Michael's Curious World
@michaeloz.bsky.social
How did the grim convict penal colony of New South Wales turn into Australia, one of the best true democracies on Earth?
Mary Bryant had a remarkable life. She was the first convict woman to escape the grim penal colony at Sydney, survived a gruelling journey in an open boat to Timor, but both her husband and 2 children died. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
MARY BRYANT - TRAGIC STORY OF FIRST FEMALE CONVICT TO ESCAPE NSW
Mystery gentleman gets her pardoned.
open.substack.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:23 AM
Mary Bryant had a remarkable life. She was the first convict woman to escape the grim penal colony at Sydney, survived a gruelling journey in an open boat to Timor, but both her husband and 2 children died. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Captain James Stirling, first Governor of Western Australia, has the unique distinction of being the only state Governor to personally lead an attack on Aboriginals, in which up to 80 men, women and children were slaughtered at Pinjarra. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
ABORIGINALS THREATEN PERTH COLONY
Killed in bloody Frontier War.
open.substack.com
January 14, 2026 at 9:36 AM
Captain James Stirling, first Governor of Western Australia, has the unique distinction of being the only state Governor to personally lead an attack on Aboriginals, in which up to 80 men, women and children were slaughtered at Pinjarra. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Two fundamentally different societies - about 15,000 Aboriginals and invading British colonials - clashed in the Perth area from 1829 - it was deadly and brutal. This is real history. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
ABORIGINALS THREATEN PERTH COLONY
Killed in bloody Frontier War.
open.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 2:58 AM
Two fundamentally different societies - about 15,000 Aboriginals and invading British colonials - clashed in the Perth area from 1829 - it was deadly and brutal. This is real history. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Perth almost failed as a settlement because the founding Governor, Captain James Stirling, made bad choices about locating it on the narrow, rocky Swan River, the first four ships all ran aground, and the soil was poor for farming.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
MANY PROBLEMS AS PERTH FOUNDED
Governor Stirling determined to found a colony.
open.substack.com
January 1, 2026 at 11:19 PM
Perth almost failed as a settlement because the founding Governor, Captain James Stirling, made bad choices about locating it on the narrow, rocky Swan River, the first four ships all ran aground, and the soil was poor for farming.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
The story of William Buckley, an English carpenter and escaped convict who became a leader of an Aboriginal tribe near what became Melbourne, proves that our lives are not fixed, but we can change to very different societies and succeed in life.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
GOING NATIVE - WILLIAM BUCKLEY, ELIZA FRASER
William loves it, but Eliza Fraser hates native life
open.substack.com
January 1, 2026 at 11:10 AM
The story of William Buckley, an English carpenter and escaped convict who became a leader of an Aboriginal tribe near what became Melbourne, proves that our lives are not fixed, but we can change to very different societies and succeed in life.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
William Buckley, escaped convict, embraced tribal life near Melbourne for 32 years, marrying and becoming a leader. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
GOING NATIVE - WILLIAM BUCKLEY, ELIZA FRASER
William loves it, but Eliza Fraser hates native life
open.substack.com
December 26, 2025 at 9:19 AM
William Buckley, escaped convict, embraced tribal life near Melbourne for 32 years, marrying and becoming a leader. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Just had to verify my age for Bluesky because of Australia's new U16 social media account ban.
Took 3 goes, but apparently I am over 16. I must look younger than I feel!
Took 3 goes, but apparently I am over 16. I must look younger than I feel!
December 19, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Just had to verify my age for Bluesky because of Australia's new U16 social media account ban.
Took 3 goes, but apparently I am over 16. I must look younger than I feel!
Took 3 goes, but apparently I am over 16. I must look younger than I feel!
Large parts of South Australia are named after Edward Eyre, who was a puzzle. Eyre protected Aborigines from attacks by squatters, but as Governor of Jamaica Eyre presided over the slaughter of Jamaican protestors against British rule. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
EDWARD EYRE - A PUZZLE
Loves Aborigines, but kills Jamaicans
open.substack.com
December 18, 2025 at 11:38 PM
Large parts of South Australia are named after Edward Eyre, who was a puzzle. Eyre protected Aborigines from attacks by squatters, but as Governor of Jamaica Eyre presided over the slaughter of Jamaican protestors against British rule. Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Imagine being forced ashore on a rocky beach in remote northern Australia and abandoned to try to survive. That happened to 2 young Dutch mutineers in 1629. Did they survive and go native or were they killed by indigenous warriors? Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
FORCED ASHORE AND ABANDONED
Did they survive and 'go native'?
open.substack.com
December 4, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Imagine being forced ashore on a rocky beach in remote northern Australia and abandoned to try to survive. That happened to 2 young Dutch mutineers in 1629. Did they survive and go native or were they killed by indigenous warriors? Read more here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Captain Louis de Freycinet couldn't bear to leave his new bride Rose behind for 3 years, so he sneaked her on board and they had a wonderful adventure cruise honeymoon around the world to Australia in 1818, all expenses paid by the French Government.
