Second Fleet (Australia) facts for kids

The Second Fleet was the name given to a group of ships that sailed from England to Australia. These ships carried new settlers, people sent as punishment (called convicts), and important supplies for the young colony at Sydney Cove in Port Jackson, Australia.

There were six ships in total: one Royal Navy escort ship, four ships carrying convicts, and one ship with supplies. The plan was for all the ships to sail together and arrive in Sydney Cove in 1789. However, the escort ship was damaged on the way and never made it. Also, one of the convict ships was delayed and arrived two months after the others.

Unlike the First Fleet, where a lot of effort was made to keep the convicts healthy, the Second Fleet was managed by private companies. These companies kept the people in very bad conditions. When the ships finally reached Sydney, many of the people were very sick. This made things even harder for the colony, which was already struggling.

The Ships of the Second Fleet

Here's a look at the ships that made up the Second Fleet:

Ship	Image	Type	Departed England	Arrived Sydney	Male Convicts (Arrived/Boarded)	Female Convicts (Arrived/Boarded)
Lady Juliana		Convict transport	29 July 1789	3 June 1790	n/a	222 (226)
Guardian		Converted gun ship (also carried convicts)	12 September 1789	Damaged on the way	20 (25)	n/a
Justinian		Supply ship	28 June 1789	15 April 1790
Surprize		Convict transport	19 January 1790	26 June 1790	218 (254)	n/a
Neptune		Convict transport	19 January 1790	27 June 1790	? (421) + 12 from Guardian	? (78)
Scarborough		Convict transport	19 January 1790	28 June 1790	180 (253) + 8 from Guardian	n/a
TOTAL					859 (973)	300 (304)

The Journey and Conditions

The ship Lady Juliana sailed earlier than the other convict ships. Because of this, it is sometimes not fully counted as part of the Second Fleet. The supply ship Justinian also sailed separately and arrived before the main group of convict ships. HMS Guardian started its journey before the convict ships but hit ice after leaving the Cape of Good Hope. It had to turn back to southern Africa and was wrecked on the coast.

The ships Surprize, Neptune, and Scarborough were sent by a company called "Camden, Calvert & King." This company was paid a fee for each person they transported, whether the person arrived alive or not. This company had previously been involved in transporting enslaved people to North America. The only government officials on these ships were a naval agent and the Captain of the Guard. All other crew members were provided by the company.

The main part of the Second Fleet left England on January 19, 1790. They carried 1,006 convicts (928 men and 78 women). They stopped only once on their journey, at the Cape of Good Hope. Here, 20 male convicts who had survived the Guardian disaster were taken aboard. The three ships made a faster trip than the First Fleet. They arrived at Port Jackson in the last week of June 1790. This was three weeks after Lady Juliana and one week after the supply ship Justinian.

Even though the trip was fast, a very large number of people died. This was the highest death rate in the history of sending people to Australia as punishment. Out of the 1,026 people who left, 267 (256 men and 11 women) died during the voyage. This means about 26% of the people did not survive.

On the ship Neptune, the people were not given enough food. They were often kept tied up with chains and rarely allowed to come up onto the deck. Many of them became very sick with a disease called scurvy. On Scarborough, people were fed, but after a reported attempt by some to take over the ship, they were kept locked up below deck.

Captain William Hill, who was the Captain of the guard, later wrote that the ship captains did not give the people enough food. He believed they wanted to save the food to sell it in another country. They might have wanted people to die quickly so they wouldn't have to use food on them.

Arriving in Sydney

When the ships arrived in Sydney, many of the people were very ill. They were often half-naked and too sick to move. Those who could not walk were sometimes thrown over the side of the ship. Everyone was covered with lice. At least 486 of the people were sick, which was about 47% of those who had left England. The others were described as "thin and weak" and looking "more terrible than anything seen before in this country."

Some notable people on the Second Fleet included D'Arcy Wentworth and his partner Catherine Crowley, who were on the Neptune. Also, John Macarthur, a young officer in the New South Wales Corps, and his wife Elizabeth Macarthur were on the Scarborough. John Macarthur's oldest son, Edward Macarthur, is thought to be the only person from the Second Fleet journey for whom we have a photograph. He was also the last survivor of that voyage.

When news of the terrible conditions of the Second Fleet reached England, both the public and the government were very upset. An investigation was held. However, no one was arrested or charged by the government, including the captains or the company that managed the ships. In fact, the government had already hired them to prepare the Third Fleet to sail to Port Jackson in 1791.

Some people tried to take Captain Donald Traill of the Neptune and his Chief Mate, William Ellerington, to court privately. However, after a short trial, the jury decided they were not responsible.

Images for kids

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  The Lady Juliana ship.

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  HMS Guardian in distress.

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  The Neptune convict ship.

See Also

• First Fleet
• Third Fleet