Macquarie: From Colony to Country

by Harry Dillon, Peter Butler

Macquarie charts the eventful rule of Lachlan Macquarie, governor of New South Wales from 1810 to late 1821. These were crucial years during which the fate of the colony was in the balance after years of struggle, famine, and strife culminating in a military coup against Governor William Bligh. Under Macquarie's leadership, civil rule and good order were firmly established in the colony, the population grew steadily, the settlement of Australia's vast interior began, and the foundations for the great wool industry were laid. Macquarie carried out an ambitious program of public works that resulted in better roads and other infrastructure, a string of new townships around Sydney, and an array of fine buildings, a number of which still stand today as the most important visual symbols of Australia's colonial heritage. This book is a timely reminder of Macquarie's importance to modern Australians. Macquarie tells this story as narrative history, a fascinating tale of the genesis of a nation and of an extraordinary individual who refused to be confounded by the odds stacked against him. The emphasis is on telling a story about people, their motives, goals, foibles, successes, and disappointments. It is, after all, a great story that is well worth the telling.

Genres: History, Biography, Australia

376 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2010

Reviews

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting insight into one of the leading figures in the development of Australia.

[Gretchen Bernet-Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book, informative and interesting, written with the kind of narrative I wish had been available to me in school many years ago. It would have made classes more thought-provoking and I would have had a deeper understanding of the colony, newly emerging Australia, under Major General Lachlan Macquarie, Governor of NSW.

There are parts in the book which stir the blood "You have yet perhaps to learn that these are the people who have quietly submitted to the Laws and Regulations of the Colony, altho' informed by the Free Settlers and some of the Officers of Government that they were illegal... Macquarie called on the commissioner to transcend his prejudices and 'too refined a sense of moral feeling' and help to secure the prosperity and happiness of the ex-convict colonists."

And "Macquarie knew from personal experience that poverty and wealth were for the most part accidents of birth in the society of his day. He realised, as well, that a man starting off without capital could become a respectable gentleman by gaining a reasonable education, appropriate skills..." too many lasting achievements to list here but what a man, indeed Australia's founding father.

[Mark Green · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit dry but I now know more than I did...

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lachlan Macquarie was the first of the Governors of New South Wales who really cared about the country. He had an empathy for the convicts and tried to give the emancipists opportunities once they had done their time (and many of them were very talented). This was his undoing - he found himself on the wrong side of the 'exclusives' - those who saw themselves as the aristocracy of the colony - many of whom were totally self-serving. They complained bitterly to the Colonial Office in England, sparking the Bigge commission of enquiry, which was never going to find in Macquarie's favour. Macquarie was recalled and fell from grace. Despite this, he is remembered in Australia as the one who laid the foundations for the country, literally and figuratively.

This book tells the story of Macquarie's governorship. It draws extensively on primary and secondary sources and is very readable. Highly recommended.