Canabygle - Dharawal Chief
| Appin massacre 1816 | Canabygle | Cook & Appin | Gingenbullen | Macquarie's War 1816 | Southern Highlands |
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| Nicholas-Martin Petit, Natives of New South Wales [+ Van Dieman's Land] [1802], steel engraving, London, 1806. |
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| Nicholas-Martin Petit, Nourou-Gal-Derri - advancing to combat, 1802. |
[Canabygle's Plains] is in the Parish of Colo. The place is named after an Aboriginal elder who was well known between 1800 and 1816. George Caley came across him during one of his exploratory journeys through the Cowpastures [1802], when he was pointed out to the explorer. Caley spells his name as Cannabygal. Cunningham (Cunningham’s Journal, Mitchell Library) who passed through the spot, mentions that it .... was called by the Aborigines “Carra-bija plains.” [Governor Lachlan] Macquarie camped there on 17 October 1820, and calls the spot 'Kannabygle's Plains.' Cannabygal appears to have been one of the leaders in the native outbreak which occurred in 1816.
The following is a brief biographical listing of references to Canabygle, arranged chronologically. It is based in part on the paper published by Dr. Joseph Davis in October 2021 (Davis 2021) and additional research by the author. Therein, Davis noted the following variations of the spelling of his name within the historical record: Callumbingles, Cannaboygal, Cannagycle, Carnambaygal, Carnimbeigle, Carra-bija, Conbigal, Kannabygle, Kannabi byugal, Kinabygal and Kinnahygal. The present author uses the spelling Canabygle throughout this article, apart from within reproductions of original text.
Canabygle was a member of what is known today as the Dharawal people, a term applied by non-Indigenous researchers to a tribe, clan, family group or language which was part of traditional Aboriginal society in a specific area of eastern Australia prior to the European invasion. It appears that his country was the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, located southwest of Sydney, with the Illawarra and Shoalhaven coastal plain lying to the east, and the Nattai and Burragorang Valleys lying to the west and northwest. Canabygle came to be seen as 'chief' / male elder of this area. His descendents include Aunty Frances Bodkin (b.1935). The following is a chronological account of his life based upon all known records.
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The Life and Death of Canabygle
circa 1760
Canabygle was born around 1760, assuming he was aged between 50-60 years at the time of his death on 17 April 1816. As a child, he would have been aware of the visit to Botany Bay in April-May 1770 of HMB Endeavour under the command of Lt. James Cook. Likewise, the impact of the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney in January 1788 would have been sorely felt, giving rise, for example, to the spread of European diseases such as smallpox and influenza, along with the introduction of the gun, the loss of ownership of Country (the term for the traditional lands owned and occupation by a group of Aboriginal people), and depredations by the new arrivals. He would have been shielded from much of this prior to 1800, as the penal settlement around Sydney was confined to the area around Port Jackson and Botany Bay, and west to Parramatta and Windsor. However, this was to change when the need for land to satisfy the demands of the free settlers saw an expansion beyond this, into areas to the north, west and south, including Canabygle's traditional Country.
