Remembering the HMS Sirius wreck

This month marks the 225th anniversary of the shipwreck of the HMS Sirius off Norfolk Island.

Part of the wreck of the HMS Sirius

Part of the wreck of the HMS Sirius

It was the lead ship in the first fleet of 11 ships which had set out from Britain to Australia in 1787 to establish Australia's first European settlement.

The ships eventually landed at Botany Bay in 1788, and a few weeks later a small group of convicts were sent to another settlement on Norfolk Island, 1,500 kilometres away.

Clinging to life, the settlement desperately needed supplies, and HMS Sirius the lead ship, was sent to the island in 1790.

But the supplies never made it onshore - almost causing starvation for Norfolk Island's inhabitants.

The shipwrecked HMS Sirius was left lying on the seafloor on the reef off Norfolk Island, only being recovered 25 years ago.

This month marks the 225th anniversary of the shipwreck.

Lisa Richards is the Director of the Norfolk Island Museum and she spoke to Peggy Giakoumelos.

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