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Unit : Aboriginal colonisation and contact

Topic 1 : Colonisation

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Chapter: What is colonisation?

Image 1 - The Romans colonised many new territories.
Image 2 - Vikings were from Scandinavia and founded colonies in many different countries.
Image 3 - Captain Cook mapped the east coast of Australia, New Zealand and many Pacific islands.

Chapter: Why colonise?

Image 1 - The Portuguese developed the caravel which made ocean travel much easier and safer.
Image 2 - The exploration of new trade routes encouraged trade and contact between countries.
Image 3 - The Spice Islands were colonised by the Portuguese to establish an important trading centre.

Chapter: Ancient colonisers: the great four

Image 1 - The Assyrian Empire was at its peak at about 699 to 627 BC.
Image 2 - The Persian Empire expanded dramatically after 546 BC.
Image 3 - Alexander the Great's empire included Greece and all the territories controlled by the Persian empire.
Image 4 - The Roman Empire extended from Britain to Palestine.

Chapter: Modern colonisers: the great four

Image 1 - Portugal was the earliest and longest lived of the Western European global empires.
Image 2 - The Spanish Empire was a global empire.
Image 3 - The British Empire was the most extensive in world history.

Topic 2 : Australia before 1788

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Chapter: The Dreaming

Image 1 - Knowledge of the land was passed on through stories, songs, ceremonies, dances and art.
Image 2 - Uluru/Ayers Rock is a sacred site that was created during the Dreaming.
Image 3 - The Rainbow Serpent is a mythical creature from the Dreaming that is familiar to many Aboriginal groups.

Chapter: The land: Spirit, clans and survival

Image 1 - There were many Aboriginal groups living within Australia.
Image 2 - Aboriginal peoples used hunting and gathering methods to collect food.
Image 3 - Aboriginal peoples used resources from the land to make hunting tools and weapons.

Chapter: Indigenous law

Image 1 - This is a celebration (corroboree) for good fortune - giving thanks for food, protection, family and community.
Image 2 - Elders were sometimes used to settle disputes.
Image 3 - Large gatherings were used to settle disputes between Aboriginal groups.

Chapter: Indigenous art

Image 1 - Aboriginal art includes the decorations on weapons and tools.
Image 2 - The Tiwi people decorated grave poles.
Image 3 - A Mimi spirit

Chapter: Sharing knowledge, conserving information and history

Image 1 - Ceremonial grounds were used for ceremonies and rituals.
Image 2 - Boys and girls were often scarred during initiation rituals.
Image 3 - Message sticks were carried when travelling through different territories.

Chapter: Before the British: early visitors to Australia

Image 1 - Trepang or sea-cucumbers were caught by Macassan traders in the north of Australia.
Image 2 - People from Macassar and Papua were the first regular visitors to Australia.
Image 3 - Dutch explorers landed in many parts of Australia.

Topic 3 : The arrival of the British

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Chapter: The First Fleet: the process of colonisation

Image 1 - The First Fleet took seven months to reach Australia.
Image 2 - The First Fleet arrived in Botany Bay in January 1788.
Image 3 - The First Fleet moved to Sydney Cove on 26 January 1788.

Chapter: Governor Phillip

Image 1 - Admiral Arthur Phillip
Image 2 - Bennelong was captured and became a 'friend' of Governor Phillip.
Image 3 - Bennelong Point was named after Bennelong.

Chapter: Owning the land of Australia

Image 1 - Goat Island in Sydney Harbour was part of Bennelong's family territory.
Image 2 - Aboriginal groups lived in defined territories.
Image 3 - Europeans built fences to divide the land.

Chapter: Experiences: disease

Image 1 - Crushed bulbs of the Onion Lily were used as a wash for infected skin.
Image 2 - Smallpox killed over half the Aboriginal population in some areas.
Image 3 - Disease destroyed the traditional way of life of many Aboriginal people.

Chapter: Experiences: massacres and frontier wars

Image 1 - The opening up of Australia to the British settlers occurred after the Blue Mountains were crossed in 1813.
Image 2 - Aboriginal warriors used spears and other weapons in their battles with the British settlers.
Image 3 - Old Hornet Bank Station, Dawson River. Site of the 1857 Hornet Bank massacre.

Chapter: Experiences: dispossession

Image 1 - There were many battles as the British settlers began occupying Aboriginal land.
Image 2 - Access to water was a major issue between Aboriginal peoples and British settlers.
Image 3 - Aboriginal people were often employed by British settlers as stockmen.

Topic 4 : Settlement: 1788-1850

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Chapter: British-Aboriginal relations: 1788-1820

Image 1 - Governor King had a policy of keeping the Aboriginal peoples away from the British settlement.
Image 2 - British officers and soldiers were sent out to punish Aboriginal peoples.
Image 3 - The Aboriginal peoples started to rely on the British for food and clothing.

Chapter: Surviving: way of life for British settlers

Image 1 - The convicts had a harsh life in the colony.
Image 2 - The New South Wales Corps provided protection to the British settlers from the Aboriginal peoples and supervised the convicts.
Image 3 - The huts of free settlers were often very basic.

Chapter: Expanding: moving inland

Image 1 - George Evans was the first European to travel over the Blue Mountains to reach what is now Bathurst.
Image 2 - As Europeans moved inland they invaded Aboriginal territory.
Image 3 - Battles and massacres occurred on the Liverpool Plains.

Chapter: Civilisation: the missionaries and Macquarie

Image 1 - Lachlan Macquarie became governor of New South Wales in 1810.
Image 2 - Governor Macquarie gave a breast-plate to the 'chiefs' of friendly Aboriginal clans.
Image 3 - Macquarie wanted Aboriginal children to be educated at the Native Institution.

Chapter: Managing the missions and segregation

Image 1 - The first mission camps started in the 1820s and 1830s.
Image 2 - A referendum in 1967 provided Aboriginal peoples with the right to vote and to be recognised as full citizens of Australia.
Image 3 - Missions were used to protect Aboriginal peoples and to separate them from general European population.

Topic 5 : Fighting back

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Chapter: Origins of resistance and revenge

Image 1 - Some Aboriginal people adopted European ways.
Image 2 - The settlers sought revenge when Aboriginal people killed sheep to eat.
Image 3 - Aboriginal people sought revenge for attacks by the British settlers.
Image 4 - Aborignal clans suffered the loss of land, way of life and the destruction of their families at the hands of the Europeans.

Chapter: Pemulwuy of the Eora

Image 1 - Pemulwuy was an Aboriginal warrior who led raids on the British settlers.
Image 2 - Parramatta and Toongabbie were two of the first settlements in the new colony.
Image 3 - Pemulwuy's head was sent to a British museum for study and display.

Chapter: The Myall Creek massacre

Image 1 - Myall Creek is located in the north west of New South Wales near Inverell.
Image 2 - Myall Creek station was the area where 28 Aboriginal people were massacred.

Study guides

This unit includes

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