The ''Rajah Quilt'' is a large quilt that was created by women convicts in 1841 whilst travelling from

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

, England, to

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

, Australia, using materials organised by Lydia Irving of the convict ship subcommittee of the British Ladies Society for Promoting the Reformation of Female Prisoners. The quilt was presented to

Jane Franklin Jane, Lady Franklin (née Griffin; 4 December 1791 – 18 July 1875) was a British explorer, seasoned traveller and the second wife of the English explorer Sir John Franklin. During her husband's period as Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's L ...

. The quilt was sent back to Britain for

Elizabeth Fry Elizabeth Fry (née Gurney; 21 May 1780 – 12 October 1845), sometimes referred to as Betsy Fry, was an English prison reformer, social reformer, philanthropist and Quaker. Fry was a major driving force behind new legislation to improve the tr ...

, the leader of the British Ladies Society. The quilt's provenance was then unclear until it was rediscovered in 1989. It is now held by the National Gallery of Australia.

History

Lydia Irving served on

's British Ladies Society for promoting the reformation of female prisoners convict ship sub-committee and she had a financial success when she persuaded the Navy board to fund "gifts" for the convicts. These basic items included knives, forks, aprons and notably, sewing materials.Amanda Phillips, ‘Irving, Lydia (1797–1893)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 29 June 2017
/ref> During the 25 years that Fry was involved with the organisation, 12,000 women were transported on 106 ships. The plan was to visit every ship on the night before it sailed to calm the women bound for Australia. Detail of the Rajah Quilt The sewing materials were supplied for the 180 women prisoners imprisoned on the ''Rajah''. The women's names are still known. They had been assembled from across Britain, and they had been sentenced in

Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

and the central criminal court. The ship set sail from

on 5 April 1841 and arrived on 19 July 1841 at Hobart in

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

. During the journey some of the women had embroidered and sewn the materials into an appliquéd coverlet now known as the Rajah quilt. The arranger of this quilt is believed to be Kezia Hayter who was the only free woman. She had come from the Millbank Penitentiary to assist Franklin in forming her own committee to mirror the one in the UK. It is thought now that about 29 women were involved. The convict sub-committee's work was remembered by the women on board. The quilt includes a message embroidered in silk thread giving thanks to the "convict ship committee". The quilt was presented to the governor's wife,

. The text on the quilt reads: Detailed from the Rajah Quilt - Ladies Society

:::''To the ladies of the convict ship committee, this quilt worked by the convicts of the ship Rajah during their voyage to van Dieman’s Land is presented as a testimony of the gratitude with which they remember their exertions for their welfare while in England and during their passage and also as a proof that they have not neglected the ladies kind admonitions of being industrious. June 1841.'' The quilt was sent back to Britain for Elizabeth Fry (who led the British Ladies Society). The quilt then became forgotten until it was rediscovered in an attic in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. It was returned to Australia in 1989. The quilt is now held by the National Gallery of Australia. Research shows that the quilt was not unique as other references are made to the convict women's needlework. One of the references is to the women leaving their work behind. However, this is the only documented quilt made by convicts that still survives.

In fiction

The book ''Dangerous Women'' by Hope Adams (published by Michael Joseph in 2021) imagines the voyage of the ''Rajah'' and the making of the quilt. George Sand refers to "toile de Perse à fond blanc" - Persian fabric on a white ground - in her novel Mauprat, set roughly in the 1750's. It indicates innocence and femininity.

References

{{Layered textiles Quilts Collection of the National Gallery of Australia Embroidery 1841 works