Mary Bryant (c. 1765 – after 1794) was a Cornish

convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convicts ...

sent to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in 1787 with the

First Fleet The First Fleet were eleven British ships which transported a group of settlers to mainland Australia, marking the beginning of the History of Australia (1788–1850), European colonisation of Australia. It consisted of two Royal Navy vessel ...

. In 1791, she became one of the first successful escapees from the fledgling Australian penal colony alongside her husband William Bryant, their two children, and seven other transportees. Her group sailed for sixty-nine days by boat to

Kupang Kupang (, ), formerly known as Koepang, is the capital of the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara. At the 2020 Indonesian census, 2020 Census, it had a population of 442,758;Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. the official estimate as o ...

Timor Timor (, , ) is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is Indonesia–Timor-Leste border, divided between the sovereign states of Timor-Leste in the eastern part and Indonesia in the ...

, where they were detained by Dutch authorities and handed over to the British for trial in London. She was represented by the biographer and lawyer

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of the English writer Samuel Johnson, '' Life of Samuel ...

, who was able to avoid the typical death penalty for such cases and sentenced to serve the remainder of her sentence in

Newgate prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey, just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, the pr ...

. She was pardoned and released in 1793 and returned to Cornwall.

Early life

Bryant was born Mary Broad (referred to as Mary Braund at the Exeter Assizes) in Lanlivery, Cornwall, United Kingdom, to William Broad and Dorothy Guilleff (or Gelef/Juileff). William Broad was a farmer who also leased and coppiced woodland with his brother Matthew. In July 1785, Mary Broad was committed to prison by the Mayor of

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

, England, where her sister Elizabeth was living, to await trial for highway robbery. She, along with Catherine Fryer and Mary Hayden alias Shepherd, was convicted of having robbed and assaulted Agnes Lakeman on a road in Plymouth, stealing a silk bonnet valued at 12 pence, and other goods valued at £1 and 11 shillings. All three were sentenced to hang on 20 March 1786, which was commuted to seven years' transportation by the Judge. She was initially held in

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

, before being moved to the

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prison hulk at Plymouth where she conceived her first child.

Transportation

In May 1787, Bryant was sent as a prisoner with the

aboard the ship '' Charlotte''. Bryant gave birth on the journey to a baby, whom she called Charlotte Spence Broad. When she arrived in Australia, she married William Bryant on 10 February 1788. Bryant, who had been convicted for impersonating a seaman to receive some of the other man's wages, was also on the ''Dunkirk'' prison hulk and ''Charlotte'' with Mary and they later had a son, Emanuel, born on 6 May 1790. William Bryant was a mariner. In early

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, William was considered useful, and was put in charge of fishing. When he was caught selling fish on the side, he was given 100 lashes. Bryant's transportation order expired in March 1791. He made a plan to escape with others by boat.

Escape from the colony and recapture

On 28 March 1791 William and Mary Bryant, with her children, and seven transportees ~ William Allen (who had been in the navy), James Martin, Samuel Bird (alias John Simms,) Samuel Broom (alias John Butcher,) James Cox (alias Rolt,) Nathaniel Lillie, and William Morton (an experienced navigator), left the colony by boat. Onboard they carried initial provisions of food and fresh water, as well as a fishing net. They had acquired a compass, quadrant, and chart, later said to have come from a Dutch sea captain of the Waaksamheyd at

Port Jackson Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta ...

. Initially they kept close to the coast, and stopped to replenish their supplies of water and food as they travelled north. Their planned route involved navigating the then uncharted

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

and the Torres Straits. After a voyage of sixty-nine days, the group reached

, on the island of

, a journey of more than 5,000 kilometres. This voyage has often been compared with

William Bligh William Bligh (9 September 1754 – 7 December 1817) was a Vice-admiral (Royal Navy), Royal Navy vice-admiral and colonial administrator who served as the governor of New South Wales from 1806 to 1808. He is best known for his role in the Muti ...

's similar journey in an open boat only two years earlier, after the mutiny on the ''Bounty''. Bligh's voyage had also ended in Timor. Timor was then under the control of the Dutch. The Bryants' party claimed to be shipwreck survivors. They were later discovered and imprisoned by the Dutch governor, then handed over to Captain Edward Edwards of , which had been wrecked on the Great Barrier Reef while on a mission to capture the ''Bounty'' mutineers. They were sent back to Britain to stand trial, travelling first on a Dutch ship (the ''Rembang'') to Batavia in the company of survivors of ''Pandora'', thereafter travelling from Batavia to

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

on the three Dutch VOC ships ''Vredenburg'', ''Hoornwey'' and '' Horssen'' (carrying Mary Bryant and her daughter Charlotte), arriving there on 19 March 1792, and later from Cape Town in the company of Royal Marines returning from Sydney on HMS ''Gorgon''. During the voyage back, Mary lost William and both of her children, Emanuel and William, dying at Batavia on 1 and 22 December 1791, whilst Charlotte died on the last leg of the voyage on 6 May 1792. Morton and Bird also died, and Cox became a man overboard from the ''Horssen''. Mary Bryant, Allen, Broom alias John Butcher, Lillie, and Martin arrived back in England on 18 June 1792. The punishment for escaping from transportation was generally death, but following court hearings in London, they were all ordered to 'remain on their former sentence, until they should be discharged by course of law'. Their case was taken up by the biographer and lawyer

. On 2 May 1793 Mary Bryant was pardoned, and she was released from

, her sentence having expired, while Allen, Broom alias Butcher, Lillie, and Martin had to wait until 2 November 1793 to be released by proclamation. Bryant returned to her family in

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, and Boswell provided her with £10 a year until his death in 1795.

