Explorers' Monument (Western Australia) facts for kids
The Maitland Brown Memorial, also known as the Explorers' Monument, is a special monument located in Esplanade Park in Fremantle, Western Australia. It was officially revealed on February 8, 1913.
This monument stands about 6 metres (20 ft) tall. It features a statue of Maitland Brown from the chest up, placed on granite pedestals. The base has five plaques. One plaque shows three explorers: Frederick Panter, James Harding, and William Goldwyer.
Maitland Brown died on July 8, 1905, 7 years before the monument was unveiled. Panter, Harding, and Goldwyer died even earlier, on November 13, 1864, 48 years before the monument's unveiling.
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The monument was ordered by George Julius Brockman, who is shown on one of the plaques. The statue of Brown was created by Pietro Porcelli.
When it was first built, the monument told only one side of the story. It praised the colonists as "intrepid pioneers" (brave explorers) but called the Aboriginal people "treacherous natives." Because of this bias, another plaque was added on April 9, 1994. This new plaque helps to share a more complete history, though the original parts of the monument remain.
Contents
History of the Monument
The story behind the monument involves a difficult period in Western Australian history.
The La Grange Expedition
In 1864, explorers Panter, Harding, and Goldwyer were killed by Aboriginal people while exploring the Kimberley region of Western Australia. When the men did not return, Maitland Brown was asked to lead a search party called the La Grange expedition.
Brown's group found the three men had been speared to death. Two of them seemed to have been killed in their sleep. Soon after, Brown's party killed between six and twenty Aboriginal people. Brown reported this as a battle where his group was ambushed. However, many people since then have described it as a punishment attack, or massacre, on Aboriginal people by the white settlers. The monument itself has even called Brown's group the "punitive party" for many years.
The Original Plaque's Message
One of the first plaques on the monument's base shares the original viewpoint:
This monument was erected by G. J. Brockman as a fellow bush wanderer's tribute to the memory of Panter, Harding and Goldwyer. Earliest explorers after Grey and Gregory of this "Terra Incognita" [this "unknown land"], attacked at night by treacherous natives, were murdered at Boole Boola near Le Grange Bay on the 13th November 1864. Also as an appreciative token of remembrance of Maitland Brown, one of the pioneer pastoralists and premier politicians of this state, intrepid leader of the government search and punitive party. His remains together with the sad relics of the ill fated three recovered at great risk and danger from the lone wilds repose under a public monument in the East Perth Cemetery "lest we forget."
This plaque praises the explorers and Maitland Brown. It describes the Aboriginal people as "treacherous" and calls Brown's group a "punitive party."
Adding a New Perspective
Over time, many people felt that the monument was unfair and racist. They believed it only showed one side of the story and did not respect the Aboriginal people's right to defend their land. For example, it called the colonists "intrepid pioneers" but described Aboriginal people as "treacherous natives."
To try and fix this, a new plaque was added to the monument on April 9, 1994. This new plaque remembers all Aboriginal people who died when their country was taken over. It reads:
This plaque was erected by people who found the monument before you offensive. The monument described the events at La Grange from one perspective only: the viewpoint of the white 'settlers'. No mention is made of the right of Aboriginal people to defend their land or of the history of provocation which led to the explorers' deaths. The 'punitive party' mentioned here ended in the deaths of somewhere around twenty Aboriginal people. The whites were well-armed and equipped and none of their party was killed or wounded. This plaque is in memory of the Aboriginal people killed at La Grange. It also commemorates all
other Aboriginal people who died during the invasion of their country. Lest we forget Mapa jarriya-nyalaku.
This added plaque helps to explain that the original monument only showed the "settlers'" view. It points out that Aboriginal people had a right to defend their land. It also highlights that the "punitive party" killed many Aboriginal people, while none of the white party were harmed. This new plaque serves as a reminder of the Aboriginal lives lost during this period.
See also
- Flying Foam massacre
- Forrest River massacre
- La Grange Bay, Western Australia
- Pinjarra massacre
