The remarkable true story of Musquito, one of the best-known First Nations resistance warriors of Australia's early colonial period--and the historian who uncovered his story's unexpected connection to her own family.
When the First Fleet arrived at Port Jackson in January 1788, Musquito was just a boy.
Seventeen years later, he was a warrior fighting for Country west of Sydney, pursued by British colonists determined to crush Aboriginal resistance.
Exiled to Van Diemen's Land, Musquito joined with local Aboriginal people as they mounted the resistance that would become known as the Black War. Wrongly accused of leading the conflict, he was executed in 1825.
Although Musquito is one of the most recognizable First Nations resistance fighters of the early colonies, his life has long been obscured by misinformation and myth. Through meticulous archival research, historian Naomi Parry Duncan reconstructs the remarkable story of the man behind the legend.
As she pieced together fragments of Musquito's life, Parry Duncan made a startling discovery: the lives of her own convict ancestors had intersected with his in deeply troubling ways.
Blending biography, history, and personal investigation, this vivid and compelling work explores the intertwined lives of Aboriginal people and new arrivals in Australia's fledgling colonies. It is a powerful reckoning with the enduring legacy of colonial violence and a moving reflection on how history continues to shape the present.
Praise for Musquito
'A stunning work of history and biography. Be prepared to weep.' -- Professor Grace Karskens
'Musquito was a truly fascinating character, and this is a wonderfully researched biography with new insights.' -- Professor John Maynard
'It's hard to think of another work of Australian history that gives such a rich sense of the entanglement of human lives in the early colony--across Country, oceans, and worlds--or of the ongoing echoes of colonial violence.' -- Dr. Delia Falconer
'Parry Duncan deftly interweaves her personal journey with the life and times of Musquito and offers a powerful way forward for writing family history that acknowledges Australia's shadowy colonial past.' -- Dr. Stephen Gapps