Sarah Mitchell
The first Catholics to arrive in Australia came with the First Fleet of British convict ships that landed in Sydney in 1788. One-tenth of the convicts on these ships were Catholic, and at least half of them were Irish. The Irish convicts had been transported to Australia for political crimes or social rebellion in Ireland, leading the authorities to be suspicious of Catholicism during the first three decades of settlement. Catholic convicts were forced to attend Church of England services, and their children were raised as Anglicans. The first Catholic Mass in Australia was celebrated in 1803 by Fr James Dixon, an Irish priest who had arrived as a convict in 1800.
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What You'll Learn
Irish convicts transported for political crimes
The first Catholics to arrive in Australia came as part of the First Fleet of British convict ships, which arrived in Sydney in 1788. One-tenth of all the convicts who came to Australia on the First Fleet were Catholic, and at least half of them were born in Ireland.
Irish convicts were transported to Australia for political crimes or social rebellion in Ireland. Some of these included Kevin Izod O'Doherty, a medical student and Young Irelander transported for treason, and William Smith O'Brien, a famous Irish revolutionary sent to Van Diemen's Land in 1849 after leading a rebellion in County Tipperary. The first Catholic priests arrived in Australia as convicts in 1800: James Harold, James Dixon, and Peter O'Neill, who had been convicted for their involvement in the Irish 1798 Rebellion. Fr Dixon was conditionally emancipated and allowed to celebrate Mass. He conducted the first Catholic Mass in "New South Wales" in 1803. The Irish-led Castle Hill Rebellion of 1804, however, alarmed the British authorities and Dixon's permission to celebrate Mass was revoked.
The Irish convicts were subjected to suspicion and religious persecution during the first three decades of settlement. They were compelled to attend Church of England services, and their children and orphans were raised as Anglicans. The Irish Catholics' struggle for religious freedom in Australia was further complicated by their minority status within the British Empire. The legal disabilities of Catholics in Britain also played a role in delaying the establishment of a Catholic mission in Australia until 1818.
Despite these challenges, the Catholic Church in Australia has grown to become the largest Christian denomination in the country. According to the 2021 ABS Census data, there are around 5,075,907 Catholics in Australia, representing about 20% of the overall population. The church is also the largest non-government provider of welfare and education services in the country, aiding hundreds of thousands of people annually through various organizations.
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The First Fleet of British convict ships
The First Fleet travelled over 24,000 kilometres (15,000 miles) and took over 250 days to reach Botany Bay on 18 January 1788. However, Governor Arthur Phillip rejected Botany Bay as the site for the new colony, favouring Port Jackson to the north. On 26 January 1788, the Fleet arrived at Port Jackson, establishing the colony of New South Wales—the first British settlement in Australia. This date is now celebrated as Australia Day, marking the beginning of British settlement.
The number of convicts transported on the First Fleet is estimated to be between 750 and 780, with around 50 children among them. During the eight-month voyage, 43 convicts died, leaving 732 to land at Sydney Cove. The ships also carried officers, marines, their wives and children, and provisions and agricultural implements. The First Fleet was the largest single contingent of ships to sail into the Pacific Ocean, marking the beginning of European colonisation in Australia.
Among the convicts on the First Fleet were Catholics, who made up about one-tenth of the convict population. At least half of the Catholics were born in Ireland, and some had been transported for political crimes or social rebellion in Ireland, leading to suspicion from the authorities. Catholic convicts were forced to attend Church of England services, and their children were raised as Anglicans. The first Catholic priests arrived in Australia as convicts in 1800, and despite facing challenges, they played a pivotal role in establishing the Catholic Church in the colony.
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The first Catholic priests arrive as convicts
The first Catholic priests to arrive in Australia were convicts themselves. James Harold, James Dixon, and Peter O'Neill came to the country in 1800, having been convicted of "complicity" in the Irish 1798 Rebellion. Fr Dixon was conditionally emancipated and allowed to celebrate Mass. On 15 May 1803, he conducted the first Catholic Mass in New South Wales, using vestments made from curtains and a tin chalice.
The Irish-led Castle Hill Rebellion of 1804 spooked the British authorities, and Fr Dixon's permission to celebrate Mass was revoked. Fr Jeremiah O'Flinn, an Irish Cistercian monk, then travelled to the colony uninvited and began performing priestly duties in secret. He was soon arrested and deported to London. In response to the affair, two more priests, John Joseph Therry and Philip Conolly, were allowed to travel to the colony in 1820.
