In May 1787, eleven ships left England with more than seven hundred convicts on board, along with orders to establish a penal colony at Botany Bay, New South Wales. Watkin Tench (c.1758 1833) was a crew member on one of the ships of this First Fleet, the Charlotte, and he recalls the voyage and early days of the settlement in this vivid and engaging account, first published in 1789. The first half of the work retraces the route of the six-month journey, which took the fleet to Brazil and the Cape of Good Hope. The later chapters recount the landing at Botany Bay in January 1788, the establishment of a colony at nearby Port Jackson and observations about the natural world in this new settlement. Tench also discusses the initial interaction with the Aboriginal people, making this work an important source for scholars of British colonialism and Australian history.

In May 1787 a fleet of ships carrying convicts left England bound for Botany Bay, New South Wales, where they were to establish a settlement. One of the crew on board the Charlotte was Watkin Tench (c.1758-1833), who wrote about the voyage of what was later known as the First Fleet. He remained in New South Wales, living in Port Jackson (part of present-day Sydney) from 1788 to 1791, and in this work, published in 1793, he gives a vivid, first-hand account of the early years of British settlement. The chapters are chronologically organised and discuss the many challenges settlers in the fledgling colony faced in staying alive, such as illness and lack of food and other provisions. He also recounts the often violent encounters and 'unabated animosity' between the settlers and the aboriginal people, making this work an important source on the colonisation of Australia.

Watkin Tench (1758-1833) was a British Marine officer who was held prisoner from 1794 to 1795 in Brittany, at the height of the French Revolution. During his imprisonment he wrote a series of letters to a friend in London (it is not clear whether this was genuine correspondence or a genre narrative), which was published in 1796. In them we learn of the adverse conditions he experienced on two convict hulks in Brest harbour, and his later period of parole in private lodgings in Quimper, which he recalls more favourably, as he was allowed to roam the countryside within a three-mile radius of the town. Tench's letters reveal his thoughts on the turbulence and uncertainty brought about by the revolution, and the resistance (largely inspired by religion) of the Bretons to it. This is a fascinating first-hand account of France at a time of rapid political change.

Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay is one of Tench's two accounts of early colonial Australian life, the other being The Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson. Before setting sail for Australia, Tench arranged with the London firm Debrett to publish his account of the colony for the eager readership back home. First published in 1789, the text ran to three editions and was promptly translated into French, German, Dutch and Swedish.

Watkin Tench (6 October 1758 - 7 May 1833) was a British marine officer who is best known for publishing two books describing his experiences in the First Fleet, which established the first settlement in Australia in 1788. His two accounts, "Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay" and "Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson" (this edition) provide an account of the arrival and first four years of the colony. Little more is known of him until he sailed as part of the First Fleet, although he records that he had spent time in the West Indies and his service record shows that he was promoted to Captain-Lieutenant in September 1782 and went on half-pay in May 1786. In October 1788, Robert Ross made a list of marines who wanted to stay in Australia either as soldiers or settlers. Tench headed the list as 'a soldier for one tour more of three years.' Among his achievements in the fledgling colony of New South Wales Tench was the first European to discover the Nepean River. Tench's accounts were influenced by the liberalism of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the idea of the noble savage. He thus writes with some sympathy of the Aborigines. His writings include much information about the Aborigines of Sydney, the Gadigal and Cammeraygal (whom he referred to as "Indians"). He was friendly with Bennelong, Barangaroo and several others. He stayed in Sydney until December 1791 when he sailed home on the HMS Gorgon, arriving in Plymouth in July 1792.

Watkin Tench (6 October 1758 - 7 May 1833) was a British marine officer who is best known for publishing two books describing his experiences in the First Fleet, which established the first settlement in Australia in 1788. His two accounts, "Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay" (this edition) and "Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson" provide an account of the arrival and first four years of the colony. Little more is known of him until he sailed as part of the First Fleet, although he records that he had spent time in the West Indies and his service record shows that he was promoted to Captain-Lieutenant in September 1782 and went on half-pay in May 1786. In October 1788, Robert Ross made a list of marines who wanted to stay in Australia either as soldiers or settlers. Tench headed the list as 'a soldier for one tour more of three years.' Among his achievements in the fledgling colony of New South Wales Tench was the first European to discover the Nepean River. Tench's accounts were influenced by the liberalism of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the idea of the noble savage. He thus writes with some sympathy of the Aborigines. His writings include much information about the Aborigines of Sydney, the Gadigal and Cammeraygal (whom he referred to as "Indians"). He was friendly with Bennelong, Barangaroo and several others. He stayed in Sydney until December 1791 when he sailed home on the HMS Gorgon, arriving in Plymouth in July 1792.

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