First Fleet

11 British ships establishing an Australian penal colony

The First Fleet were eleven British ships which transported a group of settlers to mainland Australia, marking the beginning of the British (and European) colonisation of Australia. It consisted of two Royal Navy vessels, three storeships and six convict transports under the command of Captain Arthur Phillip. On 13 May 1787, the ships, with over 1,400 convicts, marines, sailors, colonial officials, and free settlers onboard, left Portsmouth and travelled over 24,000 kilometres (15,000 mi; 13,000 nmi) and over 250 days before arriving in Botany Bay, New South Wales, on 18 January 1788.

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