In January 1788 a settlement was started at Sydney Cove.
The people who began this settlement had sailed a distance of over 24 000 kilometres from England. Most of them had not wanted to come. They were convicts, sent from England because they had broken the law.
Sydney Cove was a very good place to start a convict settlement as escape was difficult. There was a mountain range to the west that was just like a gaol wall. From a distance the mountains looked blue in colour and were soon called the Blue Mountains.
