Capture and Life in The British Settlement
Bennelong was brought to the settlement at Sydney Cove in November 1789 by order of the governor Arthur Phillip, who was under instructions from King George III, to establish relationships with the indigenous populations. At that time the Eora conscientiously avoided contact with the newcomers, and in desperation Phillip resorted to kidnap. A man named Arabanoo was captured, but he, like many other Aboriginal people near the settlement, died in a smallpox epidemic a few months later in May 1789. Bennelong (married at the time to Barangaroo) was captured with Colbee (married to Daringa) in November 1789 as part of Governor of New South Wales Arthur Phillip's plan to learn the language and customs of the local people. Colbee soon escaped, but Bennelong stayed in the settlement for about six months. He then escaped also, but renewed contact with Phillip as a free man.
About three months after his escape, he organised for Phillip to visit Manly where he was speared in the shoulder, most likely as payback for the kidnappings. He maintained ongoing good relations with the colony and in a gesture of kinship, gave Phillip the Aboriginal name Wolawaree. He learned to speak English.
In 1790, Bennelong asked the governor to build him a hut on what became known as Bennelong Point, now the site of the Sydney Opera House.
Read more about this topic: Bennelong
Famous quotes containing the words capture, life, british and/or settlement:
“No place is so strongly fortified that money could not capture it.”
—Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 B.C.)
“To see self-sufficiency as the hallmark of maturity conveys a view of adult life that is at odds with the human condition, a view that cannot sustain the kinds of long-term commitments and involvements with other people that are necessary for raising and educating a child or for citizenship in a democratic society.”
—Carol Gilligan (20th century)
“There’s nothing the British like better than a bloke who comes from nowhere, makes it, and then gets clobbered.”
—Melvyn Bragg (b. 1939)
“Before I get through with you, you will have a clear case for divorce and so will my wife. Now, the first thing to do is arrange for a settlement. You take the children, your husband takes the house, Junior burns down the house, you take the insurance and I take you!”
—S.J. Perelman, U.S. screenwriter, Arthur Sheekman, Will Johnstone, and Norman Z. McLeod. Groucho Marx, Monkey Business, terms for a divorce settlement proposed while trying to woo Lucille Briggs (Thelma Todd)