Eora tribe's contact with British settlers

Eora tribe's life before settlement

Before British invasion, the Eora tribe was widely built upon the sea as a way of living. They did not have a strong agricultural lifestyle, rather relying on sea animals in order to survive. The Eora tribe was skilled in fishing and gathering food close to shore, in bark canoes like the one pictured in the photo. However, in the summer, the Eora tribe chose not to eat sea food, rather eating some animals native to Australia such as kangaroos, wallabies, fruit bats and echidnas. This shows that the Eora tribe were heavily reliant on the natural land and sea for their food, as they hunted what was already there rather than growing their own. Eora tribe women also used natural herbs as a natural herbal remedy for sicknesses. The Eora people did not wear clothes, therefore relying on fires brought along with them on their canoes for warmth, insect repellant, and light in order to fish later than usual. The Eora tribe also lived in huts made out of branches and sticks, as well as caves. They stayed in these campsites for months at a time. When members of the tribe passed away, they were treated differently depending on their age. The younger members of the tribe were buried with items believed to have served importance in their life, whereas the older members were cremated (Wikipedia paragraph 3)

Common Challenges

Aboriginal woman in a canoe fishing with a line

Circa 1805, accessed at

https://www.sydneybarani.com.au/sites/aboriginal-people-and-place/

Before British settlement

Brittish discovery of Botany Bay

Captain cook describes the discovery of Botany bay, or where the Eora tribe was settled as a small dispute. The Eora tribe was described to oppose the entry of captain Cook, shooting darts at their ship before muskets were fired at them, causing them to flee. He described the process of throwing them items to try gain their trust. Captain cook saw this as them accepting the gifts and they began going to shore. Shortly after this, the Eora tribe began to oppose them, before Cook fired a musket shot causing them to flee. The Eora tribe reacted to this situation in a way that shows them as confused. They didn’t communicate very well, as well as reacting violently by shooting darts at the visitors when in an attempt to try get onto land. He described encounters with members of the tribe, always ending in the tribe members running away. He described the abundance of the large oyster shells which the Eora tribe used as dishes for food. He also described the Eora tribe’s fires which cooked mussels, showing the tribe’s reliance on seafood for food. He described the huts that 4/5 children inside, as ‘’Small hutts made of the bark on trees”.

Market Trends

Diary of captain Cook, circa 1770

Brittish Communications with the Eora tribe

Solutions

Portrait of Bennelong, circa >1860

Accessed at

https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/collection-items/portrait-bennelong

Bennelong was a member of the Eora tribe. Authur Phillip, in an attempt to learn the customs and religions, and establish peace kidnapped Bennalong, as the tribe fled whenever an attempt was made to communicate. Bennalong lived in Authur’s British settlement for several months after being captured, before slipping off and rejoining his tribe. Four months after Bennalong’s escape, he was sighted in Manly Cove (Wikipedia paragraph ). After Phillip was notified of this, he prepared a wale feast before attempting to communicate with Bennalong. Bennalong, however, was in a group of many warriors. When Phillip extended his hand for a handshake, he was speared in the shoulder. Phillip then ordered for no retaliation, and was taken back to his settlement, where Bennalong came to visit him. They atoned for their misdoings, and reestablished a friendship. After this, Authur build him a hut, which was known as Bennalong point. The Sydney Opera house now stands in its place. Bennalong was a key figure when it came to communications with the British settlement, as they may have lived alongside eachother with ill intentions.

Problems during settlement

Working Together

During the early stages of British colonization, there were many problems faced with the native Australians and the Eora tribe. The British shared the coastlines with the Aboriginals, oftentimes provoking interaction. A bounty was placed on aboriginal’s bodies, as if the diseases introduced by these settlers wasn’t bad enough. The British often trespassed in the Eora tribe’s land, possibly influencing swift spread of diseases. These diseases ravished many aboriginal tribes, along with the constant legal and encouraged murder of aboriginals. It is estimated that 50-90 percent of tribe members died in the area of arrival in the first 3 years of colonization. The Eora tribe, being mostly okay with the British colonisers, only had to worry about disease such as chicken pox. Although these diseases may seem not too bad to us, these members had no previous experience of these diseases, therefore had no immune system to help battle the disease, oftentimes ending in fatal consequences.

Brittish settlers scaring away natives, circa >1850

Whats happened to the Eora tribe?

Map of Australian tribes

accessed : http://www.indigenousinstyle.com.au/australian-aboriginal-map/

Working Together

The Eora tribe has largely faded away since the British invasion. The Eora tribe had a population of approx. 2000 according to Bennalong, and has since vanished or been merged with other tribes. The settlement of British, while not too violent towards the Eora tribe, still had very negative repercussions, of disease, and even starvation due to lack of fish in the shared coasts. The deculturing of aboriginals has only stopped a century ago, of when the stolen generation happened. The Eora tribe is now a memory of the past, a reminder of what settlement and colonization has done to the majority of aboriginal tribes. Although the tribe has been eradicated due to a series of unfortunate events, the memories live on as we try to understand the simplest form of living taken on by the Eora tribe.

Bibliography

Working Together

Australian indigenous tribes. (2019). Retrieved from http://www.indigenousinstyle.com.au/australian-aboriginal-map/

Aboriginal people and place - Barani. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.sydneybarani.com.au/sites/aboriginal-people-and-place/

Portrait of Bennelong. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/collection-items/portrait-bennelong

Bennelong. (2019). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bennelong

Eora. (2019). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eora