Lovely!
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Lovely!
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
CAPTAIN SNEAKS HIS WIFE ABOARD A FRENCH MILITARY WARSHIP
Captain Louis Freycinet takes his bride for a three-year honeymoon cruising the Pacific.
open.substack.com
November 14, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Captain Louis de Freycinet couldn't bear to leave his new bride Rose behind for 3 years, so he sneaked her on board and they had a wonderful adventure cruise honeymoon around the world to Australia in 1818, all expenses paid by the French Government.
Lovely!
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Lovely!
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Cook and Flinders get publicity, but actually it was Phillip Parker King who mapped the Australian coastline 4 times.
And, King was born in Australia- a local lad made good as an Admiral in the Royal Navy.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
And, King was born in Australia- a local lad made good as an Admiral in the Royal Navy.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
VOYAGES OF PHILLIP KING
Governor Macquarie reforms the troubled colony
open.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 12:36 PM
Cook and Flinders get publicity, but actually it was Phillip Parker King who mapped the Australian coastline 4 times.
And, King was born in Australia- a local lad made good as an Admiral in the Royal Navy.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
And, King was born in Australia- a local lad made good as an Admiral in the Royal Navy.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Why aren't state police arresting ICE agents who commit crimes? Surely ICE agents are subject to state laws such as assault, kidnapping and robbery? They should be arrested, like anyone else would be.
November 1, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Why aren't state police arresting ICE agents who commit crimes? Surely ICE agents are subject to state laws such as assault, kidnapping and robbery? They should be arrested, like anyone else would be.
Harsh penalties, such as two convicts being given 50 lashes for swimming in a river, caused anger and resulted in a violent revolt at Bathurst, which terrorised the colony.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
50 LASHES FOR SKINNY-DIPPING
But the 'Ribbon Boys' lead a rebellion.
open.substack.com
October 31, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Harsh penalties, such as two convicts being given 50 lashes for swimming in a river, caused anger and resulted in a violent revolt at Bathurst, which terrorised the colony.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Explorers saw coastal rivers flowed west from the coast into Australia and guessed there must be a great inland sea, so they searched for, but never found it. This is why:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
JOHN OXLEY SEEKS THE "GREAT INLAND SEA'
But he was millions of years too late to find it.
open.substack.com
October 24, 2025 at 4:15 AM
Explorers saw coastal rivers flowed west from the coast into Australia and guessed there must be a great inland sea, so they searched for, but never found it. This is why:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Two important facts about the Nobel Peace Prize and Trump:
1. The awards just announced were for 2024.
2. Nominations closed on January 31, 2025.
So Trump wasn't eligible for an award.
He can try again for 2025.
1. The awards just announced were for 2024.
2. Nominations closed on January 31, 2025.
So Trump wasn't eligible for an award.
He can try again for 2025.
October 11, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Two important facts about the Nobel Peace Prize and Trump:
1. The awards just announced were for 2024.
2. Nominations closed on January 31, 2025.
So Trump wasn't eligible for an award.
He can try again for 2025.
1. The awards just announced were for 2024.
2. Nominations closed on January 31, 2025.
So Trump wasn't eligible for an award.
He can try again for 2025.
When the British invaded Tasmania in 1804, they wanted to seize the land before the French, and make peace with the Aboriginal owners. That was never going to work, and it didn't. This is how it went tragically wrong:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
INVADING VAN DIEMAN'S LAND
Aborigines near-exterminated in only 70 years
open.substack.com
September 27, 2025 at 1:06 AM
When the British invaded Tasmania in 1804, they wanted to seize the land before the French, and make peace with the Aboriginal owners. That was never going to work, and it didn't. This is how it went tragically wrong:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Australia's only military coup wasn't about politics or principle - it was about rum.