In popular culture

The Bryant party's escape was the subject of a ten-episode serial, written by Rex Rienits, broadcast by the

Australian Broadcasting Commission The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is a ...

during 1963. Mary Bryant was portrayed by Fay Kelton. Bryant was the subject of a British/Australian television movie '' The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant'', with

Romola Garai Romola Sadie Garai ( ; born 6 August 1982) is a Hong Kong-born British actress and film director. Known for her extensive work on stage and screen, she often acts in period films. Her early film roles include '' Nicholas Nickleby'' (2002), '' ...

playing the eponymous role, Jack Davenport and

Sam Neill Sir Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand actor. His career has included leading roles in both dramas and blockbusters. Considered an "international leading man", he is regarded as one of the most versatile acto ...

. It was first screened in Australia on 30 October 2005 on

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's Paramount Networks UK & Australia, UK & Australia division and is o ...

as a two 2-hour part series. It was screened in the UK over Easter weekend 2006 on ITV. It was not completely historically accurate. She also featured heavily in Timberlake Wertenbaker's play '' Our Country's Good'', which itself was based on Thomas Keneally's novel '' The Playmaker''. Both centre on the first Australian settlers' decision to stage a performance of ''

The Recruiting Officer ''The Recruiting Officer'' is a 1706 play by the Irish writer George Farquhar, which follows the social and sexual exploits of two English Army officers, the womanising Plume and the cowardly Brazen, in the town of Shrewsbury (the town where ...

'', and the action ends just at the point of Bryant's escape. In the play, she is referred to by a nickname, Dabby Bryant. The story was fictionalised by Rosa Jordan in her novel ''Far From Botany Bay'', by Lesley Pearse in the novel ''Remember Me,'' and by Meg Keneally in ''Fled''. The first chapter of the graphic novel ''Terra Doloris'' (978-2-344-00787-1, 2018) by Laurent-Frédéric Bollée and Philippe Nicloux is about Mary Bryant and her family. The Mary Bryant story also featured in Patrick Edgeworth's play ''Boswell for the Defence''. A huge success in London in 1989, it starred Leo McKern. A musical titled ''Mary Bryant'' was written by Nick Enright and was presented in Melbourne by Magnormos. Mary Bryant was the subject of a one-woman theatre show, ''Oh Mary!'', devised and directed by Bec Applebee and Simon Harvey ( Kneehigh Theatre. It toured the UK in 2011. Paul Marsh (of the Canberra Australia group "Coolibah Coolective") composed "Sixty Six Days in an Open Boat" to tell the story of Mary and her family's journey.

Books about Bryant

*Causer, Tim (2017
''Memorandoms by James Martin: An Astonishing Escape from Early New South Wales''
. London: UCL Press *Cook, Judith (1993) ''To Brave Every Danger: the epic life of Mary Bryant of Fowey, highwaywoman and convicted felon, her transportation and amazing escape from Botany Bay''. London: Macmillan * Currey, C. H. (1963) ''The Transportation, Escape and Pardoning of Mary Bryant (née Broad)''. Sydney: Angus and Robertson *Durand, John (2005) "The Odyssey of Mary B" Elkhorn WI * Erickson, Carolly (2005) '' The Girl from Botany Bay''. Hoboken, NJ.: John Wiley *Hausman, Gerald & Loretta (2003) ''Escape from Botany Bay: the true story of Mary Bryant''. New York: Orchard Books * Hughes, Robert '' The Fatal Shore: a history of the transportation of convicts to Australia, 1787–1868''. New York: Knopf *Kampen, Anthony van (1968) ''Het leven van Mary Bryant''. 3 vols. Bussum: Unieboek NV (in Dutch) *King, Jonathan (2004) ''Mary Bryant: her life and escape from Botany Bay''. Pymble, N.S.W.: Simon & Schuster Australia *MacKenzie, Charlotte (2021) ''Mary Broad the documentary'' Lulu.com *Pearse, Lesley (2003) ''Remember Me''. London: Michael Joseph (London: Penguin Books, 2004 ) (historical novel) *Pottle, Frederick A. (1938) ''Boswell and the Girl from Botany Bay''. London: Heinemann *Preston, Diana (2017) '' Paradise in Chains: The Bounty Mutiny and the Founding of Australia''. Bloomsbury Publishing USA *Scutt, Craig (2007) ''Mary Bryant: The Impossible Escape''. Fitzroy, Melbourne, Australia; Black Dog Books *Veitch, Anthony Scott (1980) ''Spindrift, The Mary Bryant Story: a colonial saga''. Australia: Angus & Robertson Publishers *Walker, Mike (2005) ''A Long Way Home''. Chichester; Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley

References

*Parish registers for Fowey, 1803–1970. Microfilm of original records in the Cornwall Record Office, Truro, Cornwall. Cornwall Record Office call nos.: DDP/66/1/9, 18, 21–23. *Cornwall parish registers, marriages. Vol. 8, pp. 1–54 Phillimore, 1905 *Devon Quarter Sessions. Epiphany 1786, DRO-QS32/73, Christmas Session 1786. Gaol Calendar.

External links

Mary Bryant movie
at the

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First Fleet Online
at University of Wollongong
Mary Broad Christening and Family information from IGI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bryant, Mary 1760s births Convicts transported to Australia on the First Fleet People from Fowey English highwaymen Recipients of British royal pardons Year of death unknown Australian people of Cornish descent British emigrants to Australia Women convicts transported to Australia Convict escapees in Australia British female criminals

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18th-century Australian women Piracy in Australia