24th December 1818: John Slater, the final Luddite convict to be deported, arrives in Australia

'View of Sydney Cove from Dawes Point' by Joseph Lycett, c.1817/1818

On Christmas Eve, Thursday 24th December 1818, the transport ship 'The Hadlow' arrived at Port Jackson in Sydney Cove, Australia after a voyage of almost 5 months, carrying a total of 148 convicts.

On board was the notorious Nottinghamshire Luddite, John Slater, who had been convicted as long ago as April 1817 for frame-breaking during the 'Loughborough Job' and sentenced to transportation for life. This was Slater's second trial for the raid, having been acquitted of involvement in August 1816 at the end of an extraordinary trial where the Luddites supporters crowded the court room and intimidated the jury into the right outcome.

The Hadlow had left Woolwich on 2nd August 1818, calling at Sheerness 2 days later to pick up more prisoners from the Hulks there. Two of the original 148 prisoners had died during the voyage.

The Hadlow remained moored at Sydney Cove for the next 10 days, and the prisoners disembarked on 4th January 1819.

Slater's wife had applied to make the journey with her husband to New South Wales with their 5 children, but her name does not appear on the manifest, so it would appear permission was refused.

Slater was the final Luddite convict to be deported.

5th May 1818: The Luddite Samuel Caldwell (aka 'Big Sam') arrives in Australia

'View of Sydney Cove from Dawes Point' by Joseph Lycett, c.1817/1818

On Tuesday 5th May 1818, the transport ship 'Neptune' arrived at Port Jackson, Sydney, Australia after a voyage of 136 days and carrying a total of 183 male convicts.

On board was the prisoner called Samuel Caldwell, aka 'Big Sam', who had been convicted 10 months earlier of frame-breaking during the 'Loughborough Job' and sentenced to transportation for life. Caldwell had avoided being tried at the infamous 'Loughborough Job' show-trial in April 1817 owing to having been taken ill and judged unfit to stand trial at that time.

Clarke and his fellow convicts had left England on 20th December August 1817. Along the way, the Neptune stopped at Cape Town, and picked up 16 more prisoners, who had escaped from New South Wales on board the 'Harriet' in November, and were to be sent back. Three of the original prisoners died during the voyage.

Although Caldwell was the final Luddite to be tried, he was not the last to be deported.

10th January 1818: The Luddite John Clarke (aka 'Little Sam') arrives in Australia

'View of Sydney Cove from Dawes Point' by Joseph Lycett, c.1817/1818

On Saturday 10th January 1818, the transport ship 'The Ocean' arrived at Port Jackson, Sydney, Australia after a voyage of 142 days and carrying 180 male convicts.

Among them were two prisoners called John Clarke, one of whom was also known as 'Little Sam' and had been convicted 10 months earlier of shooting at John Asher during the 'Loughborough Job' and sentenced to death, although the Judge later respited this to transportation for life.

Clarke and his fellow convicts had left England from Spithead on 21st August 1817, and had arrived at St. Helena on 31st October, remaining there for a week before continuing to Australia. Conditions on board were better than normal aboard such transport ships; even so, that by the time that the ship arrived at Sydney, 2 of the convicts who had originally boarded the ship had died of consumption.

After arrival, Clarke and his namesake were amongst a group of prisoners sent on to Windsor, New South Wales.

23rd June 1815: The convict, Thomas Holden, writes to his parents from Sydney, Australia

No 13 Letter and only one Answer

Sydney, Port Jackson.
New South Wales,
New Holland 23rd June 1815

My Dear Father & Mother,

I take this Opportunity of [  ]iting to you those few lines hoping it will [ ]ind you in good Health as it leaves me and I should wish to know the reason you dont write to me as there is a Ship sails from Portsmouth every 3 Months there is nothing in this World that would giue me more happiness than hearing from you at euery Opportunity there is never a Ship comes into New South Wales but I always go and ask for one and when there is not one I always think that /you\ quite forgott[  ] me

Mr and Mrs Holding

Dear Father you was a speaking to me about the Men that came in the Ship with me but I neuer associated with any of them so that I dont know any thing about any of them for I have as much as ever I can do to look after myself Dear Father I should like to know the reason my Brothe dont write to me Si[nce] that he can find as much time as I can do So I hear there is Peace made in England and I hope you will let me know how trade is in England since there was Peace and whether I could gett an honest living if I was at Home .... Dear Wife and Child I should wish to know the Reason that she does not write to me for there is some hopes of me getting my Pardon let me know the foundation andd send it by the next Ship

Not to be afraid of putting them in the Post Office for I will pay the postage for them and let me know all the New They can andd not to be afraid to let me know all particulars Dear Mother if it should be our fortune in this Wo/r\ld I hope it will be a happy meeting and if not in this world I hope in [    ]xt so now I think we will can[  ] [    ]ife Child, father Mother Broth[   ] [    ] my Cousin James & my Wifes Sister

Dear Father and Mother I am
your Most Afft and Loving Son
Till Death shall part
Thomas Holding

P:S: [Kiss] my Dear little Wife & Child for me my Dear Mother

T Holding

sydney New South Wales 23[   ]

[To] Mr John Holding
To be left at the sign of the Golden
Lion Church gate, Bolton
Lee Moores
        Lancashire
Holding

7th February 1814: Foster Roach, the last prisoner from the 1812 trials, arrives in Australia

'View of Sydney Cove from Dawes Point' by Joseph Lycett, c.1817/1818

On Monday 7th February 1814, the transport ship General Hewitt arrived at Port Jackson, Sydney, Australia carrying 266 male convicts.

