The Battle of Parramatta was a battle of the Australian Frontier Wars which occurred in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

on March 1797. In the conflict, Aboriginal resistance leader

Pemulwuy Pemulwuy (also rendered as Pimbloy, Pemulvoy, Pemulwoy, Pemulwy or Pemulwye, or sometimes by contemporary Europeans as Bimblewove, Bumbleway or Bembulwoyan) (c. 1750 – 2 June 1802) was a Bidjigal man of the Eora nation, born around 1750 in th ...

led a group of

Bidjigal The Bidjigal (also spelt Bediagal, Bejigal, Bedegal or Biddegal) people are an Aboriginal Australian people whose traditional lands are modern-day western, north-western, south-eastern, and southern Sydney, in New South Wales, Australia. The ...

warriors, estimated to be at least 100, in an attack on a government farm at

Toongabbie Toongabbie is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. One of the oldest suburbs in Sydney, Toongabbie is located approximately 30 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Greater W ...

, challenging the

garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...

of redcoats to battle.

Conflict

The settlers and soldiers took up their

muskets A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually dis ...

and chased the Aboriginal warriors through the night. At dawn, they encountered about 100 Aborigines just outside Parramatta, who ran away. The settlers entered Parramatta and, one hour later, according to

David Collins David Collins may refer to: Persons * David Collins (Hampshire cricketer), 18th-century cricketer * David Collins (New Zealand cricketer) (1887–1967) * David Collins (Scottish footballer) (1912–?) * David Collins (Australian footballer) ( ...

, "were followed by a large body of natives, headed by Pe-mul-wy, a riotous and troublesome savage". When confronted, Pemulwuy threw a

spear A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...

at a soldier prompting the government troops and settlers to open fire. Pemulwuy was shot seven times and was wounded. The aboriginal warriors threw many spears, hitting one man in the arm. The difference in firepower was evident and five aboriginal warriors were killed instantly.

Outcome

The Bidjigal suffered great losses and were forced to retreat. The soldiers took Pemulwuy to the hospital in Parramatta. He went in and out of consciousness for days and his death was thought to be imminent. Against expectations, Pemulwuy recovered and he escaped a few weeks later with his

legcuffs Legcuffs are physical restraints used on the ankles of a person to allow walking only with a restricted stride and to prevent running and effective physical resistance. Frequently used alternative terms are leg cuffs, (leg/ankle) shackles, foot ...

still in place.

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2018 History of Sydney Military history of New South Wales 1797 in Australia Conflicts in 1797 Hawkesbury and Nepean Wars