A Land of Contradictions
In the 1830s, the fledgling colony of New South Wales stood at a crossroads. Its European inhabitants—convicts, free settlers, and native-born Australians—grappled with competing visions of their future. Some, like the influential William Wentworth, dreamed of a “New Britannia” in the Southern Hemisphere, a proud outpost of British civilization. Others, like the disillusioned naturalist Charles Darwin, saw only a barren and indifferent land, devoid of the cultural richness of Europe.
For recent immigrants, Australia was a place of absence—no grand cathedrals, no ancient universities, no ivy-clad ruins. The land seemed a cultural desert, its harsh sunlight and unfamiliar landscapes offering little comfort to those yearning for home. Yet for the native-born, January 26—the anniversary of the First Fleet’s arrival—was a day of celebration, a chance to assert their faith in Australia’s potential as a future center of civilization.
Faith and Division in a New Land
Religion played a central role in shaping colonial identity. Anglican Bishop William Grant Broughton preached moral reform, warning against the dangers of republicanism and Catholicism. Meanwhile, Catholic Bishop John Bede Polding spoke of Christ’s compassion for the marginalized, including the Indigenous people who had been displaced by European settlement. Yet even Polding privately viewed Australia as spiritually destitute, a land where materialism overshadowed faith.
The Reverend John Dunmore Lang, a fiery Presbyterian minister, dared to imagine an independent Australian republic, though he tempered his radicalism with a belief in divine providence. His vision clashed with the conservative establishment, but it hinted at the growing nationalism among the native-born.
The Myall Creek Massacre and the Limits of Justice
One of the darkest episodes of this era was the Myall Creek massacre of 1838, where a group of white settlers slaughtered 28 Aboriginal men, women, and children. The subsequent trial—the first time white men were prosecuted for killing Indigenous people—exposed deep racial tensions.
Despite overwhelming evidence, the first jury acquitted the accused, with one juror declaring, “I look on the blacks as a set of monkeys.” A retrial secured convictions for seven men, who were hanged—a decision met with outrage by many settlers. The case underscored the brutal reality of frontier violence and the colonial government’s struggle to impose British law on a land where racial hierarchies dictated justice.
The End of Convict Labor and the Rise of Free Migration
By the late 1830s, Britain was moving to abolish convict transportation, viewing it as a form of slavery. The shift toward free immigration promised a more respectable society, but it also threatened the economic interests of wealthy landowners who relied on cheap convict labor.
Assisted migration schemes brought thousands of British workers to Australia, but not all were welcomed. Many native-born Australians resented the newcomers, seeing them as interlopers in a land they considered their own. Meanwhile, the growing immigrant population—including future leaders like Henry Parkes—began shaping a new social order, one less tied to the convict past.
A Legacy of Struggle and Hope
The 1830s were a decade of contradictions—optimism and despair, progress and brutality. The native-born began asserting their identity, while immigrants brought new ideas and labor. The treatment of Indigenous people remained a moral stain, yet the Myall Creek trial offered a fleeting glimpse of accountability.
As the era of convict transportation waned, Australia stood on the brink of transformation. The question remained: Would it become a mere copy of Britain, or something entirely new? The debates of the 1830s laid the foundation for the nation Australia would become—a land shaped by conflict, resilience, and the enduring struggle to define itself.