Captain Cooks Travels

James Cook claimed Australia for Britain in 1770, under the doctrine of terra nullius, land belonging to no one. Just 18 years later, in January 1788, the arrival of the First Fleet signalled the beginning of British colonisation on the continent with 753 convicts on board. But those were by no means the first settlers of Australia. They were, in fact, preceded by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people, whose arrival is now estimated as occurring 60, 000 years ago, making them the longest surviving civilisation on earth.