Port Phillip Association
Encyclopedia
The Port Phillip Association (originally the "Geelong and Dutigalla Association") was formally formed in June 1835 to settle land in what would become Melbourne, which the association believed had been acquired by John Batman
for the association from Wurundjeri
elders after he had obtained their marks to a document, which came to be known as Batman's Treaty
.
The leading members of the association were John Batman
, a farmer, Joseph Gellibrand
, a lawyer and former Attorney-General, Charles Swanston
, banker and member of the Legislative Council, John Helder Wedge
, surveyor and farmer, Henry Arthur
, nephew of Lieutenant Governor George Arthur
of Van Diemen’s Land, and various others including William Sams
, Under Sherrif and Public Notary for Launceston, Anthony Cottrell
, Superintendant of Roads and Bridges, John Collicott
, Postmaster General, James Simpson
, Commissioner of the Land Bord and police magistrate, John Sinclair, Superintendant of Convicts, Michael Connolly, Thomas Bannister, and John and William Robertson
.
(at the time called Van Diemens Land) formed a company in early 1835 with a view to purchasing a large tract of land from indigenous people who lived on the south coast of Australia, and to there establish a settlement. Gellibrand prepared deeds for the transfer of an interest in the land and which provided for the payment of an annual tribute. John Batman
took copies of the deed with him when he went into Port Phillip
in May 1835, accompanied by some white servants and aborigines from New South Wales
.
in the schooner Rebecca
in May, 1835. In June Batman went up the Yarra River
and noted in his journal “this is the place for a village”. After leaving some men to build a hut and start a garden, Batman and the Rebecca returned to Van Diemen’s Land. Here Batman showed Wedge where he had explored and, from these details, Wedge prepared the first map of Melbourne in June 1835 (published in 1836), showing the location Batman had chosen as the site for the “village” and the division of land between association members.
Batman’s treaty with the aborigines of Port Phillip is the only example of any settlers (official or unofficial) giving recognition to the rights of the aborigines to the land. The members of the Port Phillip Association did not intend the treaty to be a fair commercial transaction, but a means of obtaining permission from the aborigines to avoid resentment (and subsequent violence) after settlement.
For some time Batman's Treaty
, as it came to be called, was assumed by some historians to be a forgery, but the recollections of the aboriginal elder Barak, who was present at the singing of the treaty as a boy, established that Batman, with the aid of his New South Wales
aborigines, did in fact participate in a ceremony with Wurundjeri
elders for permission to settle amongst them. In aboriginal culture, this ceremony was called a tanderem.
The deeds which Batman took back to Van Diemen’s Land were intended not for the aborigines, who had no need of title deeds. Existing British policy (the Nineteen Counties
Order) was designed to prevent such settlement, and Batman hoped to convince the colonial and imperial authorities that the association had entered into a scheme for settling the district which would, it was hoped, avoid bloodshed between whites and blacks. According to Batman’s petition to George Arthur
, he and Wedge would proceed immediately to the district with stock, and only married servants (with their wives) would be allowed to accompany them.
issued a proclamation that effectively voided Batman's treaty, whatever its merits, as the British government did not recognize aboriginal title to the land. This in effect made any potential settlers trespassers, although the governor recognized the need for further action and recommended the establishment of a township and land sales. Batman and the Rebecca had already sailed on the return journey, but spent several weeks at a temporary site at Indented Head. When they returned to the Yarra River site on 2 September, they found the area already occupied by an independent expedition financed by a Launceston businessman, John Pascoe Fawkner
, which had landed on 30 August. The two groups eventually agreed to cooperate in distributing the land in the area, but the sequence of events would provide room for future debate over the credit for Melbourne's founding.
was deciding what steps it should take in relation to the unlawful occupation of this remote and unsettled part of the existing colony of New South Wales
, other settlers from Van Diemen’s Land followed suit, and soon Port Phillip became inundated with stock, squatters and servants, including escaped convicts. Conflict with the aborigines followed. Governor Bourke was authorized to establish a settlement in April 1836, and the town of Melbourne was surveyed and laid out in 1837.
. Most of the members sold out to Charles Swanston
, and the name was changed to the Derwent Company before being dissolved in 1842. The obligations under Batman’s treaty to feed and clothe the aborigines were assumed by the New South Wales colonial government, although proper protection was not afforded, especially in the remote parts of the colony.
