A History of Tasmania

by Henry Reynolds

• ISBN13: 9780521548373
• ISBN10: 0521548373
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-01-09
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

This captivating work charts the history of Tasmania from the arrival of European maritime expeditions in the late eighteenth century, through to the modern day. By presenting the perspectives of both Indigenous Tasmanians and British settlers, author Henry Reynolds provides an original and engaging exploration of these first fraught encounters. Utilising key themes to bind his narrative, Reynolds explores how geography created a unique economic and migratory history for Tasmania, quite separate to the mainland experience. He offers an astute analysis of the island's economic and demographic reality, by noting that this facilitated the survival of a rich heritage of colonial architecture unique in Australia, and allowed the resident population to foster a powerful web of kinship. Reynolds' remarkable capacity to empathise with the characters of his chronicle makes this a powerful, engaging and moving account of Tasmania's unique position within Australian history.

Author Biography

Henry Reynolds is Research Professor in the Department of History and Classics at the University of Tasmania. His previous books include An Indelible Stain?, Nowhere People: How International Race Thinking Shaped Australia's Identity and Why Weren't We Told'.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations	p. viii
Acknowledgements	p. x
Introduction	p. 1
First Meetings, Extraordinary Encounters	p. 5
Van Diemen's Land: Settling in the enviable island	p. 24
The Black War: The tragic fate of the Tasmanian Aborigines	p. 47
An Indelible Stain?	p. 68
The Triumph of Colonisation	p. 88
The Politics of Van Diemen's Land	p. 112
The Convict System	p. 137
Post-penal Depression, 1856-70	p. 164
Reform and Recovery	p. 187
Federation and War	p. 211
Between the Wars	p. 233
Postwar Tasmania	p. 254
Towards the Bicentenary	p. 274
Notes	p. 294
Sources	p. 311
Index	p. 321
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