Settlement and Colonisation: Life in the Colonies

Supported by archival footage and historian interviews, this clip identifies values and attitudes in the past about race. At the time of colonisation, white Europeans saw themselves as a superior race and Aboriginal Australians as an inferior race. This perspective influenced ideas like terra nullius and subsequent policies that affected the treatment of Aboriginal groups during this time period.

The majority of Australia's first bushrangers were convicts who escaped harsh punishment working in chain gangs or penal stations. When these convicts escaped, they had to find a way to survive in the Australian bush.

In colonial days, the governors had the right to sell, rent and grant land as they pleased. This video looks at the different types of land rights and explains the differences between squatters and selectors.

The sea journey from Britain to Australia was a long one. Crowded conditions and not enough fresh food often led to diseases and many convicts arrived in the colonies already ill. Learn about one of these hospitals, the General “Rum” Hospital in Sydney, and how some boy convicts conspired to get themselves admitted there.

Filmed on location at Old Sydney Town, complete with period costumes and re-enactments, our narrator tours us through key streets and buildings, sharing anecdotes and building methods along the way. We look at: Government House, Rocks Row, the Bonded Store, the Dockyards, military barracks and Dawes Point observatory.

The life of convicts was hard. They were controlled in what they did, what they wore, and what they ate. This video looks at the restrictions they faced, as well as the consequences of good and bad behaviour.

Settlers, although free, faced many hardships. This video looks at early Australian settler life - what their huts were like, how they farmed, cooked and cleaned, and how they travelled around the early colony.

Early Australian towns were built around shipping ports. New areas had to be settled to facilitate farming, and the evolution of the railways and the discovery of gold further transformed our early towns and cities.

Western Australia became Australia's first free colony. This video traces the state's history from its first European discovery by a Dutch explorer, its later settlement by the British as a penal colony, and its path to becoming self-regulating.

The state of Tasmania, once known as Van Diemen's Land, has a long and interesting history. This video looks at its first European discovery by a Dutch explorer, its later settlement by the British as a penal colony, and its path of evolution into a modern Australian state.

In the 1800s, it was common practice for European settlers to clear trees and bush for the purpose of growing crops and farming animals. This video looks at this historical practice and the detriment that it had on Australian land.

The 1800s was a century of European settlement and fundamental change to the Australia that existed prior. Foreign plants and animals were introduced to make Australia more like Britain. This video looks at the impact this had on Australia's unique native plants and animals.

Rabbits were first introduced to make Australia more like England but their presence has been both a scourge and a boon. Farmers and native animals have been devastated while some industries are dependent on them for their livelihood.