Convicts in the Colonies: Transportation Tales from Britain to Australia
The most interesting part of Convicts in the Colonies is the section about the English and Irish convicts who were sentenced to be transported to Australia but never got there. Offenders were sentenced to be transported from 1788 to 1868. In the earlier period only about 30% reached Australia, and the proportion never got above 75%. Many convicts received a conditional pardon, allowing them to serve their time in English prisons, but even if not pardoned, most male convicts spent years waiting to be ‘selected’ to go to Australia, either in landward prisons or more often in the notorious hulks moored in the Thames and elsewhere. They often served their time or died of the evil conditions before their ship came in. Even when embarked, shipwreck, mutiny and disease might claim them on the long journey. This is an aspect of transportation not covered in most books.
The rest of the book is mainly a set of convict biographies, illustrating the varying fortunes of those who did reach Australia. This is more familiar ground, but it is helpful source material for those starting out to research the convict years ‘down under’.
