These landed at Botany Bay, Australia, on Jan. 18, 1788.
Captain Cooke’s British explorers
Abel Tasman’s Dutch explorers
First Americans in Australia
First convict colonists
The first convict colonists. Known as the First Fleet, the 11 small ships departed Portsmouth, England, on May 13, 1787, with 1,403 persons aboard. It arrived at Botany Bay with 1,332 aboard, including 4 children born during the voyage.