Bennelong Point

The Rocks, Sydney Cove and Circular Quay Map

Sydney Cove, where the First Fleet landed with its load of convicts and guards, is flanked to the east by Bennelong Point. Named after an aboriginal who helped the early British settlers, it is now home to the Sydney Opera House, easily the city’s most visited attraction.

The cove is part of what is now called Sydney Harbour, then called Port Jackson. On the other side of the cove is The Rocks, a restored historical district where the convicts were first housed after the arrival of the First Fleet.

History

The point originally was marked by some rocks and a tidal island, with a small beach. The first horses and cattle that were brought to Australia by the colonialists were confined at night on this small island.

Not much later, a small house was built here to act as a home for Bennelong, an Aboriginal who acted as an interpreter for the colonialists and the various indigenous local nations (Eora) that occupied the greater Sydney region.

Next came a small gun battery, completing a set of four, one here (Fort Macquarie), another on the other side of the cove, Dawes Point, another on Fort Denison and another on the other side of the harbour. Lastly, was the fort being replaced by a tram depot.