The+Friendship

The Friendship was one of the six transport ships as part of the First Fleet. It was skippered by Captain Francis Walton. The Friendship weighed 279 tonnes and was 75 feet long. The ship carried 76 male and 21 female convicts. There were also 50 free arrivals [including ships crew]. It was the most violent ship in the fleet.

Each person was allocated a certain amount of food that had to last a week. For the male convicts it was 3 kilograms of bread or flour, 3 kilograms of beef or 2 kilograms of pork, about a litre of dried peas, 200 grams of butter, 500 grams of flour and 200 grams of rice. The women recieved 2 thirds of this ration and the children half. The rations for the marines were similar but with th addition of rum or beer. The crew often fished during the journey so they would enjoy fish as well as there standard rations. Food was cooked in the ship's galley[kitchen] by the cook and the cook's mate. When the fleet reached Botany Bay they found that the land wasn't good for growing crops so they sailed north to find Port Jackson [Sydney Harbour].

The voyage took 8 months and 1 week. The fleet went from Portsmouth to Tenerife in 3 weeks. From Tenerife to Rio De Janiero in 8 weeks. From Rio De Janiero to Cape Town in 6 weeks.And from Cape Town to Port Jackson in 10 weeks. During the trip there were 48 deaths and 7 births. The number of deaths was thought to be low.

On her return voyage to England in company with the Alexander her crew was so badly affected by scurvy that the decision was made on the 28th of October 1788 to scuttle the Friendship off the coast of Borneo.

By Matthew.