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Gudyarra: The First Wiradyuri War of Resistance ― The Bathurst War, 1822–1824
'In May 1824, what can only be described as a period of all-out, total gudyarra (‘war’ in the Wiradyuri language) had begun west of the Blue Mountains. Relations between Wiradyuri people and the colonists in the country around Bathurst had completely broken down, and the number of raids and killings occurring across isolated stock stations in the district had intensified.’ In Gudyarra , Stephen Gapps—award-winning author of The Sydney Wars —unearths what led to this furious and bloody war, beginning with the occupation of Wiradyuri lands by Europeans following Governor Macquarie’s push to expand the colony west over the Blue Mountains to generate wealth from sheep and cattle. Gudyarra traces the co-ordinated resistance warfare by the Wiradyuri under the leadership of Windradyne, and others such as Blucher and Jingler, that occurred in a vast area across the central west of New South Wales. Detailing the drastic counterattacks by the colonists and the punitive expeditions led by armed parties of colonists and convicts that often ended in massacres of Wiradyuri women and children, Gapps provides an important new historical account of the fierce Wiradyuri resistance.
288 pages, Paperback
Published February 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 15, 2022
It's always interesting to read early histories of areas you know fairly well, so having spent many weekends fishing in the Wallerawang area and Capertee Valley this book gave me a new perspective on that country. And it was an eye-opening one, as this is a story of tentative initial engagement between two very different cultures that broke down into conflict, massacre and dispossession. I'll be looking at the deep gullies and high sandstone escarpments around Capertee and my friend's property at Round Swamp in a new light after reading Gapps' book.
This excellent history is in some ways a sequel to the author's equally instructive 2018 work The Sydney Wars: Conflict in the early colony 1788-1817. Taking up where that work leaves off, Gapps details the exploration and expansion by the British colonists west of the Blue Mountains into what they considered untouched and potentially rich land in the tablelands and plains beyond. In a pattern familiar to anyone who has studied early Australian colonial history, initial well-meaning attempts at living alongside the indigenous inhabitants were fairly rapidly overridden by greedy commercial interests, individual ambition and cultural miscomprehension.
The parallels between the encounters and then clashes between the colonists and the Wiradjuri people around Bathurst and the events soon after in Tasmania are very clear, and highlighted by Gapps at several points. Far from learning from what happened in New South Wales, the soldiers and colonists in Van Diemen's Land repeated the same patterns with the same results. So in both places we see initial conflicts, followed by stout and often highly effective indigenous guerrilla resistance but ultimately leading to a collapse under a sheer weight of numbers and then to sensible Aboriginal efforts at negotiated conciliation. The parallels between the Wiradjuri war leader Windradyne and the Tasmanian Tongerlongeter, right down to the admiration and respect they won from the colonists and their final dignified armistice, is remarkable.
As with his The Sydney Wars, Gapps' understanding of the military history of the period helps him correct some less well-informed historians' assessments. So he notes that the 40th Regiment who engaged with the Wiradjuri were not stiff Napoleonic Era field soldiers who only fought in ordered formations and had no clue how to fight guerrillas. As Gapps notes "light infantry tactics and skirmishing had been developed in the North American campaigns of the late 18th century - and well before. The 40th Regiment had fought in Canada and North America against Native American forces, in the West Indies and in the Peninsula Campaign of the Napoleonic Wars in Spain - where the term "guerrilla originated" (p. 175). So Gapps makes it clear these troops were very capable of this kind of warfare.
Insights like this aside, the real service Gapps gives is a meticulous analysis of a wide range of sources that amounts to an often day-by-day account of successive incidents and clashes over a large geographical area. Contradictions are well handled and guilty or convenient lacunae highlighted: something that is necessary when dealing with massacres that often happened "off the books". Of particular note is his use of the preserved traditions of Wiradjuri elders, who have remembered lore about these events that has previously often been ignored.
This is one of a number of newer books that are building on a previous generation of historians' work on the Frontier Wars, examining particular theatres of conflict in careful detail. It's a particularly painstaking and judicious contribution to that sub-genre of studies and, hopefully, we will see more of this kind of work from Gapps and others in coming years.