Governor Bligh ordered the arrest of soldiers controlling the rum trade - but they arrested him instead. Read about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Governor Bligh ordered the arrest of soldiers controlling the rum trade - but they arrested him instead. Read about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
THE 'RUM REBELLION'
Australia's only military coup
open.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Australia's only military coup wasn't about politics or principle - it was about rum.
Governor Bligh ordered the arrest of soldiers controlling the rum trade - but they arrested him instead. Read about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Governor Bligh ordered the arrest of soldiers controlling the rum trade - but they arrested him instead. Read about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Imagine a situation so awful that men wept when told they would NOT be hanged because it meant they would have to endure more floggings. That was Norfolk Island penal colony:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
NORFOLK ISLAND: 'HELL IN PARADISE'
Penal colony with horrible history
open.substack.com
September 13, 2025 at 9:47 AM
Imagine a situation so awful that men wept when told they would NOT be hanged because it meant they would have to endure more floggings. That was Norfolk Island penal colony:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
The Irish rebelled against the British authorities at Sydney, intending to seize a ship and sail to freedom, but were massacred by the soldiers in 'The Battle of Castle Hill'. Read all about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
THE IRISH ARE REVOLTING
Slaughter at Castle Hill
open.substack.com
September 5, 2025 at 10:34 AM
The Irish rebelled against the British authorities at Sydney, intending to seize a ship and sail to freedom, but were massacred by the soldiers in 'The Battle of Castle Hill'. Read all about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Matthew Flinders mapped and named Australia.
He explored more of the coastline than anyone before him.
He also recommended calling this continent Australia, not Terra Australis or New Holland.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
He explored more of the coastline than anyone before him.
He also recommended calling this continent Australia, not Terra Australis or New Holland.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
13. MATTHEW FLINDERS
He mapped and named Australia
open.substack.com
August 23, 2025 at 7:00 AM
Matthew Flinders mapped and named Australia.
He explored more of the coastline than anyone before him.
He also recommended calling this continent Australia, not Terra Australis or New Holland.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
He explored more of the coastline than anyone before him.
He also recommended calling this continent Australia, not Terra Australis or New Holland.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
Peace or war was the choice most Aborigines faced when the invading First Fleet landed at Sydney in 1788. Some fought, some fled, some died of smallpox and others tried friendship. Either way, it ended badly.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
12. PEACE OR WAR? BENNELONG AND PEMULWUY
Two very different responses to invasion.
open.substack.com
August 15, 2025 at 2:55 AM
Peace or war was the choice most Aborigines faced when the invading First Fleet landed at Sydney in 1788. Some fought, some fled, some died of smallpox and others tried friendship. Either way, it ended badly.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
In 1788, an invasion fleet set sail from England for Sydney, led by Governor Arthur Phillip.
More than 1400 people depended on Phillip's judgement.
They survived deaths at sea, food shortages, terrible weather, indigenous opposition and crop failures.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
More than 1400 people depended on Phillip's judgement.
They survived deaths at sea, food shortages, terrible weather, indigenous opposition and crop failures.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
11. PHILLIP LEADS A GREAT MIGRATION FLEET
Botany Bay disappoints, so he moves to Port Jackson
open.substack.com
August 8, 2025 at 8:52 AM
In 1788, an invasion fleet set sail from England for Sydney, led by Governor Arthur Phillip.
More than 1400 people depended on Phillip's judgement.
They survived deaths at sea, food shortages, terrible weather, indigenous opposition and crop failures.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
More than 1400 people depended on Phillip's judgement.
They survived deaths at sea, food shortages, terrible weather, indigenous opposition and crop failures.
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
The shipwreck of The Batavia off Western Australia in 1629 became one of the worst maritime disasters ever, with 110 survivors brutally murdered by others. Those responsible were hanged without trial. It's a fascinating story
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
8. BATAVIA 'HORROR'
110 people survived a shipwreck, only to be brutally murdered.
open.substack.com
July 18, 2025 at 10:21 AM
The shipwreck of The Batavia off Western Australia in 1629 became one of the worst maritime disasters ever, with 110 survivors brutally murdered by others. Those responsible were hanged without trial. It's a fascinating story
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
There was acrush of explirerscwho landed on Australia in the 1600s. Their names are on our maps, but they are forgotten. This is their story:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
7. A RUSH OF OBSCURE EXPLORERS
More of the continent mapped
open.substack.com
July 11, 2025 at 9:38 PM
There was acrush of explirerscwho landed on Australia in the 1600s. Their names are on our maps, but they are forgotten. This is their story:
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...
open.substack.com/pub/michaels...