Aboriginal Warfare/Multinational Incursions

Black War, (1804–30) was between the Aborigines and white European soldiers and settlers on the Australian island of Tasmania which in that time was called Van Diemen’s Land. Brutal conflict began in May 1804, when a military detachment opened fire on an Aborigines hunting party, which left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Aborigines. As the population of the Aborigines increased, so did white settlers occupying choice hunting areas of the island. During this time period of white settlers, food would often run short, forcing them to hunting kangaroos which effected the way of life of the Aborigines greatly. White settlers showed no regard for the life of Aborigines; kidnapping, rape, and murder were common in daily life. Due to the brutality of the white settles, the Aborigines resorted to attacks on isolated individuals and small groups.

In the autumn of 1830 the lieutenant governor, George Arthur, decided to segregate the Aborigines on the southeastern peninsula of the island. Several thousand settlers were formed into a Black Line to drive the Aborigines out of the bush. The campaign failed immediately, but white power was proving inexorable. Between about 1831 and 1835 an agent of Arthur, George A. Robinson, persuaded most of the remaining natives (approximately 200) to resettle on the Bass Strait island of Flinders. There, their number dwindled further, although the Aborigines survived through intermarriage with Europeans.
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The Aborigines also played a large role in helping Canada shape their history and become the country they are today. The Aborigines aligned with the British for the simple reason that they shared the same goal of keeping America from expanding. In every major battle, more than 10,000 Aborigine warriors participated against North America. During the War of 1812, as American forces were attempting to invade, Aborigine warriors and Métis fighters became the strength of the British defense against the American troops. These Aboriginal allies were often accompanied by officials from the Indian Department who spoke Aboriginal languages and who could help First Nations war chiefs and British military commanders speak to each other.

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                                                                 Forms of Battle 

Ritual trials were related to formal battles and were a punishment for murder, assault and other crimes in which a man was required to stand his ground and accept any wounds he might receive. The Waka Waka north of Brisbane threw spears in their ritual trials, the Wiradjuri on the Macquarie River in New South Wales used clubs, while the Kurnai of Gippsland preferred boomerangs.

Revenge attacks were retaliation for a death through violence or presumed sorcery aimed at the assumed perpetrator or their group. Both men and women carried out revenge attacks. In 1792, an Eora woman from around Sydney avenged her husband's loss by capturing and beating to death a small girl from the killer's group. On the Murray River, revenge attacks were carried out by groups of two or three men who entered campsites at night and strangled their victims with such stealth that the camp would not know about the killing until they discovered it in the morning. These war parties were known as ‘the ones who take you by the throat’.

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-Alyssia Slappey