This excellent history is in some ways a sequel to the author's equally instructive 2018 work The Sydney Wars: Conflict in the early colony 1788-1817. Taking up where that work leaves off, Gapps details the exploration and expansion by the British colonists west of the Blue Mountains into what they considered untouched and potentially rich land in the tablelands and plains beyond. In a pattern familiar to anyone who has studied early Australian colonial history, initial well-meaning attempts at living alongside the indigenous inhabitants were fairly rapidly overridden by greedy commercial interests, individual ambition and cultural miscomprehension.
The parallels between the encounters and then clashes between the colonists and the Wiradjuri people around Bathurst and the events soon after in Tasmania are very clear, and highlighted by Gapps at several points. Far from learning from what happened in New South Wales, the soldiers and colonists in Van Diemen's Land repeated the same patterns with the same results. So in both places we see initial conflicts, followed by stout and often highly effective indigenous guerrilla resistance but ultimately leading to a collapse under a sheer weight of numbers and then to sensible Aboriginal efforts at negotiated conciliation. The parallels between the Wiradjuri war leader Windradyne and the Tasmanian Tongerlongeter, right down to the admiration and respect they won from the colonists and their final dignified armistice, is remarkable.
As with his The Sydney Wars, Gapps' understanding of the military history of the period helps him correct some less well-informed historians' assessments. So he notes that the 40th Regiment who engaged with the Wiradjuri were not stiff Napoleonic Era field soldiers who only fought in ordered formations and had no clue how to fight guerrillas. As Gapps notes "light infantry tactics and skirmishing had been developed in the North American campaigns of the late 18th century - and well before. The 40th Regiment had fought in Canada and North America against Native American forces, in the West Indies and in the Peninsula Campaign of the Napoleonic Wars in Spain - where the term "guerrilla originated" (p. 175). So Gapps makes it clear these troops were very capable of this kind of warfare.
Insights like this aside, the real service Gapps gives is a meticulous analysis of a wide range of sources that amounts to an often day-by-day account of successive incidents and clashes over a large geographical area. Contradictions are well handled and guilty or convenient lacunae highlighted: something that is necessary when dealing with massacres that often happened "off the books". Of particular note is his use of the preserved traditions of Wiradjuri elders, who have remembered lore about these events that has previously often been ignored.
This is one of a number of newer books that are building on a previous generation of historians' work on the Frontier Wars, examining particular theatres of conflict in careful detail. It's a particularly painstaking and judicious contribution to that sub-genre of studies and, hopefully, we will see more of this kind of work from Gapps and others in coming years.
February 22, 2022
This book is an important addition to our knowledge of the effects of British colonisation of the then colony of New South Wales on the indigenous owners of the land. In this case, it examines the settlement of the Bathurst Plains, which were opened up to settlers following the crossing of the Blue Mountains in 1813. It uses extensive printed sources, interviews with interested parties and oral histories provided by descendents of the Wiradjuri people, the indigenous owners of that land.
The Wiradjuri, at first, tolerated the settlers, but the loss of their land leading to starvation and atrocities against their women led to escalating violence on the part of both Wiradjuri and settlers culminating with the declaration of martial law on 14 August 1824. This gave free permission for any indigenous people to be shot on sight.
There are maps provided with each chapter showing the known extent of engagements between the British and the Wiradjuri. A telling statistic is that it is estimated that over 200 Wiradjuri died (about 10% of the population) however, many of the killings were not reported.
My one quibble is that the book refers to some engagements in several places, making it slightly confusing.
The Wiradjuri, at first, tolerated the settlers, but the loss of their land leading to starvation and atrocities against their women led to escalating violence on the part of both Wiradjuri and settlers culminating with the declaration of martial law on 14 August 1824. This gave free permission for any indigenous people to be shot on sight.
There are maps provided with each chapter showing the known extent of engagements between the British and the Wiradjuri. A telling statistic is that it is estimated that over 200 Wiradjuri died (about 10% of the population) however, many of the killings were not reported.