The early Catholic Church in Australia reflected the legal disabilities of Catholics in Britain and the difficult position of Ireland within the British Empire. Catholics were a suppressed minority in early colonial Australia, and Catholic convicts were compelled to attend Church of England services, with their children and orphans being raised as Anglicans. Despite this, the Catholic Church grew to become the largest Christian denomination in Australia, with around 5,075,907 members as of 2021, or about 20% of the population.
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The first Catholic Mass in New South Wales
The arrival of the First Fleet of British convict ships in Sydney in 1788 marked the beginning of a permanent Catholic presence in Australia. One-tenth of the convicts on these ships were Catholic, and at least half of them were Irish. Additionally, a small number of British marines identified as Catholic. French ships led by Captain Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse, arrived in Botany Bay around the same time, and their crew conducted the first Catholic burial in Australia, for Father Louis Receveur, a Franciscan friar.
The first Catholic priests to arrive in Australia did so as convicts in 1800. James Harold, James Dixon, and Peter O'Neill, Irish priests convicted of "complicity" in the Irish 1798 Rebellion, were among them. Fr Dixon was granted conditional emancipation and permission to celebrate Mass. On May 15, 1803, he conducted the first Catholic Mass in New South Wales, donning vestments fashioned from curtains and wielding a tin chalice. However, his permission to celebrate Mass was revoked following the Irish-led Castle Hill Rebellion in 1804, which stoked fears among British authorities.
The suppression of Catholicism in Australia during the early 19th century reflected the legal disabilities faced by Catholics in Britain at the time, as well as Ireland's precarious position within the British Empire. Irish convicts, some of whom had been transported for political crimes or social rebellion, were forced to attend Church of England services, and their children were raised as Anglicans. This suspicion of Catholicism persisted for the first three decades of settlement.
The absence of an official Catholic mission in Australia prior to 1818 prompted the English Benedictine monks to assume leadership of the early church in the colony. The Reverend William Bernard Ullathorne played a pivotal role in convincing Pope Gregory XVI to establish a Catholic hierarchy in Australia. Ullathorne served as vicar-general to Bishop William Morris of Mauritius from 1833 to 1836, overseeing the Australian missions.
The Church Act of 1836, drafted by the Catholic attorney-general John Plunkett, disestablished the Church of England in the colony of New South Wales and established legal equality for Anglicans, Catholics, and Presbyterians, with Methodists being included later. Despite this legislative milestone, social attitudes were slow to change, and anti-Catholic sentiment persisted.
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The Church Act of 1836
The first Catholics to arrive in Australia were Irish convicts who came over on the First Fleet of British convict ships in 1788. One-tenth of the convicts on the First Fleet were Catholic, and at least half of them were born in Ireland. Many of these Irish convicts had been transported for political crimes or social rebellion in Ireland, so the authorities were suspicious of Catholicism for the first three decades of settlement. Catholic convicts were forced to attend Church of England services, and their children were raised as Anglicans. The first Catholic priests arrived in Australia as convicts in 1800.
The Act was intended to reduce tensions between the competing strands of Christianity present in the colony. It provided funding to the Catholic, Church of England, and Presbyterian churches to employ clergy and erect churches. The amount for each denomination was determined by the number of adherents. As such, it removed many of the privileges that the Church of England had enjoyed in the colony up to that point and placed Catholics and Anglicans on an equal basis.
Despite the Church Act, social attitudes were slow to change. A laywoman, Caroline Chisholm (1808–1877), faced anti-Catholic feeling when she sought to establish a migrant women's shelter. Religion became a hotly debated topic in the New South Wales elections of 1843, which led to the creation of a host of either Catholic-only or Protestant-only organisations. Sectarianism extended into some workplaces, education, and relationships, with a strong social injunction not to marry outside of one's faith.
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Frequently asked questions
The first Catholics arrived in Australia as convicts in 1788 as part of the First Fleet of British convict ships that arrived in Sydney.
One-tenth of the convicts who came to Australia on the First Fleet were Catholic, and at least half of them were born in Ireland.
The authorities were suspicious of Catholicism due to the political crimes and social rebellion associated with Irish convicts. Catholic convicts were forced to attend Church of England services, and their children were raised as Anglicans.
Fr James Dixon conducted the first Catholic Mass in "New South Wales" on May 15, 1803, in vestments made from curtains and with a tin chalice.
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