Bennelong
Sign in to saveWoollarawarre Bennelong ( 1764 – 3 January 1813) was a senior man of the Eora, an Aboriginal Australian people of the Port Jackson area, at the time of the first British settlement in Australia. Bennelong served as an interlocutor between the Eora and the British, both in the colony of New South Wales and in Great Britain. He was the first Aboriginal Australian to visit Europe and return.
Person
- Born
- 1764-01-01
- Died
- 1813-01-03
via Open Library + Wikidata
Key facts
- Person.name
- Bennelong
- Person.image
- Bennelong.jpg
- Person.caption
- Portrait (signed "W.W.") thought to depict Bennelong
- Person.birth_place
- South of the Parramatta River
- Person.death_date
- 3 January 1813 (aged about 48)
- Person.death_place
- Kissing Point, Colony of New South Wales
- Person.spouse
- 1. Unnamed first wife2. Barangaroo3. Kurubarabulu4. Boorong
- Person.children
- DilboongThomas Walter Coke
via Wikipedia infobox
Key dates
- Born
- 1 January 1764
- Died
- 3 January 1813
via Wikidata · CC0
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- Australia
- Place of birth
- Australia
- Place of death
- Sydney
- Occupation
- translator
- Languages spoken
- English language
- Image
- Bennelong.jpg
via Wikidata · CC0
Article
15 sectionsContents
- Background
- Capture and life in the British settlement
- Visit to England
- Return to New South Wales
- Spearing of a British soldier
- Leader of the Kissing Point clan
- Death
- Family
- Legacy
- Portrayals
- See also
- Notes and citations
- Citations
- Sources
- Further reading
Woollarawarre Bennelong ( 1764 – 3 January 1813) was a senior man of the Eora, an Aboriginal Australian people of the Port Jackson area, at the time of the first British settlement in Australia. Bennelong served as an interlocutor between the Eora and the British, both in the colony of New South Wales and in Great Britain. He was the first Aboriginal Australian to visit Europe and return.
In 1789, he was abducted on the authority of Governor Arthur Phillip, who hoped to use Bennelong to establish official dialogue with the Eora people. However, Bennelong escaped after several months. A tenuous relationship subsequently developed between Bennelong and the colonists, with various attacks and reconciliations occurring throughout their ensuing association with each other. Despite this friction, he came to be a significant ambassador of the Eora.