See HMS Sirius for other ships of this name. Seven Ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Sirius after the brightest star in the nighttime Sky.

Berwick was built by Watsons of Rotherhithe in 1780 for the Baltic trade. Rotherhithe is a district of central south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark. She is best known under the name HMS Sirius, as the flagship of the First Fleet, which set out from England in 1787 to establish the first European colony in New South Wales. flagship is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels a designation given on account of being either the largest fastest newest most heavily armed or for publicity purposes the most well The First Fleet is the name given to the 11 Ships which sailed from Great Britain on 13 May 1787 to establish the first European colony in New South Wales. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Year 1787 ( MDCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common This article is about a type of political territory For other uses see Colony (disambiguation. She was wrecked off the coast of Norfolk Island in 1790.

The unveiling of Sirius' anchor at Macquarie Place, Sydney, in 1907. Macquarie Place is a small triangular park in downtown Sydney, Australia. Sydney (ˈsɪdniː is the most populous city in Australia, with a Metropolitan area population of approximately 4 Year 1907 ( MCMVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year

Construction

There has been confusion over early history of the Berwick; a note by Philip Gidley King, of 'East country man' was interpreted for many years as East Indies trade, yet analysis of terms of the time suggest it referred to the Baltic countries instead. Philip Gidley King RN (23 April 1758 &ndash 3 September 1808 was an British naval officer and colonial administrator ^[1] It was likely built Christopher Watson and co. , who also built the Prince Of Wales, another ship of the first fleet. The Prince of Wales was a First Fleet transport ship of 333 tons (350? built on the River Thames in 1786. ^[2] She had a displacement of 511 tons and after being burnt in a fire was bought and rebuilt by the Royal Navy in 1786 and renamed Sirius, after the southern star Sirius. Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky with a visual Apparent magnitude of &minus1 ^[3] It carried 16 guns. ^[4] She sailed under the command of Captain John Hunter and carried Arthur Phillip, the Governor of the colony which was to be established. Vice-Admiral John Hunter, RN ( 29 August 1737 &ndash 13 March 1821) was a British naval officer and colonial Admiral Arthur Phillip RN (11 October 1738 &ndash 31 August 1814 was a British naval Admiraland colonial administrator She also carried Major Robert Ross commander of the marines responsible for guarding the convicts in the colony. Major Robert Ross (c1740–1794 was the officer in charge of the First Fleet garrison of marines, and Lieutenant-Governor of the Convict settlement The Royal Marines ( RM) are the marine corps and amphibious Infantry of the United Kingdom and along with the Royal Navy The surgeons on this ship were George Bouchier Worgan and Thomas Jamison. George Bouchier Worgan (May 1757 &ndash 4 March 1838) was an English surgeon who accompanied the First Fleet to Australia Thomas Jamison (1752/1753 – 27 January 1811 was an Irish -born Surgeon, government official mercantile trader and land owner of New South Wales, (Jamison later became the principal surgeon on Norfolk Island and eventually Surgeon-General of New South Wales. ) Sirius left Portsmouth on 13 May 1787, and arrived at Port Jackson on 26 January 1788. History See also History of Portsmouth There have been settlements in the area since before Roman times mostly being offshoots of Portchester, which Events 1497 - Pope Alexander VI excommunicates Girolamo Savonarola. Year 1787 ( MDCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney Australia Events 1340 - King Edward III of England is declared King of France. Year 1788 ( MDCCLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap She remained in the colony until 2 October 1788 when she was sent from Port Jackson to the Cape of Good Hope to get flour and other supplies for the almost starving colony, a voyage that took over seven months. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Year 1788 ( MDCCLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap The Cape of Good Hope ( Afrikaans: Kaap die Goeie Hoop, Kaap de Goede Hoop Cabo da Boa Esperança Persian Language: دماغه امید نیک

On 19 March 1790 Sirius was wrecked on the reef at Norfolk Island while landing stores. Events 1279 - A Mongolian victory in the Battle of Yamen ends the Song Dynasty in China. Year 1790 ( MDCCXC) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Norfolk Island ( Norfuk: Norfuk Ailen) is a small inhabited island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand With the settlement still on the brink of starvation this was a major catastrophe as it left the colonists with only one ship. Her crew was stranded there until 21 February 1791 when they were rescued and eventually returned to England. Events 362 - Athanasius returns to Alexandria. 1245 - Thomas, the first known Bishop of Finland Year 1791 ( MDCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Hunter returned to New South Wales as Governor from 1795 to 1799. One of the sailors, Jacob Nagle, wrote a first hand account of the voyage and was one of the stranded crewmen. Jacob Nagle (1761 – 1841 was an American and British soldier sailor and above all diarist who provides an exceptional first hand account of many of the dramatic events

Sirius' anchor was retrieved from the wreck site and is now mounted in Pier Museum, Kingston, Norfolk Island.

References

Further reading

• Gillen, Mollie, The Founders of Australia: a biographical dictionary of the First Fleet, Sydney, Library of Australian History, 1989. Charles Bateson ( 4 August 1903 – 5 July 1974) was a maritime historian, journalist and author

See also

• HMAS Sirius (O 266)