The First Fleet: The Real Story“Alan Frost is the myth-buster of Australian history...His work should be studied not only by students but anyone interested in the birth of a nation.” — the Age In 1787 a convoy of eleven ships, carrying about 1400 people, set out from England for Botany Bay. According to the conventional account, it was a shambolic affair: under-prepared, poorly equipped and ill-disciplined. Robert Hughes condemned the organisers’ “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 previously forgotten records to debunk these persistent myths. He shows that the voyage was in fact meticulously planned – reflecting its importance to the British government’s secret ambitions for imperial expansion. 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. ‘It is almost certain that Frost knows more than anybody else about the early maritime history of this land ... This book will surely alter the way Sydney sees its history.’ — Geoffrey Blainey, The Weekend Australian |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 47
Page xi
Much of the planning was undertaken in conversations among officials at the Home Office, Treasury, Admiralty and Navy Board, and First Fleet officers such as Arthur Phillip (governor) and John White (chief surgeon).
Much of the planning was undertaken in conversations among officials at the Home Office, Treasury, Admiralty and Navy Board, and First Fleet officers such as Arthur Phillip (governor) and John White (chief surgeon).
Page xii
To avoid repetition, I have throughout referred to the Treasury and Admiralty Boards simply as Treasury and Admiralty, but retain the full titles for the Navy Board and Board of Trade. Introduction The First Fleet carrying the Botany ...
To avoid repetition, I have throughout referred to the Treasury and Admiralty Boards simply as Treasury and Admiralty, but retain the full titles for the Navy Board and Board of Trade. Introduction The First Fleet carrying the Botany ...
Page 5
Nonetheless, Campbell pressed his case. Rose, he said, had been 'Head' of the Navy. (Wrong. Lord Howe was the First Lord of the Admiralty, and Philip Stephens Secretary of the Admiralty Board. Rose was Secretary of the Treasury.) ...
Nonetheless, Campbell pressed his case. Rose, he said, had been 'Head' of the Navy. (Wrong. Lord Howe was the First Lord of the Admiralty, and Philip Stephens Secretary of the Admiralty Board. Rose was Secretary of the Treasury.) ...
Page 6
... with David Hill repeating it in 2008: 'There is some indication that Sir George Rose, the Under-Secretary of the Treasury, was the minister responsible for making the decision. Rose's estates were at Cuffnels [sic] near Lyndhurst, ...
... with David Hill repeating it in 2008: 'There is some indication that Sir George Rose, the Under-Secretary of the Treasury, was the minister responsible for making the decision. Rose's estates were at Cuffnels [sic] near Lyndhurst, ...
Page 7
Rose did not purchase the Cuffnells estate until 1784; and how frequently and for how long he was in residence thereafter is unknown, although clearly his duties at the Treasury kept him in London for much of the year.
Rose did not purchase the Cuffnells estate until 1784; and how frequently and for how long he was in residence thereafter is unknown, although clearly his duties at the Treasury kept him in London for much of the year.
What people are saying - Write a review
Reviews aren't verified, but Google checks for and removes fake content when it's identified
The First Fleet
User Review - Thorpe-Bowker and Contributors - Books+PublishingThe First Fleet: The Real Story is a companion volume to Alan Frost¿s earlier book, Botany Bay: The Real Story. It deals with the same subject as David Hill¿s 1788, but unlike Hill, Frost is an ... Read full review
Contents
| 17 | |
| 27 | |
Officials and Officers | 49 |
Ships Crews Marines Convicts | 64 |
The Ships | 81 |
Equipping the Colonists | 95 |
Loading the Ships and Embarking the People | 114 |
AtPortsmouth | 129 |
Preparing Bodiesfor the Voyage | 140 |
Leaving the World | 159 |
No CheaperMode? | 181 |
Conclusion | 198 |
Acknowledgments | 217 |
Select Bibliography | 250 |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
24 October 28 February administration’s Admiralty advised Alexander appointed April arrival Arthur Phillip asked August Botany Bay Campbell Cape Chronicle clothing Collins colonists colony’s command commission cost court crew December Deptford Officers embarked England establishment Evan Nepean expedition expense February female convicts Fleet fresh foods governor Home Office HRNSW Hunter Island January Lady Penrhyn land Lieutenant London March marine officers marines and convicts Memorandum Middleton to Nepean Minute naval Navy Board necessary needed Nepean to Middleton November Ocean Officers to Navy ofthe Phillip to Nepean Phillip to Sydney Pitt administration Plymouth port Portsmouth Privy Council provisions Real Story Record group Rio de Janeiro Ross Royal Navy sailed Scarborough scurvy sent September 1786 settlement ship’s ships Shortland sick Sirius Sirius and Supply SLNSW South Wales Steele surgeon Teer to Navy Tench Tenerife told Treasury USNA Victualling voyage wine women wrote
Bibliographic information
| Title | The First Fleet: The Real Story |
| Author | Alan Frost |
| Publisher | Black Inc., 2012 |
| ISBN | 1921870575, 9781921870576 |
| Length | 288 pages |
| Subjects | › History / Australia & New Zealand |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |