Watkin Tench

Watkin Tench (1758–1833) was a British Marine officer and author whose published accounts describe the First Fleet’s voyage and the early years of the penal colony at New South Wales.

A Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay: Watkin Tench’s 1789 account of the voyage of the First Fleet and its arrival in New South Wales. This book records the expedition that carried Tench and the first convicts to Botany Bay.
Royal Marines: The naval infantry force of the British armed services, established in 1755. Tench served as an officer in this force during the First Fleet expedition.
Arthur Phillip: The Royal Navy officer who became the first governor of New South Wales in 1788. Phillip led the colony in which Tench served as a Marine officer.
Historical source: A document, object, or testimony used to investigate the past. Tench’s books are sources for reconstructing early colonial events and daily life.
History of Australia: The study and account of the human past in the Australian continent and its surrounding islands. Tench’s books document the British colony’s beginnings in Australia.
A Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson: Watkin Tench’s 1793 narrative of the early years of the British settlement at Port Jackson. Tench’s second major work follows the colony beyond its initial landing.
American Revolutionary War: The 1775–1783 war in which thirteen British colonies in North America became independent. Tench served in North America before his later deployment to New South Wales.
Bennelong: A Wangal man who became an intermediary between Aboriginal people and the British at Port Jackson. Tench’s account includes Bennelong and the interactions he helped mediate.
First-person narrative: An account told by a narrator who presents events from personal experience. Tench writes as an officer who witnessed the expedition and settlement.
British colonization of Australia: The establishment and expansion of British settlements and rule across Australia from 1788. Tench’s narratives preserve evidence from the first phase of British settlement.

Linked from 2 pages