My one quibble is that the book refers to some engagements in several places, making it slightly confusing.
June 18, 2025
Great detailed historical book. Read after reading Anita Heiss book Dirrayawadha. This was mentioned as one of the source books. Got a bit boring towards the end with the repeated battles and confusing back and forward in time.
June 27, 2024
Fascinating book focused on interactions between the Australian Indigenous Wiradyuri tribe and settlers. It’s in Bathurst, west of Sydney and the Blue Mountains, and is basically 200 years from today, as the action culminates in 1824.
For me, it was an interesting example of how history repeats itself. People seem similar in the way they argue and react. Author Stephen Gapps shows that there were voices at the time that acknowledge the insane expectation to take abundant land from people and expect (not care) that they survive with no resources and then be angry when there is push back.
Of course, things escalate and that voice becomes lost amongst emotion, exaggeration, and anger when the black people kill shepherds and stock. There are cries for revenge to instil fear to stop this push back. Outrage wins.
Author Stephen Gapps is of the belief that the British military did not commit massacres, as he points to no evidence of it, but feels they are nonetheless implicated in the outcome due to their leniency in allowing people to walk free when a black person (considered a British subject) was killed which may make others think it is ok. Also that the government allows militia law in response to the uprising which saw groups of non-army men without the high expectations of behaviour (ex-convicts/employees) arm themselves and seek retribution as some sort of game, and not investigate/record the following large death toll.
It shows how this could take place quietly in the remote and vast bush area.
The book negates narratives that Indigenous were helpless and unintelligent, showing their mastery in life and conflict (warriors). They appeared to be a valiant opponent and if it were not for the immediate deadliness of guns that they were up against, they may even have had a chance to cause more havoc (Amusingly, it was major cause for concern when Indigenous occasionally stole and were therefore armed with guns themselves).
It was interesting to read how the push back of Indigenous warriors (including women and children) had an impact on local settlement, where they succeeding in momentarily pausing the ever-continuing settler expansion. You get a sense that settlers having just moved into the area were vulnerable and somewhat outnumbered. In this story, the Indigenous are the underdog with some hopeful moments of success but of course, living in the future, we know the ultimate outcome.
The books shows that relations were convivial between Indigenous and settlers and it makes you wonder about the different future that could have been, had they been respected. But the focus of money, growth, power and control seem to be the major influences then as they are today.
I read this on a day off. It was a lot to take in but with so many names (typical with historical accounts) it gets hard to keep track of so it was good to read it in a short time to remember it all. I felt the research was told in an enjoyable, narrative style. It did require concentration and it made me aware of how difficult it is to form a certain picture of the past, and the holes we don’t know. I feel like I learned a lot about these times.
For me, it was an interesting example of how history repeats itself. People seem similar in the way they argue and react. Author Stephen Gapps shows that there were voices at the time that acknowledge the insane expectation to take abundant land from people and expect (not care) that they survive with no resources and then be angry when there is push back.
Of course, things escalate and that voice becomes lost amongst emotion, exaggeration, and anger when the black people kill shepherds and stock. There are cries for revenge to instil fear to stop this push back. Outrage wins.
Author Stephen Gapps is of the belief that the British military did not commit massacres, as he points to no evidence of it, but feels they are nonetheless implicated in the outcome due to their leniency in allowing people to walk free when a black person (considered a British subject) was killed which may make others think it is ok. Also that the government allows militia law in response to the uprising which saw groups of non-army men without the high expectations of behaviour (ex-convicts/employees) arm themselves and seek retribution as some sort of game, and not investigate/record the following large death toll.
It shows how this could take place quietly in the remote and vast bush area.
The book negates narratives that Indigenous were helpless and unintelligent, showing their mastery in life and conflict (warriors). They appeared to be a valiant opponent and if it were not for the immediate deadliness of guns that they were up against, they may even have had a chance to cause more havoc (Amusingly, it was major cause for concern when Indigenous occasionally stole and were therefore armed with guns themselves).
