Unit 1: Migration: 1) Leaving Home Forever: Migration Throughout History

The document discusses the transportation of convicts from Britain to Australia between the 18th and 19th centuries. Overcrowded prisons and rampant crime in London led Britain to initially transport convicts to America, but after the American Revolution they found a viable solution in establishing penal colonies in Australia, beginning in 1787. Over the following decades, over 164,000 convicts were relocated to Australia on convict ships before transportation ceased in 1868.

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Unit 1: Migration: 1) Leaving Home Forever: Migration Throughout History

Uploaded by

Vanessa Saldanha

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Unit 1: Migration

1) Leaving home forever : Migration throughout history

Migration, whether forced or not, has been important throughout history. Now you will
learn more about one migratory moment.
Individually, read the article assigned to your group. Underline the words
you dont understand:
Forced Migration Convicts to Australia
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, the British correctional system became
severely overburdened. The population of England rose dramatically, and London soon
became overcrowded. Poverty and social injustice were rife, child labour and long
working hours were widespread, and living conditions were squalid and filthy. Many
were unemployed, and crime was rampant. Britains police and penitentiary system
were practically non-existent. In fact, many government officials saw the concept of
prison as a very American concept, so for years, the Bloody Code dictated the death
penalty for hundreds of crimes many as insignificant as petty theft or minor property
damage.
Fortunately, the Bloody Code was put to rest when lawmakers and judges felt that the
death penalty was too harsh for many crimes. The few existing jails of the day were so
overcrowded, however, that the government converted old war ships into floating
prisons moored in coastal waters. The prison hulks were horrible floating dungeons,
infested with vermin and disease, poorly lit and with little ventilation. Even by the
standards of that day, the prison system soon was considered unacceptable. With
nowhere else to turn, the British government conceived the idea of transportation as a
humane alternative to the death penalty and a practical solution to overcrowded
prisons.
Initially, convicts were transported to America; however, with the onset of
the American Revolution, Britain had to look elsewhere. They found a viable solution
in Australia, and the first convict fleet set sail in 1787. On January 18, 1788, the fleet
of ships arrived at Botany Bay, a spot that had been selected as appropriate for a
penal colony. Upon arrival, however, the fleet found that the harbour was unsafe and
lacked a fresh water supply, so they quickly moved on. Several days later, Captain
Arthur Philip, the fleet commander, raised the British flag at Sydney Cove. A group of
751 convicts and 252 marines, along with their families, disembarked and there
established the colony of New South Wales. This colony eventually became the
modern city of Sydney.
Two more fleets followed quickly in 1790 and 1791. Captain Phillip, who became
Governor of the colony, put convicts to work according to their particular skills and
regardless of their previous crimes. Men laboured as carpenters and brick makers,
farmers, shepherds, and cattlemen. Educated convicts were put to work in recordkeeping. Women, on the other hand, were considered best fit to being wives and
mothers. When a female convict got married, she was freed from her servitude and
released to care for her husband and subsequent children. If convicts were wellbehaved and productive, they could earn a ticket of leave, giving them greater
freedom. Once a convict completed his sentence (usually seven years), he was issued
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a Certificate of Freedom, with which he could either return to England or settle in

Australia.
New penal colonies were eventually established in Port Arthur, Tasmania and Norfolk
Island. These communities were considered to be places of secondary punishment
where convicts suffered harsher labor and solitary confinement. In 1803, 300 convicts
arrived in Sullivan Bay near modern-day Sorrento, Victoria. While this settlement was
quickly abandoned due to poor environmental conditions, others were established and
between 1844 and 1849, around 1,750 convicts arrived in the region from England. In
1850, new convicts were beginning to arrive in Western Australia. Between 1850 and
1868, 9,668 convicts were transported to the new colony on 43 convict ships.
By the 1830s, opposition was growing toward the transportation of convicts to the
colonies. By 1840, convict transportation to the New South Wales colony had ceased,
and Brisbane had stopped receiving convicts the previous year. The last convict ship
to arrive in Australia arrived on January 10, 1868. Approximately 164,000 convicts on
806 ships were relocated to Australia throughout the 80 years of convict
transportation.
Work together with the other members of your team. Ask for the meaning of
the words you do not understand. If nobody knows, consult a dictionary.
Now answer these questions in French. Work individually:
1. Why were the prisons so overcrowded in 18th century London?
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2. What was the first solution the British government came up with? Was it
successful?
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3. What viable solution did they eventually find?
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4. How did the prisoners make themselves useful in the colonies?
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5. What happened at the end of the prisoners sentences?
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6. How did the ships captains prevent the slaves from taking over the ship?
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7. When did the age of convict transportation come to an end? How many
prisoners had been relocated by then?
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