Sydney's first four years: Being a reprint of A Narrative of the expedition to Botany Bay and A Complete account of the settlement at Port Jackson

by Watkin Tench

pp.364

Genres: History, Australia

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1793

About the author

Lieutenant-General Watkin Tench 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" provide a fascinating and entertaining account of the arrival and first four years of the colony. Little is known of Tench apart from what he writes in his three books and his service record.

Reviews

[Ruth Bonetti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting as a true voice from colonial times. Of course the style is less easy on the eye as a result.

[Sammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tench is a complicated figure, but this is the first true work of Australian writing and is a fantastic insight into the mindset and struggles faced by the first colonialist invaders at the end of the 18th century. If there's a throughline of Australian narrative writing from 1788 to today, it begins with Tench.