Mary+Broad

=Mary Bryant= Mary Bryant, was a sailor’s daughter from the little port of Fowly in Cornwall in England. She had been transported for seven years for stealing a red cloak. She came with the first fleet, on the transport ship the Charlotte. Before the fleet reached Capetown, Mary Bryant gave birth to a girl named Charlotte, after the ship.

Soon after the fleet reached Port Jackson, Mary Broad married one of the male convicts who fathered her second child, Emanuel, who was born in April 1790 William Bryant was a good fisherman. William Bryant was given his own boat to catch fish for the colony. He sold some fish on the sly, instead of delivering it to the government stores. William Bryant got caught and was given 100 lashers.

It was too much for Mary and William, so they planned to run away from the colony. The dangers of the daring and desperate escape seemed nothing beside the terrible struggle for life in the new colony.

On the way there William and Mary managed to get a compass, muskets, and a quadrant and navigators chart from the captain of a visiting Dutch merchant ship.

Then on a March moonless night 1791 Governor Phillip’s six-oar-cutter moved quietly down the harbour towards the Pacific Ocean. On board were William and Mary their two children and seven other convicts. No one could pursue them because they had chosen a time to escape when there were no ships in port. Then they followed one of the most remarkable sea voyages ever undertaken. Once outside the harbour entrance they set a course northwards, bound for Timor, which was then a part of the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia).

In their small open boat they rowed their up the into the unknown. At first the voyage was easy. They came ashore frequently found fresh water and gathered the edible parts of palm trees. Fish were plentiful too, and the aboriginal people they were friendly. But of the Queensland coast, they struck s day of wind and rain, they mixed turtle fat with soap to repair their leaking boat that had been battered by the storm. Eventually they reached the coastal waters again and travelled slowly north to Cape York where they steered westwards into the Arafura Sea. When they were ashore William foolishly told the Dutch governor of koepang that he and his family were escaped convicts. They were later shipped to Batavia, where William and baby Emanuel died of fever just before Christmas in 1791. Mary and Charlotte were later put on an English ship bound for England. When Mary finally reached home, she was completely alone. Charlotte had died on the voyage and had been buried at sea.

By Adrianna ** Mary Broad/Bryant ** ** THE END By eliza **
 * Mary Broad was born in Cornwall, England in 1765. She was transported to Australia on the 13th May 1787 for the theft of a cloak and some jewellery for 7 years. She travelled on the ship called “Charlotte” bound for Botany Bay. **
 * On the ship Mary gave birth to a baby girl, whom she called Charlotte after the ship. When she got to Australia she married another convict she had met during her voyage, called William Bryant. He was a convicted smuggler. They too had a son together later. **
 * William also had come from Cornwall, where he had worked as a fisherman. He was considered useful in Australia and was put in charge of looking after the fishing ships. One day he was caught stealing the fish though and was given 100 lashes. It was after this that he made a plan to escape with Mary. The dangers of a daring and desperate escape seemed nothing compared to the terrible struggle for life in the new colony. Food was scarce and many convicts were dying from starvation or too weak to work. **
 * On the 28th March 1791, William, Mary, her 2 children and seven convicts stole a boat and set sail with no idea where they were going. **
 * In their small open boat they rowed their way up the Australian coast into the unknown. At first the voyage was easy. They came ashore frequently and found fresh water and gathered edible parts of palm trees. Fish were plentiful too. **
 * Without noticing they went near the coast of Queensland and were caught in a fierce storm and the boat was struck by lightening. They mixed turtle fat with soap to repair their leaking boat that had been battered by they storm. **
 * After a yoyage of 66 days, they reached Kupang in Timor, a journey of 5000 kilometres. The Bryants and their crew claimed to be shipwreck survivors, but were later discovered to be British convicts. They were sent back to Britain to stand trial. **
 * During the voyage, Mary’s husband and children died of a terrible fever. Mary expected to be hung or returned to Australia, but she was instead sent to Newgate Prison in Portsmouth. She was later pardoned in May 1793 due to public outcry. **