In 1835, John Batman sailed from Tasmania to Port Phillip, where he famously declared, “This will be the place for a village.” In what became known as the Batman Treaty, he also persuaded a group of local Indigenous leaders to sell him 240,000 hectares of prime farming land in exchange for a smattering of goods that included blankets, tomahawks, scissors, handkerchiefs and flour.
The treaty was soon annulled by Governor Richard Bourke of NSW, who declared the British Crown – as sole “owners” of Australia – the only entity that could sell or distribute land. The treaty has also…
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