By sending Sir Arthur Phillip and the first batch of convicts to explore Australia, the British government had little idea where these people were going. The only reliable information about the new southern land in 1787 could be considered the report of Captain James Cook, made by him, however, 18 years before the arrival of the first English fleet in Australia.

The brilliant discoverer described in detail everything that he managed to see on the amazing continent of Aborigines and kangaroos. The only drawback was that all of these descriptions concerned an exceptionally narrow strip of the east coast of the continent from present Sydney to a large barrier reef and Carpentaria Bay. Of course, Cook did not reach the interior of the mainland. After all, he was still a navigator, and did not have the opportunity to explore such a large land. In fairness, it should be noted that even if he tried to do this, he would most likely fail. Continue reading →