“New South Wales did not begin as a penal colony; it is better to think of it beginning as a colony of convicts… Why wasn't early New South Wales a penal colony? The short answer is that British officials in 1786 could not conceive of such a beast: a society of wardens and prisoners designed for punishment and control, as the French ran much later on Devil's Island.”

Australian History in 7 Questions (2014)

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John Hirst15

Australian historian 1942–2016

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