William Bradley (Royal Navy Officer) - Service in Australia

Service in Australia

During 1788, Bradley did not involve himself directly in colonial affairs, but instead joined John Hunter in extensive operations along the Sydney Harbour coastline. The two men were often away from the colony for extended periods, conducting surveys of the coastline and the lands around. A keen note-taker and sketcher, Bradley compiled many records of his experiences and also developed close relationships with nearby aboriginal tribes. He was an early champion of the original inhabitants, but several experiences later changed his view to one substantially more negative.

In October 1788, Bradley joined a six-month circumnavigation of the globe to collect supplies for the colony from the Cape of Good Hope. Returning in March 1789, Bradley worked on the repair of Sirius, combined with further survey and more observations of the aborigines. During this time, Bradley developed a strong antipathy for the aborigines due to unknown reasons and was involved in the November 1789 raid which captured Colebe and Bennelong, a job he found extremely unpleasant.

In 1790, Sirius and HMS Supply were dispatched to Norfolk Island in search of better food supplies. At Norfolk Island, the ships were caught in a storm and wrecked. Marooned on the island, Bradley his crew conducted extensive surveys of the land during the eleven months spent there. In 1791, Bradley and others returned to Port Jackson and from there took ship to the Philippines and then to Britain. The ships arrived in 1792 and the crews were court martialled for the loss of Sirius, but honourably acquitted.