Description

Macquarie charts the eventful rule of Lachlan Macquarie, governor of New South Wales from 1810 to late 1821. These were crucial years during which the fate of the colony was in the balance after years of struggle, famine, and strife culminating in a military coup against Governor William Bligh. Under Macquarie's leadership, civil rule and good order were firmly established in the colony, the population grew steadily, the settlement of Australia's vast interior began, and the foundations for the great wool industry were laid. Macquarie carried out an ambitious program of public works that resulted in better roads and other infrastructure, a string of new townships around Sydney, and an array of fine buildings, a number of which still stand today as the most important visual symbols of Australia's colonial heritage. This book is a timely reminder of Macquarie's importance to modern Australians. Macquarie tells this story as narrative history, a fascinating tale of the genesis of a nation and of an extraordinary individual who refused to be confounded by the odds stacked against him. The emphasis is on telling a story about people, their motives, goals, foibles, successes, and disappointments. It is, after all, a great story that is well worth the telling.