First Fleet: The Real Story

In 1787 a convoy of eleven ships, carrying about 1400 people, set out from England for Botany Bay, on the east coast of New South Wales. According to the conventional account, it was a shambolic affair: underprepared, poorly equipped and ill-disciplined. Robert Hughes condemned the organisers for their ‘muddle and lack of foresight’, while Manning Clark described scenes of ‘indescribable misery and confusion’.In The First Fleet: The Real Story, Alan Frost draws on hundreds of previously neglected records to debunk these persistent myths. He shows that the voyage was in fact meticulously planned – reflecting its importance to Britain’s imperial and commercial ambitions. He examines the ships and supplies, passengers and behind-the-scenes discussions. In the process, he reveals the hopes and schemes of those who planned the voyage, and the experiences of those who made it.