John Batman
John Batman was an Australian grazier, businessman and explorer who is best known for his role in the founding of a settlement which became Melbourne and the colony of Victoria.-Life:...
for the association from Wurundjeri
Wurundjeri
The Wurundjeri are a people of the Indigenous Australian nation of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin alliance, who occupy the Birrarung Valley, its tributaries and the present location of Melbourne, Australia...
elders after he had obtained their marks to a document, which came to be known as Batman's Treaty
Batman's Treaty
Batman's Treaty was a document signed on 6 June 1835 by John Batman, an Australian grazier, businessman and explorer, and a group of Wurundjeri elders, for the purchase of land around Port Phillip, near the present site of the city of Melbourne...
.
The leading members of the association were John Batman
John Batman
John Batman was an Australian grazier, businessman and explorer who is best known for his role in the founding of a settlement which became Melbourne and the colony of Victoria.-Life:...
, a farmer, Joseph Gellibrand
Joseph Gellibrand
Joseph Tice Gellibrand was the first attorney-general of Van Diemen's Land .-Early life:Joseph Tice Gellibrand was born in England, second son of William Gellibrand and Sophia Louisa, née Hynde...
, a lawyer and former Attorney-General, Charles Swanston
Charles Swanston
Charles Swanston merchant, banker and politician was a financial backer of the Port Phillip Association. He was born in Berwick upon Tweed, England the son of Robert and Rebecca Swanston...
, banker and member of the Legislative Council, John Helder Wedge
John Helder Wedge
John Helder Wedge was a surveyor, explorer and politician in Van Diemen's Land .Wedge was the second son of Charles Wedge of Shudy Camps, Cambridge, England. John Wedge learned the basics of surveying from his father...
, surveyor and farmer, Henry Arthur
Henry Arthur
Henry Arthur was nephew to the fourth Lieutenant-governor of Van Diemen's Land, George Arthur. He was an original investor in the Port Phillip Association and was the first European to settle in the area now known as Arthurs Creek, Victoria....
, nephew of Lieutenant Governor George Arthur
George Arthur
Lieutenant-General Sir George Arthur, 1st Baronet KCH PC was Lieutenant Governor of British Honduras , Van Diemen's Land and Upper Canada . He also served as Governor of Bombay .-Early life:George Arthur was born in Plymouth, England...
of Van Diemen’s Land, and various others including William Sams
William Sams
William Gardner Sams was appointed Under-Sheriff of Hobart in 1831 and later Sheriff and Commissioner of Insolvency of Launceston, Tasmania in 1840 . He was also one of fifteen investors in the pastoral company Port Phillip Association which played a key role in the foundation of the city of...
, Under Sherrif and Public Notary for Launceston, Anthony Cottrell
Anthony Cottrell
Anthony Cottrell was a farmer and one of fifteen investors in the Port Phillip Association. The son of Ellen and William Cottrell, a farmer living in the South Esk County of Cornwall, Tasmania. He immigrated to Tasmania in 1824 on the 'Cumberland'...
, Superintendant of Roads and Bridges, John Collicott
John Collicott
John Thomas Collicott was a farmer, auctioneer, postmaster of Hobart and one of the original investors in the Port Phillip Association....
, Postmaster General, James Simpson
James Simpson (Tasmanian)
James Simpson was born in England and arrived in Van Diemen's Land in April 1825 on board the 'Elizabeth'....
, Commissioner of the Land Bord and police magistrate, John Sinclair, Superintendant of Convicts, Michael Connolly, Thomas Bannister, and John and William Robertson
William Robertson (Australian pastoralist)
William Robertson was an Australian pastoralist.Born in Scotland and emigrating to Van Diemen's Land he rose to prominence by becoming a member of the Port Phillip Association which led to the first European settlement of Victoria...
.
Objective
Some fifteen of the leading colonists of TasmaniaTasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
(at the time called Van Diemens Land) formed a company in early 1835 with a view to purchasing a large tract of land from indigenous people who lived on the south coast of Australia, and to there establish a settlement. Gellibrand prepared deeds for the transfer of an interest in the land and which provided for the payment of an annual tribute. John Batman
John Batman
John Batman was an Australian grazier, businessman and explorer who is best known for his role in the founding of a settlement which became Melbourne and the colony of Victoria.-Life:...
took copies of the deed with him when he went into Port Phillip
Port Phillip
Port Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...
in May 1835, accompanied by some white servants and aborigines from New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
.
Batman's treaty
Batman sailed from LauncestonLaunceston, Tasmania
Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
in the schooner Rebecca
Schooner Rebecca
The 30-ton sloop Rebecca was launched in 1834, built by Captain George Plummer at his boatyard on the banks of the Tamar River at Rosevears, Van Diemen's Land ....
in May, 1835. In June Batman went up the Yarra River
Yarra River
The Yarra River, originally Birrarung, is a river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches...
and noted in his journal “this is the place for a village”. After leaving some men to build a hut and start a garden, Batman and the Rebecca returned to Van Diemen’s Land. Here Batman showed Wedge where he had explored and, from these details, Wedge prepared the first map of Melbourne in June 1835 (published in 1836), showing the location Batman had chosen as the site for the “village” and the division of land between association members.