1802 - Barralier's account
November: French-born explorer and soldier Frances Louis Barrallier (1773-1853) sets off in a southwest direction from Prospect, located on the edge of the European settlement around Sydney, and reaches the Burragorang Valley. Here the Aboriginal man Nungin (also known as Bungin) make reference to Canabygle and his tribe. The encounter is recorded in Barralier's Journal (Historical Records of New South Wales, Government Printer, Sydney, 1892, V, 748-825). This event is discussed in detail in Peter Turbet's The First Frontier - The Occupation of the Sydney Region 1788 to 1816 (Turbet 2011). Relevant extracts from Barralier's journal include the following:
[7 November] Gogy, the native I had in my service, started running, and went and sat with them, where he remained until we arrived. He came and told me that one of these natives was a mountaineer called Bungin, and the other knew the white men, and was called Wooglemai.* [* Wooglemai, in the natives language, signifies "one-eyed". This native knew Gogy, as he used to go from time to time to Parramatta and Prospect Hill. The mountaineer called Bungin was an inhabitant of the South, and had left the Canambaigle tribe because they wanted to kill him. He was the brother of a famous chief who had accidentally killed himself in falling from a tree. That chief was called Goonboole. He inhabited the mountains near Jervis Bay, and was the terror of the neighbourhood.] I went to the mountaineer to examine a mantle with which he was covered. This mantle was made of skins of various animals sewed together. It was a very great curiosity, and as I was desirous of obtaining it, I proposed to him to exchange it for a new axe, but he would not part with it, and told me that the nights were very cold and his mantle was his only covering. I was compelled to abandon my proposal, and in order to attach to me this mountaineer, who would be very useful to me in the country I was in, I had the head of the kangaroo given to him to appease his hunger, after which he came and proposed, as a token of friendship, to exchange his old axe for the new one I had offered him for his mantle. I filled him with joy by complying with his request.
[8 November] I resumed my journey at 4, and at 6 o'clock crossed another creek. After having travelled over a plain, I perceived fires in several places, and Bungin told me that it was a chief called Canambaigle with his tribe, who were hunting, and had on that very day set the country on fire. He showed me the imprints of various feet, both of males and females,* scattered here and there. The natives minutely examine the footprints on the ground, and know by their number and differences what natives have passed there.
[9 November] After dinner I took two men with me and went down the creek, which I followed until dusk, gathering flowers and fragments of a rather peculiar sandstone. I returned to the depôt at sunset, and about the same time Bulgin (one of the mountaineer newcomers), with Bungin, arrived with their wives and two children; but Wallarra,* the other mountaineer, was not with them. [* It was apparent that Wallarra's fright was not over yet.] Gogy told me that they had brought portions of a monkey (in the native language "colo"),** but they had cut it in pieces, and the head, which I should have liked to secure, had disappeared. I could only get two feet through an exchange which Gogy made for two spears and one tomahawk. I sent these two feet to the Governor in a bottle of spirits. [** Gogy told me that this portion of the colo (or monkey) and several opossums had been their share in the chase with Canambaigle, at which they were present on the day when that part of the country which I referred to above had been burnt. The newly arrived natives lighted a fire on the left-hand side of the depôt. Gogy associated with them, but his wife, who, with her child, was at some distance from that spot, did not leave the place where she was. From there she watched with great interest what was taking place between the natives and her husband on the side opposite. The natives of this country are inclined towards superstition and believe in the existence of an evil spirit.]
The journal account records some of the customs and internal politics of Aboriginal society at that time. Most such early accounts by Europeans, rare as they are, exhibit bias based on a mixture of ignorance, fear and curiosity. They fail to understand and expand upon the complexities of the local civilisation which was very much different from the Western society they knew so well. For this reason they often referred to it as primitive, though in reality it was just as complex and advanced as the Western equivalent, though in very different ways.
1804 - Caley's accounts
* George Caley, Diary of a journey to Picton Lakes, MS C112 / CY Reel 1324, Mitchell Library, Sydney – Reflections 101:40]. Sir Joseph Banks’s botany collector in New South Wales George Caley unexpectedly met Kanabaygal and his mountain people at Stonequarry Creek, near the Cowpastures in 1804 (pages 20-21). 15 February 1804 – on his way to Picton Lakes, he wrote: I had not gone scarcely a mile before I heard the noise of a native using his Mogo [mugu]. Now I was struck with the fidelity and accuracy of my map. I hallowed, and ere long was answered; and shortly after a native came running to me and called me by name. He informed me there was a large party Walbunga* a little ways of[f] … Caley was told by Gogy, an Aboriginal man, that walbunga meant “catching kangaroos by setting the place on fire, and by [‘the blacks’] placing themselves in the direction the animal is forced to pass and by throwing spears at it as it passes along.”
