AustLit

Becke claims the work of sailors in colonising Australia has been overshadowed by tales of the outback and the goldfields. He argues that the ocean is integral to the early history of Australia and points out that the first four governors of Australia were were Navy captains and that much of the outback was peopled by runaway sailors, whom he claims were more skilled and adaptable than ticket-of-leave convicts and free emigrants. He also tells the stories of sea explorers such as Bass and Flinders and the whalers who charted the seas around eastern Australasia and the Pacific, as well as some remarkable tales of survival.