Among them was Foster (or Forster) Roach, a young weaver from Ireland, aged 18 at the time of his trial in May/June 1812. Roach had originally been sentenced to death for unlawful assembly and theft in Etchells, Stockport on 15th April 1812, but the trial jury had recommended mercy and the sentence was respited, meaning Roach was transported for life. Roach was the last of the prisoners convicted at the 1812 Special Commissions to be transported, more than 20 months after he was sentenced.

Roach and his fellow convicts had left England on board the General Hewitt on 26th August 1813, and had arrived at Rio de Janeiro on 17th November before continuing to Australia. Conditions on board were so appalling, that by the time the ship arrived at Sydney, 34 of the convicts who had originally boarded the ship had died.

Also aboard the ship was Joseph Lycett, an artist who had been convicted of forging a bank note in 1811 and is well-known for his pictures of Australia, one of which is above.

9th October 1813: The 'Earl Spencer' arrives in Australia, bringing Luddites & a Steam Engine

'Part of the Harbour of Port Jackson, and the country between Sydney and the Blue Mountains, New South Wales', an Aquatint by R Havell & Sons, after Major James Taylor, c.1821

The Transport ship 'Earl Spencer' arrived at Port Jackson, Sydney, Australia in the forenoon of Saturday 9th October 1813, after a voyage of 129 days. It would be the last transport to bring large numbers of convicted Luddites from the 1811/1812 disturbances, a later ship bringing one remaining prisoner from the trials thus far.

The ship had left Portsmouth on 2nd June 1813, and had stopped at Madeira exactly a month later, before completing the rest of the journey unbroken. Four prisoners died on the trip. The prisoners went ashore 5 days after arriving on 14th October, and included 17 men convicted of various offences connected with Luddism:

Chester Special Commission:

James Bennett (death, respited)
John Bradshaw (7 years transportation)
Thomas Brunt aka Etchells (7 years transportation)
Thomas Burgess (7 years transportation)
William Greenhough (death, respited)
John Henshall (death, respited)
John Heywood (death, respited)
Samuel Lees (7 years transportation)
Richard Lowndes (death, respited)
James Radcliffe (7 years transportation)
Edward Redfern (7 years transportation)
William Thompson (death, respited)
James Tomlinson (death, respited)
James Torkington (death, respited)
Thomas Whittaker (7 years transportation)

Derby Summer Assizes 1812:

Andrew Scott

Nottingham Summer Assizes 1812:

George Spray

Ironically, the 'Earl Spencer' also brought the first steam engine to Australia.

11th June 1813: The Convict Ship 'The Fortune' arrives in Sydney, Australia

'The entrance of Port Jackson, and part of the town of Sydney, New South Wales' an aquatint by Havell & Son, after Major James Taylor, c.1821

On Friday 11th June, the ship 'The Fortune' arrived in Port Jackson, Sydney, Australia, after a voyage of 6 months from when it left England.

The exact date of departure is not clear. For whilst the official records state that it left the South Coast on 3rd December 1812, the fact is that one of the prisoners on board - the Bolton Luddite convict, Thomas Holden - sent a letter to his family dated 11th December 1812 from the ship. 'The Fortune' had been beached in a storm after leaving Woolwich and had spent almost 7 weeks moored in Rio de Janeiro between 3rd February and 22nd March 1813.

200 prisoners had left England, but only 196 arrived: 2 had died of illness on the voyage (including the Luddite John Burney), whilst another 2 had drowned. 36 of the prisoners were under 21 years of age.

The prisoners on board were not taken ashore until a further 7 days had passed: 16 of them had been convicted with various offences connected with Luddism, to wit

Lancaster Special Commission (all sentenced to 7 years transportation):

James Brierley
John Burney (died en route)
Samuel Crossley
John Fisher
Joseph Greenhalgh
Thomas Holden
John Hope
Jon Hurst
James Knowles
Christopher Medcalfe
Samuel Radcliffe
Henry Thwaite

Chester Special Commission (all respited death sentences):

James Crosland
Colin Linden
James Wilson aka Roach

Derby Lent Assizes 1812:

John England (death, respited)

Nottingham Lent Assizes 1812:

Gervas Marshall (7 years transportation)

The Sydney Gazette reported that 6 of the prisoners were in irons, having been punished for their behaviour on the trip. Governor McQuarrie reportedly released them from this punishment before they were all sent to various locations to serve their sentences.