A Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson

A Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson is a book by Watkin Tench, first published in 1793. Written by a British Marine officer who took part in the First Fleet, the book provides a detailed eyewitness account of the founding of the penal colony at Port Jackson, now Sydney. Tench records the voyage to New South Wales, the arrival of the fleet, and the formidable challenges faced by the early settlers in an unfamiliar land. The narrative describes daily life in the fledgling colony, including the struggles with food shortages, harsh discipline, disease, and the difficulties of establishing order among convicts and soldiers alike. Tench offers clear observations on the physical landscape, climate, wildlife, and the practical realities of survival in early Australia, making the work one of the most valuable primary sources on the beginnings of British settlement. Of particular significance are Tench’s observations of the Aboriginal peoples of the Sydney region. His descriptions of early contact, language, customs, and interactions between Indigenous Australians and the colonists are among the earliest recorded, and remain historically important, even as they reflect the attitudes and limitations of an eighteenth-century British officer. Combining personal experience with careful observation, A Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson stands as a foundational text of Australian colonial history. It is essential reading for those interested in the First Fleet, convict life, early Sydney, and firsthand accounts of the British Empire’s expansion into the South Pacific.