On 7 October-26 November 1830, Operation Black Line was fought between the British under George Arthur against the Aborigines under Mannalargenna during the Black War.
Why did it happen?
In 1803, the first permanent British settlement was established in Tasmania at Risdon Cove. Originally consisting of military personnel and convicts, the British population swelled from 3,000 in 1804 to 23,500 by 1830. As the British population in Tasmania grew, they came into conflict with the Aborigines living on the island, who opposed British expansion and its impact on their homes and communities. Beginning in 1824, the Aborigines and British began a series of violent raids and counterraids that left 218 British settlers and 600 Aborigines dead. Attempts by Lieutenant Governor George Arthur to treat the Aborigines as criminals in the court of law proved futile, and in 1828, George Arthur declared martial law, allowing British military personnel to raid Aboriginal camps without fear of arrest. By 1830, Arthur came under increasing pressure from British settlers to resolve the conflict and, in September, called for a special military operation designed to force the Aborigines from their lands.
Who was involved?
During Operation Black Line, the British forces numbered 2,200 men, making it the largest military operation conducted on Australian soil. This force consisted of 550 soldiers, 450 settlers, and 1,200 convicts. George Arthur maintained overall control of the operation, with the British forces being divided into three divisions: Captain Donaldson led 300 men from Launceston and Norfolk Plains towards the Central Plateau; Captain Wentworth led 1,500 men eastward from Lake Echo and New Norfolk; Major Sholto Douglas led the remaining 400 men south from the St Pauls River. The British plan was to embark on a series of scouting missions before linking up to drive the Aborigines southward towards East Bay Neck, where they could all be killed or captured. During Operation Black Line, the Aboriginal forces numbered 100 warriors and civilians. The five main Aboriginal tribes were designated according to their location: Ben Lomond, Big River, North Midlands, Oyster Bay and South-East. However, as pointed out by Nicholas Clements, “it is doubtful that any of the remaining Tasmanian tribes ever grasped the full scale or meaning of the event” (Clements, 2014, p.145).
What happened?
On 7 October, British forces under Donaldson, Wentworth and Douglas advanced from their positions southward to scout out the Aborigines’ most likely locations. By 12 October, all three columns had linked up and intended to create an unbroken line from east to west. As they advanced, the British soldiers, settlers and convicts fired their muskets to terrify the Aborigines and drive them before the advancing line. On 25 October, at the Sandspit River, British forces ambushed a tribe of Aboriginal men, women, and children, and in the ensuing scuffle, four Aboriginal men were killed or captured. However, by 7 November, many British settlers and convicts began to desert, which allowed more and more Aborigines to break through the Black Line. On 16 November, after a brief pause, the British began their final advance towards East Bay Neck, although desertions continued due to poor weather conditions and low morale. The British reached East Bay Neck on 26 November with George Arthur detaching a small force of 12 men to guard the area while the rest of the British force was disbanded. During the operation, the British lost at least 1 killed and 3 wounded, while the Aborigines lost 2 killed and 2 captured.
What changed as a result?
Although Operation Black Line was a logistical failure, it did have the effect George Arthur and the British settlers desired. The Aborigines began to avoid settled districts, and many were persuaded to surrender to government authorities. On 31 December 1831, the remaining 200 Aborigines in the settled districts surrendered and were gradually relocated to Wybalenna, a settlement on Flinders Island in Bass Strait. However, by 1847, poor accommodation, disease, and malnourishment reduced the remaining Aboriginal population to 40 individuals before they were relocated again to Oyster Cove on the Tasmanian mainland. In 1876, the last full-blood Tasmanian Aborigine passed away, although according to a 2016 census, 23,580 people living in Tasmania today identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.
Bibliography
Brodie, Nick. The Vandemonian War: The secret history of Britain’s Tasmanian Invasion. Richmond, Hardie Grant Books, 2017.
Clements, Nicholas. The Black War: Fear, Sex and Resistance in Tasmania. St Lucia, University of Queensland Press, 2014.
McMahon, Katherine. “The Black Line.” National Museum of Australia. Last revised September 29, 2022. www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/the-black-line
Sling, Sam. “The Black Line.” Ancestor Trilogy. Last revised April 4, 2012. www.ancestortrilogy.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/the-black-line.jpg
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