The Australo-Mauritian Links

The links between Australia and Mauritius span several centuries. Beginning with Abel Tasman in 1642, Mauritius was an important Indian Ocean base for exploration of Australia's coast. Trading links began as early as 1802. In 1834 the political firebrand John Dunmore Lang (1799-1878) wrote: 'The Australian colonies are at present supplied with sugar from the Isle de France (Mauritius). It is paid for chiefly in money as Mauritius takes a very insignificant quantity of Australian produce in return.' Not long after Mauritius was captured from the French, Britain began transporting unruly Mauritian slaves as convicts to new South Wales and Van Dieman's Land. Between 1820 and 1834, the Catholic Church in Australia was administered from Mauritius. Later, during the Gold Rush, hundreds of Mauritians arrived in Australia organised in disciplined companies of diggers. Le Courrier, a Mauritian newspaper then reported: 'Once in Australia, everyone will go free in the direction be wants and except for that common bond which never breaks between compatriots and companions of good and bad fortune... everyone will be there for himself and God for all'.They were followed by highly skilled planters and sugar chemists who made a crucial contribution to the establishment of Australia's sugar industry. Edward Shann in his Economic History of Australia, tells us: 'In 1856, John Dunmore Lang, always an eager advocate of the production of cotton and sugar by European labour, rode out from Grafton to a creek on the Clarence River where he saw 350 acres under sugar cane, grown by a settler from Mauritius, Mr Adam. He thought it very superior, yielding four tons of sugar to the acre.'

After Mauritius achieved independence in 1968, political uncertainties caused another major wave of highly skilled Mauritians to migrate to Australia. Numerous were the civil servants and professionals who made it downunder to start new lives, not only for themselves but for their children as well.

Today, at least 25,000 Australians are either Mauritian-born or (like painter Lloyd Rees and singer Gary "Angry" Anderson) are of Mauritian descent. John Tidley of The Age wrote in May 3, 1972: 'Mauritians have integrated in Melbourne's population virtually without notice, in the past few years.'

Information compiled from the book 'Of the Star and the Key-Mauritius, Mauritians and Australia' by Edward Duyker' published by the Australian Mauritian Research Group 1988. Manning Clark wrote of the book '...a most useful and interesting account of the association of the island of Mauritius and its inhabitants with the history of European settlement in Australia........ a passionate plea for the descendants of the British in Australia to acknowledge how much all Australians owe to the people such as Mauritians'.

Please let us know of any redundant links.

We are pleased to include the following information from Edward:

Edward Duyker wrote:

"Dear Madeleine and Clancy,

I chanced upon your home page just after downloading details of my manuscript donation to the National Library. I am sure this will be of interest to you.

Keep up the good work!

Best wishes,

Edward Duyker"

Mailto:duyker@dot.net.au

National Library of Australia

MS 9061 - Papers of Edward Adrian Joseph Duyker (1955- )

• Scope and Content Note
• Biographical Note
• Series List
• Series Description
• Box List

• Scope and Content Note
• Papers
  1830-1995
  1.26 metres (9 boxes)
  
• Available for reference
  The papers of Dr Edward Duyker were donated to the National Library by
  Dr Duyker in 1996. The collection consists mainly of his research notes
  and drafts made for two of his publications, The Dutch in Australia,
  Australian ethnic heritage series, Melbourne, 1987 and Of the star and
  the key: Mauritius, Mauritians and Australia, Australian Mauritian
  Research Group, 1988. There is also a substantial Australian-Mauritian
  family history series and a group of commercial correspondence between
  the firms of Bell, Regnard & Co. (Melbourne) and Pipon, Bell & Co.
  (Mauritius), 1853-55.
  
• Biographical Note
  Edward Adrian Joseph Duyker was born in Melbourne in 1955 and received a Bachelor of Arts (hons) degree at La Trobe University in 1977and earned
  his PhD at the University of Melbourne in 1981. He was an intelligence
  analyst for the Joint Intelligence Organisation, Department of Defence,
  Canberra and then joined Griffith University, Brisbane as a Teaching
  Fellow, Humanities Department. In 1984 he moved to Sydney and began
  working as a full-time writer. He has been the Chairperson of the
  Australian Mauritian Research Group since 1983.
  He is the author of numerous books such as: The Dutch in Australia
  (1987), Of the star and the key: Mauritius, Mauritians and Australia
  (1988), Molly and the Rajah: race, romance and the Raj (1991), Officer
  of the blue: a biography of the south sea explorer Marc-Joseph Marion
  Dufresne 1724-72 (1994) and Daniel Solander: collected correspondence
  1753-82 (1995).
  
