Black convicts were sent to Australia on the First Fleet that left England in 1787 and arrived in Australia in 1788. These black people were originally slaves in America who fought for the British in the American war of independence and once the British lost the war, they were resettled in England. There were 11 black men on these ships. Some of them stole a loaf of bread and they were sentenced to 7 years and transportation to Australia.
Dark Convicts - the black former slaves on the First Fleet.
We all know Australia has a black history, but there’s another lesser known way in which his country’s origins are black. On the first fleet there were eleven convicts who were freed slaves from America, and who for various reasons found themselves on a long and dangerous journey to what became the colony of Sydney. Judy Johnson has has not one but two of these black first fleet convicts as her ancestors, and has written a collection of poetry, based on the documents and personal accounts which still exits from that time.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionationa...lack-former-slaves-on-the-first-fleet/8318282
Dark Convicts - the black former slaves on the First Fleet.
We all know Australia has a black history, but there’s another lesser known way in which his country’s origins are black. On the first fleet there were eleven convicts who were freed slaves from America, and who for various reasons found themselves on a long and dangerous journey to what became the colony of Sydney. Judy Johnson has has not one but two of these black first fleet convicts as her ancestors, and has written a collection of poetry, based on the documents and personal accounts which still exits from that time.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionationa...lack-former-slaves-on-the-first-fleet/8318282