Commodore of the Fleet - Revision history

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 John Hunter recalled many years later that only half of the men were allowed on the upper deck at a time, and it is possible that on some of the ships, a system was introduced to prevent the waist and forecastle from becoming overcrowded.<ref name="ftn33"> John Hunter, Evidence to ‘Report from the Select Committee on Transportation’, Ordered to be Printed 10 July 1812, ''House of Commons Papers: Reports of Committees'', (341) 1812, Appendix 1, 18. If all of the convicts on board the ''Alexander'' were on deck at the same time, 190 men would have been packed into a space that was only 76 feet long and 31 feet wide, which would have seriously limited their opportunities for exercise. And where, as with the ''Charlotte'' and the ''Friendship'', men and women were carried on the same ship, it is highly unlikely they would have been allowed on deck together.</ref> But David Blackburn, the sailing master on the ''Supply'', wrote that the convicts were given permission ‘to come upon deck & take the air whenever they pleas’d during the day’.<ref name="ftn34"> David Blackburn to Richard Knight, 12 July 1788, Letters received by Richard Knight, 12 July 1788 to 19 March 1791, SLNSW Safe 1/120. He had written to his sister from Tenerife: ‘. . . they are not now Confin’d in Irons or kept Below the Decks, Under Certain Restrictions – Except Such As Are Refractory &c’ – David Blackburn to Margaret Blackburn, 5 June 1787. From Rio de Janeiro, he wrote: ‘None of them Are Confin’d in Chains or Even under the Deck by Day, Except Such whose Behaviour Deserves Such Punishment. . .’ David Blackburn to Margaret Blackburn, 2 September1787, both in Blackburn Family, Letters Received from David Blackburn, 1779-1796, SLNSW Safe MLMSS 6937.</ref> And Phillip wrote to Nepean:
-With respect to the convicts, they have been all allowed the liberty of the deck in the day and many of them during the night, which has kept them healthier than could have been expected.<ref name="ftn35"> Phillip to Nepean, 2 September 1787, NA CO201/2/184.</ref>
+"With respect to the convicts, they have been all allowed the liberty of the deck in the day and many of them during the night, which has kept them healthier than could have been expected."<ref name="ftn35"> Phillip to Nepean, 2 September 1787, NA CO201/2/184.</ref>
 Phillip sent written instructions to the masters of the ''Alexander'', the ''Charlotte'', the ''Friendship'' and the ''Scarborough'' a week after sailing, instructing them to strike the fetters from those of the men who were well behaved. (There was no need to send such a message to the other two ships since they were only carrying female convicts.)
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 He visited each of the convict transports while they were in port and spoke to the convicts in person, explaining that he was empowered to make their life more comfortable while they were in the settlement and would look kindly on those who behaved well and made an effort at rehabilitation.<ref name="ftn39"> ‘Letter from an Officer on board the Fleet bound to New South Wales’, ''Whitehall Evening Post'', 26 January 1788.</ref> In a letter written from Rio de Janeiro, a young convict on the ''Scarborough'' explained this policy to his parents:
-Our usage is far more agreeable than I expected it would be; for we have the liberty of the deck from morning until night, and every indulgence that people in our situation could desire. Our Governor has been pleased to pay us a visit, and has promised us that every man shall be encouraged according to his behaviour.<ref name="ftn40"> ‘Copy of a Letter from a Young Man, one of the Convicts in the Fleet sent to Botany Bay, to his Parents’, ''Public Advertiser'', 27 March 1788.</ref>
+"Our usage is far more agreeable than I expected it would be; for we have the liberty of the deck from morning until night, and every indulgence that people in our situation could desire. Our Governor has been pleased to pay us a visit, and has promised us that every man shall be encouraged according to his behaviour."<ref name="ftn40"> ‘Copy of a Letter from a Young Man, one of the Convicts in the Fleet sent to Botany Bay, to his Parents’, ''Public Advertiser'', 27 March 1788.</ref>
 In large part, the low mortality rate on the First Fleet can be attributed to this liberal policy on the part of the commodore.