• Series List
  
  Series
  1.The Dutch in Australia
  2.Of the star and the key: Mauritius, Mauritians and Australia
  3.Mauritius-Australia family history
  4.Pipon, Bell & Co. correspondence 1853-55
  
• Series Description
  Series 1 The Dutch in Australia, 1855-1987
  The series contains research notes, correspondence, newspaper clippings
  and photographs used by Duyker in compiling his publication, The Dutch
  in Australia, Australian Ethnic Heritage Series, Melbourne 1987.
  The topics covered include research on Dutch immigration to Australia
  during the 19th and 20th centuries as well as post World War Two
  immigration and correspondence from individuals of Dutch heritage. Some
  of this material is in Dutch.
  Also included are photocopied articles about the Dutch on the Victorian
  goldfields, in particular the Dutch digger Jan Vennik's involvement in
  the Eureka uprising. Contains an account of his trial, as reported in
  the Argus.
  There is one file on Dutch military involvement in Australia during
  World War Two and the Netherlands East Indies forces contribution to the
  Pacific War. It includes newsletters from the 18th Squadron NEI-RAAF
  Forces Association.
  
• File
  1.Early Dutch trade 1914-86
  2.Dutch immigrants 19th-20th centuries 1877-1987
  3.Dutch convicts
  4.Dutch and the gold rush
  5.Dutch aviation links with Australia 1978-86
  6.World War Two/Indonesia
  7.Post War Dutch immigration
  8.Dutch cultural contribution 1951-87
  9.Dutch illustrations
  10.General papers 1892-1985
  
• Series 2 Of the star and the key: Mauritius, Mauritians and Australia,
  1830-1995
  The series contains research notes, correspondence, newspaper clippings
  and photographs used by Duyker in compiling the publication, Of the star
  and key: Mauritius, Mauritians and Australia, Australian Mauritian
  Research Group, Sydney 1988.
  The files include copies of court proceedings and lists of Mauritian
  slaves (and convicts) subsequently transported to Australia 1830-50,
  articles copied from Mauritian newspapers: The Mauritius Weekly Reporter, Le Mauricien and Le Cerneen (some in French), text of an ABC broadcast
  entitled "Flinders on Mauritius" (1955), newsletters of the Alliance
  Mauricienne de Victoria, newsletter of the Mauritian Service
  newsletter.
  
• File
  1.Mauritian convicts
  2.Gold rush
  3.Mauritius/Australian trade 1987
  4.Miscellaneous Mauritian immigration 1880-1985
  5.Mauritian and Australian sugar industry 1872-1985
  6.Mauritian newsletters 1978-95
  7.Mauritian newspaper clippings 1976-72
  8.Illustrations for Of the star and key
  
• Series 3 Mauritian-Australian family history, 1945-95
  The series contains correspondence between Duyker and genealogists
  regarding their family histories and Mauritian-Australian connections.
  It also includes a photocopy of Gaston Sarre's Recueil de reseignements
  sur les familles de L'ile Maurice, 1945, containing genealogical notes on
  some 3000 Mauritian families. These files are arranged alphabetically.
  
• File
  1.Mauritian family history inquiries
  2.Photocopy Recueil de reseignements sur les familles de Lile Maurice
  
• Series 4 Pipon, Bell & Co. Correspondence, 1853-55
  The series contains a collection of 58 letters (mercantile
  correspondence) written by the firm of Bell, Regnard & Co. Melbourne to
  Pipon, Bell & Co. Mauritius between May 28 1853 and December 8 1855,
  concerning the importation of Mauritian sugar.
  1 File
  Box List
  Box Series Files 111-7 218-10 321-5 426-8 5316-832 941
  ------------------------------------------------------------------------
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  Last updated 17 February 1997

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Copyright Clancy J Philippe - Compiled 2001 Updated 2004