Special Sub-Topic: The First Fleet Click Here To Play: The First Fleet

Who was the commanding officer of the First Fleet?

Captain Arthur Phillip. Captain Phillip was made the first governor of the colony where these convicts were brought. This colony was named New South Wales. Captain John Hunter was second-in-command.

The captain was worried about this disease, so he took plenty of food high in vitamin C content to combat this particular disease. Which disease am I talking about?

Scurvy. In fact, he also grew certain foods on board; beans were grown on dampened strips of cloth.

How many people sailed with the First Fleet?

1,487. It included 759 convicts, 13 children of convicts, 206 marines with 46 members of their families, 20 officials, 210 seamen of the Royal Navy and 233 merchant seamen.

The First Fleet (to Australia) consisted of how many ships?

11. There were two ships from the Royal Navy, six convict ships and three store ships.

Pick the odd one out.

The Charlotte. The Charlotte was a convict carrying ship; all the others were store ships.

Which ship carried only female convicts?

Lady Penrhyn. The Lady Penrhyn carried 101 female convicts.

How many convicts died in the course of the journey?

23. This was an extremely low death rate at that time, attributed to the skills of Captain Phillips.

How many children were born to convict women during the course of the journey?

6. Out of the 6 children, 4 survived.

How long did the journey take?

252 days. 184 days were spent at sea while the rest 68 days were spent in various ports along the way, like Rio de Janeiro, etc.

The First Fleet landed near Sydney Cove.

t. Phillip moved the members of the fleet to this site and the job was completed by January 26 - the day Australians now celebrate as their National day.