrived at Botany Bay on 24 January 1788.

What did female convicts wear?

Clothing in the Female Factories

Documents from the time tell us that these convicts were given: petticoats, jackets, aprons, shifts (smocks), caps, handkerchiefs, stockings, shoes and straw bonnets. They'd be made from cheap, coarse material.

What did the convicts do for fun?

Convicts played cards or games like chess or draughts that required different sorts of tokens, many of which were handmade. These might have been carved from animal bones (perhaps saved from dinner) or pieces of ceramic and wood they found, or cast in lead.

How old was the youngest convict sent to Australia?

John Hudson, described as 'sometimes a chimney sweeper', was the youngest known convict to sail with the First Fleet. Voyaging on board the Friendship to NSW, the boy thief was 13 years old on arrival at Sydney Cove. He was only nine when first sentenced.

What crimes did the convicts commit?

What were the nineteen crimes?

19 Crimes takes its name from the list of crimes for which people could be sentenced to transportation — offences which ranged from “grand larceny” to “stealing a shroud out of a grave.” Accordingly, each of the labels features one of those thousands of convicts who were transported halfway across the world as their ...

What was the most common crime committed by convicts sent to Australia?

The majority of convicts were transported for petty crimes. More serious crimes, such as rape and murder, became transportable offences in the 1830s, but since they were also punishable by death, comparatively few convicts were transported for such crimes.

How many babies were born on the First Fleet?

Convict transport

It is estimated there were about 50 children on the First Fleet when it arrived at Botany Bay. Over 20 children were born at sea during the eight-month voyage.

What jobs did child convicts do?

Girls worked as servants in free settlers' houses or farms; some worked in the female factories of Parramatta and Hobart. Boys also worked for free settlers, but some worked for the government learning trades to help build the new colony. Those who could read and write might have worked as government clerks.

What was the worst punishment for convicts?

Throughout the convict era, 'flogging' (whipping) convicts with a cat-o'-nine-tails was a common punishment for convicts who broke the rules.

Who were the first convicts married in Australia?

The first marriage documented in Australia was the union between convicts William Parr and Mary MacCormick on 10 February 1788 in St. Phillips's Church of England in Sydney. The ceremony was conducted by Reverend Richard Johnson with permission by Governor Arthur Phillip.

What happened to the convicts after they arrived?

On arrival convicts now served a period 'on probation' with stages of punishment. Convicts were imprisoned at a penal settlement, worked in gangs or were sent to probation stations. Depending on their behaviour they passed through stages, with restrictions reduced as they moved towards 'Ticket of Leave' status.

What punishments did female convicts get?

Overall, the majority of crimes committed by convict women within the colony resulting in punishments by the magistrates were offences against Good Order and Convict Discipline: absconding, being drunk and disorderly, insolence, assault, refusing to work, being out after hours, immoral conduct, pilfering.

Who was the youngest female convict on the First Fleet?

Beth - The Story of a Child Convict, is an incredibly moving tale inspired by the experiences of Elizabeth Hayward, the youngest female convict on the First Fleet and the journals of naval officer William Bradley and Arthur Bowes Smyth, the surgeon and artist also onboard.