It was interesting to read how the push back of Indigenous warriors (including women and children) had an impact on local settlement, where they succeeding in momentarily pausing the ever-continuing settler expansion. You get a sense that settlers having just moved into the area were vulnerable and somewhat outnumbered. In this story, the Indigenous are the underdog with some hopeful moments of success but of course, living in the future, we know the ultimate outcome.
The books shows that relations were convivial between Indigenous and settlers and it makes you wonder about the different future that could have been, had they been respected. But the focus of money, growth, power and control seem to be the major influences then as they are today.
I read this on a day off. It was a lot to take in but with so many names (typical with historical accounts) it gets hard to keep track of so it was good to read it in a short time to remember it all. I felt the research was told in an enjoyable, narrative style. It did require concentration and it made me aware of how difficult it is to form a certain picture of the past, and the holes we don’t know. I feel like I learned a lot about these times.
July 29, 2023
'But we must also remember that the gudyarra around Bathurst during the early 1820s was not just a series of massacres. Far from it – it was a period of all-out resistance warfare that was only put down by massacres.'
Ground-breaking history about a 200 year-old war of Indigenous resistance on the NSW Western Plains that has been air-brushed from white Australian historical memory. An essential contribution to the wider literature about Australia's Frontier Wars - which, as one Wiradyuri elder suggested to the author, might be better called the "Homeland Wars" because they involved Aboriginal resistance to British invasion.
'A defining feature of the Bathurst War was that the British response to conflict was spearheaded by the demands of large land-holders. Convict stockworker transgressions of Wiradyuri law relating to women ignited much of the conflict, but the unfettered march of ‘large Capital’ (as the Australian Agricultural Company and Earl Bathurst called it) west of the Blue Mountains could not be jeopardised. It is no coincidence that the people prominent in killings and massacres, such as Antonio Roderigo and Theophilus Chamberlain, were supported or directly employed by the most vociferous and uncompromising of the wealthy pastoralists who had invested heavily in the Bathurst Plains region – men such as William Cox. And it is no coincidence that the Wiradyuri attacks were aimed at the heart of this colonial enterprise: the sheep, the cattle and the pastoral empires.
January 26, 2022
Excellent history of Wiradyuri war against colonial invasion of Bathurst plains. Draws on military examination of the British and colonial responses and Wiradyuri tactics drawing on colonial records. Evidence that Wiradyuri defences jeopardised the viability of the colony and its capacity to attract private British investment for its colonial pastoral expansion that followed. Gapps demonstrates that cattle led the expansion and threat to their food supplies and were targeted and rustled in the defence by a people alleged to be non-pastoral non-agrarian.
Draws together newspaper (Gazette) and personal journals demonstrating the likely brutality of convict and pastoralist massacres underreported and recorded in official records but held within Aboriginal oral traditions. Provides a background for the level of denial and antipathy towards prior owners of the land taken over by exploitative pastoralists, their convicts shepherds and early settler population. This history dictated the tone of race relations in the expanding colony and setting the tone of occupation and genocide and denial which played out from this period.
Draws together newspaper (Gazette) and personal journals demonstrating the likely brutality of convict and pastoralist massacres underreported and recorded in official records but held within Aboriginal oral traditions. Provides a background for the level of denial and antipathy towards prior owners of the land taken over by exploitative pastoralists, their convicts shepherds and early settler population. This history dictated the tone of race relations in the expanding colony and setting the tone of occupation and genocide and denial which played out from this period.
October 20, 2024
This is an important book to read as it described what happened invaders moved across the country. It highlights that there was active resistance to land being taken. This information is crucial for truth telling.
I read this after reading Dirrayawadha as it was mentioned as relevant reading.
I read this after reading Dirrayawadha as it was mentioned as relevant reading.
December 25, 2021
This is thematic Australian history at it's finest. History that matters, for our past and future, written in an engaging yet precise manner.
May 26, 2022
Three and a half stars
November 5, 2022
Very interesting. I had never heard of this aboriginal war of resistance in the Bathurst area in 1822-24. Very balanced. We need more books like this about the Frontier Wars
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews