'Me Write Myself': The Free Aboriginal Inhabitants of Van Diemen's Land at Wybalenna, 1832-47 (Australian History)

Exiles, lost souls, remnants of a dying race: the fate of the First Nations peoples of Van Diemen's Land is one of the most infamous chapters in Australian, and world, history. The men, women and children exiled to Flinders Island in the 1830s and 40s have often been written about, but never allowed to speak for themselves. This book aims to change that. Penned by the exiles during their fifteen years at the settlement called Wybalenna, items in the Flinders Island Chronicle, sermons, letters and petitions offer a compelling corrective to traditional portrayals of a hopeless, dispossessed, illiterate people's final days. The exiles did not see themselves as prisoners, but as a Free People. Seen through their own writing, the community at Wybalenna was vibrant, complex and evolving. Rather than a depressed people simply waiting for death, their own words reveal a politically astute community engaged in a fifteen year campaign for their own freedom: one which was ultimately successful. Me Write Myself is a compelling story that will profoundly affect understandings of Tasmanian and Australian history. The author, Dr. Leonie Stevens, researches and lectures in History. Previous to working with true stories, she had an extensive background as a fiction writer and editor. She is the author of six novels and a variety of short fiction. (Series: Australian History) [Subject: Australian Studies, History, Aboriginal Studies] 'This beautifully written and detailed history of Wybalenna on Flinders Island and its colonial contexts, is told through the rich records left by and about the First Tasmanians resident there. It privileges Aboriginal testimony in a way rarely achieved before and will become a classic of Tasmanian history... a sparkling book that makes brilliant use of Aboriginal testimony.'-- Richard Broome Emeritus Professor of History, FAHA, FRHSV. Exiles, lost souls, remnants of a dying race... The fate of the First Nations peoples of Van Diemen's Land is one of the most infamous chapters in Australian, and world, history. The men, women and children exiled to Flinders Island in the 1830s and 40s have often been written about, but never allowed to speak for themselves. This book changes that. Penned by the exiles during their fifteen years at the settlement called Wybalenna, items in the Flinders Island Chronicle, sermons, letters and petitions offer a compelling corrective to traditional portrayals of a hopeless, dispossessed, illiterate people's final days. The exiles did not see themselves as prisoners, but as a Free People. Seen through their own writing, the community at Wybalenna was vibrant, complex and evolving. Rather than a depressed people simply waiting for death, their own words reveal a politically astute community engaged in a fifteen-year campaign for their own freedom: one which was ultimately successful. 'Me Write Myself' is a compelling story that will profoundly affect understandings of Tasmanian and Australian history Exiles, lost souls, remnants of a dying race ... The fate of the First Nations peoples of Van Diemens Land is one of the most infamous chapters in Australian history. The men, women and children exiled to Flinders Island in the 1830s and 40s have often been written about, but never allowed to speak for themselves. This book aims to change that. Documents penned by the exiles during their 15 years at the settlement Wybalenna offer a compelling counter-narrative to traditional representations of a hopeless, dispossessed, illiterate people's final days. The exiles did not see themselves as prisoners, but as a Free People. Seen through their own writing, the community at Wybalenna was vibrant, complex and evolving. Rather than a depressed people simply waiting for death, their own words reveal a politically astute community engaged in a 15 year campaign for their own freedom. This book tells a compelling story that will profoundly affect understandings of Tasmanian and Australian history. A book to challenge the traditional notion of the the aboriginal inhabitants of Wybalenna as hopeless, dispossessed and illiterate. Author Leonie Stevens draws together written records including items in the Flinders Island Chronicle, sermons, letters and petitions to give the community a voice they have never been acknowledged as having. Seen through their own writing, the community can be seen for the first time as vibrant, complex and evolving