Bennelong and Phillip

August 8, 2023
Bennelong and Phillip: A history unravelled is an important book for our current time. In 2023, Australians will vote in the Voice to Parliament referendum to decide whether to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Constitution. The Uluru Statement also asks for Makarrata—treaty and truth-telling. In Bennelong and Phillip, historian and writer Kate Fullagar contributes to truth-telling by presenting a fuller and more accurate picture of colonisation than we might have heard before, through the lives of two key figures: Governor Arthur Phillip and Eora leader Bennelong, both leaders of armed forces and diplomats. This is a fantastic book and a challenging one. The prose is gorgeous, but it’s a demanding read; written in reverse chronological order, the device forces readers to pay attention and think differently. Fullagar attempts to tell a fuller truth about the violence, arrogance and confusion of colonisation and create a clearer picture of the motivations behind the actions of two perhaps misunderstood leaders. The book challenges the characterisations of Bennelong by colonists as ‘less than’ and shows his wit, determination, leadership, culture, and talented diplomacy at a time his people required it. It shows Phillip as a career diplomat with motivations of his own and as a potentially harsher leader than he has previously been portrayed. We also learn about the treaty that might have been but wasn’t, that even Phillip, perhaps, expected. Readers who enjoyed Making Australian History by Anna Clarke are likely to enjoy this book.