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 Historians have long recognised Phillip’s great attention to detail in commissioning the First Fleet. In early October 1786, shortly after he was appointed, Phillip took time to think through the management of the convicts in the course of the voyage and later in the settlement. While these initial thoughts were understandably immature, they tell us a great deal about his mindset at this early stage:
-The confining of the convicts on board the ships requires some consideration. Sickness must be the consequence of so long a voyage (six months may be allowed for the voyage, that is from the time of leaving England to the arrival in Botany Bay), and disagreeable consequences may be feared, if they have the liberty of the deck. The sooner the crimes and behaviour of these people are known the better, as they may be divided and the greatest villains particularly guarded against in one transport. . .
+"The confining of the convicts on board the ships requires some consideration. Sickness must be the consequence of so long a voyage (six months may be allowed for the voyage, that is from the time of leaving England to the arrival in Botany Bay), and disagreeable consequences may be feared, if they have the liberty of the deck. The sooner the crimes and behaviour of these people are known the better, as they may be divided and the greatest villains particularly guarded against in one transport. . .
-During the passage, when light airs or calms permit, I shall visit the transports to see that they are kept clean and receive the allowance ordered by government, and at these times shall endeavour to make them sensible of their situation, and that their happiness or misery is in their own hands; that those who behave well will be rewarded by being allowed to work occasionally on the small lots of land set apart for them, and which they will be put in possession of at the expiration of the time for which they are transported.’<ref name="ftn8"> NA CO201/2, 88-93.</ref>
+"During the passage, when light airs or calms permit, I shall visit the transports to see that they are kept clean and receive the allowance ordered by government, and at these times shall endeavour to make them sensible of their situation, and that their happiness or misery is in their own hands; that those who behave well will be rewarded by being allowed to work occasionally on the small lots of land set apart for them, and which they will be put in possession of at the expiration of the time for which they are transported."<ref name="ftn8"> NA CO201/2, 88-93.</ref>
 Phillip’s persistent intervention throughout the commissioning of the fleet has also been noted. It is unlikely that he would have had the authority to detain the ships in order to ensure that the preparations were adequate, but he certainly took advantage of the delay caused by legal complications to work through details that had been overlooked.
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 In a final letter to his friend, Evan Nepean, the under-secretary of the Home Office, written on Friday 11 May 1787, days before sailing, Phillip apologised for having been so demanding:
-Once more I take my leave of you, fully sensible of the trouble you have had in this business, for which at present I can only thank you; but at a future period, when this country feels the advantages from our intended settlement, you will enjoy a satisfaction that will I am sure make you ample amends.<ref name="ftn9"> Phillip to Nepean, 11 May 1787, NA CO 201/2, 154-5.</ref>
+"Once more I take my leave of you, fully sensible of the trouble you have had in this business, for which at present I can only thank you; but at a future period, when this country feels the advantages from our intended settlement, you will enjoy a satisfaction that will I am sure make you ample amends."<ref name="ftn9"> Phillip to Nepean, 11 May 1787, NA CO 201/2, 154-5.</ref>
 ''The Sea Provisions''
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 The most that the Navy Board would do was to write to William Richards, advising him of Phillip’s concerns and asking him to conform to the commodore’s wishes as far as possible.<ref name="ftn12"> Navy Board Minutes, 28 February 1787, NA ADM106/2623; Navy Board to Richards, 28 February 1787, NA ADM106/2347, 208. Phillip was unhappy with this response and immediately wrote to the Home Office seeking authority to alter the provisions. Nepean passed this letter on to the Navy Board, who responded yet again that they were unable to alter the contract, although they did agree to recommend to the contractor that he issue flour in preference to rice for as long as it lasted - Phillip to Nepean, 1 March 1787, NA CO/201/2, 114-5; HRNSW vol.1:2, 54-5; Navy Board Minutes , 2 March 1787, NA ADM106/2623; Navy Board to Phillip, 2 March 1787, NA ADM106/2347, 209-210.</ref> Phillip was furious and after stewing over it for several days, sent a formal protest to Lord Sydney, in the hope of protecting his reputation.
-The contracts for the garrison and convicts were made before I ever saw the Navy Board on this business, and tho’ I never have had it in my power officially to interfere in any respect, yet I have repeatedly pointed out the consequences that must be expected from the men’s being crowded on board such small ships, and from victualling the marines according to the contract, which allows no flour, as is customary in the Navy. This must be fatal to many, and the more so as no anti-scorbutics are allowed on board the transports for either marine or convict; in fact, my Lord, the garrison and convicts are sent to the extremity of the globe as they would be sent to America - a six weeks’ passage.
+"The contracts for the garrison and convicts were made before I ever saw the Navy Board on this business, and tho’ I never have had it in my power officially to interfere in any respect, yet I have repeatedly pointed out the consequences that must be expected from the men’s being crowded on board such small ships, and from victualling the marines according to the contract, which allows no flour, as is customary in the Navy. This must be fatal to many, and the more so as no anti-scorbutics are allowed on board the transports for either marine or convict; in fact, my Lord, the garrison and convicts are sent to the extremity of the globe as they would be sent to America - a six weeks’ passage.
-I see the critical situation I may be in, after losing part of the garrison that is at present very weak when the service for which it is intended is considered; but I am prepared to meet difficulties, and I have only one fear - I fear, my Lord, that it may be said hereafter the officer who took charge of the expedition should have known that it was more than probable he lost half the garrison and convicts, crowded and victualled in such a manner for so long a voyage. And the public, believing it rested with me, may impute to my ignorance or inattention what I have never been consulted in, and which never coincided with my ideas, to avoid which is the purpose of this letter; and I flatter myself your Lordship will hereafter point out the situation in which I have stood thro’ the whole of this business, should it ever be necessary.<ref name="ftn13"> Phillip to Sydney, 12 March 1787, NA CO201/2, 120-1; HRNSW vol.1:2, 56-7.</ref>
+"I see the critical situation I may be in, after losing part of the garrison that is at present very weak when the service for which it is intended is considered; but I am prepared to meet difficulties, and I have only one fear - I fear, my Lord, that it may be said hereafter the officer who took charge of the expedition should have known that it was more than probable he lost half the garrison and convicts, crowded and victualled in such a manner for so long a voyage. And the public, believing it rested with me, may impute to my ignorance or inattention what I have never been consulted in, and which never coincided with my ideas, to avoid which is the purpose of this letter; and I flatter myself your Lordship will hereafter point out the situation in which I have stood thro’ the whole of this business, should it ever be necessary."<ref name="ftn13"> Phillip to Sydney, 12 March 1787, NA CO201/2, 120-1; HRNSW vol.1:2, 56-7.</ref>
 The Home Secretary was unmoved and the Navy Board refused to write to the Treasury recommending changes to the contract. In late April, when Phillip discovered that 17 more convicts had been embarked than had been catered for, he communicated his concerns to Middleton once again. The Navy Board replied that no supplementation was necessary since it was expected that a number of the convicts would die in the passage.<ref name="ftn14"> Navy Board Minutes, 25 April 1787, NA ADM106/2623.</ref>

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	<center>'''Gary L. Sturgess'''</center>		<center>'''Gary L. Sturgess'''</center>
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		+	<center>'''Paper delivered to the Arthur Phillip Symposium'''</center>
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		+	<center>'''Museum of Sydney, 5 September 2014'''</center>