Batman’s treaty with the aborigines of Port Phillip is the only example of any settlers (official or unofficial) giving recognition to the rights of the aborigines to the land. The members of the Port Phillip Association did not intend the treaty to be a fair commercial transaction, but a means of obtaining permission from the aborigines to avoid resentment (and subsequent violence) after settlement.
For some time Batman's Treaty
Batman's Treaty
Batman's Treaty was a document signed on 6 June 1835 by John Batman, an Australian grazier, businessman and explorer, and a group of Wurundjeri elders, for the purchase of land around Port Phillip, near the present site of the city of Melbourne...
, as it came to be called, was assumed by some historians to be a forgery, but the recollections of the aboriginal elder Barak, who was present at the singing of the treaty as a boy, established that Batman, with the aid of his New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
aborigines, did in fact participate in a ceremony with Wurundjeri
Wurundjeri
The Wurundjeri are a people of the Indigenous Australian nation of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin alliance, who occupy the Birrarung Valley, its tributaries and the present location of Melbourne, Australia...
elders for permission to settle amongst them. In aboriginal culture, this ceremony was called a tanderem.
The deeds which Batman took back to Van Diemen’s Land were intended not for the aborigines, who had no need of title deeds. Existing British policy (the Nineteen Counties
Nineteen Counties
The Nineteen Counties were the limits of location in the colony of New South Wales defined by the Governor of New South Wales Sir Ralph Darling in 1826 in accordance with a government order from Lord Bathurst, the secretary of State. Counties had been used since the first year of settlement, with...
Order) was designed to prevent such settlement, and Batman hoped to convince the colonial and imperial authorities that the association had entered into a scheme for settling the district which would, it was hoped, avoid bloodshed between whites and blacks. According to Batman’s petition to George Arthur
George Arthur
Lieutenant-General Sir George Arthur, 1st Baronet KCH PC was Lieutenant Governor of British Honduras , Van Diemen's Land and Upper Canada . He also served as Governor of Bombay .-Early life:George Arthur was born in Plymouth, England...
, he and Wedge would proceed immediately to the district with stock, and only married servants (with their wives) would be allowed to accompany them.
Proclamation
On 26 August the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Richard BourkeRichard Bourke
General Sir Richard Bourke, KCB was Governor of the Colony of New South Wales, Australia between 1831 and 1837.-Early life and career:...
issued a proclamation that effectively voided Batman's treaty, whatever its merits, as the British government did not recognize aboriginal title to the land. This in effect made any potential settlers trespassers, although the governor recognized the need for further action and recommended the establishment of a township and land sales. Batman and the Rebecca had already sailed on the return journey, but spent several weeks at a temporary site at Indented Head. When they returned to the Yarra River site on 2 September, they found the area already occupied by an independent expedition financed by a Launceston businessman, John Pascoe Fawkner
John Pascoe Fawkner
John Pascoe Fawkner was an early pioneer, businessman and politician of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. In 1835 he financed a party of free settlers from Van Diemen's Land , to sail to the mainland in his ship, Enterprize...
, which had landed on 30 August. The two groups eventually agreed to cooperate in distributing the land in the area, but the sequence of events would provide room for future debate over the credit for Melbourne's founding.
Unlawful occupation
While the government in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
was deciding what steps it should take in relation to the unlawful occupation of this remote and unsettled part of the existing colony of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, other settlers from Van Diemen’s Land followed suit, and soon Port Phillip became inundated with stock, squatters and servants, including escaped convicts. Conflict with the aborigines followed. Governor Bourke was authorized to establish a settlement in April 1836, and the town of Melbourne was surveyed and laid out in 1837.
Sale and dissolution
The claims of the Port Phillip Association were only recognised to the extent of £7,000, allowed as a reduction on the purchase price of land bought by the association at public auctionPublic auction
A public auction is an auction held on behalf of a government in which the property to be auctioned is either property owned by the government, or property which is sold under the authority of a court of law or a government agency with similar authority....
. Most of the members sold out to Charles Swanston
Charles Swanston
Charles Swanston merchant, banker and politician was a financial backer of the Port Phillip Association. He was born in Berwick upon Tweed, England the son of Robert and Rebecca Swanston...
, and the name was changed to the Derwent Company before being dissolved in 1842. The obligations under Batman’s treaty to feed and clothe the aborigines were assumed by the New South Wales colonial government, although proper protection was not afforded, especially in the remote parts of the colony.