* 14 February: Naturalist and explorer George Caley (1770-1829) notes in his journal upon encountering an Indigenous man on this date. The original journal has not been sighted by the present author. However, it is described elsewhere as follows:
This man explained that a kangaroo hunt (a “walbunga”) was then taking place and that the hunters were using fire to get the kangaroos to come within range of their spears. This indigenous man also mentioned that Cannabygle was also taking part even though this was not his traditional territory. This must have sparked Cayley’s interest for he writes that Cannabygle was “often talked of by the Parramatta natives but not seen by them. (Caley 1804)
It is also described in detail in Turbet (2011). He notes the encounter with Canabygle as follows:
[14 February] On the morning of the 14th, the explorers heard a Dharawal man chopping wood with a mogo and called out. The man came running. He knew Caley and, although his name was not recorded, could have easily been Gogy. He said that a walbunga (a kangaroo hunt where the animals were driven into spear range by fire) was in progress and that several strangers - including the famous Cannabaygal, the same person that Bungin had told Barrallier about in November 1802 - were taking part in the hunt. Cannabaygal was a legendary, almost mythical, figure ..... 'much dreaded by the other tribes' and considered to be 'invincible and more than mortal.' Caley says that he was 'often talked of by the Parramatta natives, but not seen by them.'
A group of over twenty Dharawal, many of whom recognized Caley, now came out of the bush and a conversation ensured. However, when Caley indicated that he would like to meet Cannabaygal, all fell silent. Four more Aborigines, three men and one woman, then came into sight and sat down behind a tree. Caley walked over to them and, when he asked for Cannabaygal, one of the men clapped his hands on his chest to signify that he was that man.
According to Caley, Cannabaygal and his two male companions were 'void of clothing except a belt to fix the mogo in; the woman had a kind of cloak upon her back made of the skins of animals but which did not conceal her nakedness in the least.' The four were 'of gigantic stature in comparison with the rest [elsewhere Caley says they were about 178 cm (5 feet 10 inches) tall and of stout build]; their hair being long flowing upon the shoulders, and their features in general gave them a frightful countenance, though I must own that Cannabaygal had something pleasant in his while I was conversing with him.'
Caley asked one of the Dharawal men to speak to the strangers but all the rest were as 'mute as mice.' Cannabaygal and his companions had never seen a white man before and, to demonstrate the effectiveness of firearms, Caley shot a bird, telling his servant to watch for the stranger's reaction to the report of the gun. This he cold not see because the four had their heads down the whole time. When given the dead bird, however, they expressed astonishment at not being able to find a wound. Caley invited them to come over to his horse to get some bread and other provisions but they refused. He decided against giving food to all the Aborigines present because there were too many of them.
Realizing that his absence was more wished for than his company, Caley left the scene but before doing so asked for information about the country. He was told not to go in a certain direction because, he writes, 'there were several strange women at such a place, and that if I should happen to fall in with them, I should create a serious alarm.'
..... As darkness fell, the two men heard the Aborigines 'dancing and making merry' nearby. Worried about an attack, they kept as quiet as possible and screened their tent and small fire with bushes. The could not sleep until the noise of the ceremony died down, trusting the dog to warn them if the Aborigines came near. Caley tells us: 'According to our situation, we fixed our guns in such a position as to have nothing more to do than pulling the trigger on our suddenly awakening.'
[15 February] The next morning, hoping for another interview with Cannabaygal, Caley went over to the Aboriginal camp but the formidable warrior kept out of his way, even when he was offered some bread. the 'strange women' mentioned the day before were present and the servant was keen to get a better look at them. He 'kept following them with the mare, by doing so he put them in dreadful fright, and they screamed out loudly.' Caley could not get him to leave the women alone as 'as his curiosity had overcome his reason' and he took hold of the halter, making the horse caper about. The possibility of a confrontation loomed and some of the Dharawal hit the animal with their spears. However, their respect for Caley's 'weapons of destruction' averted hostilities and the incident 'ended in a joke.'
Some of the people that Caley knew walked a short distance with him and , when out of sight and earshot of the four strangers, the deference they had shown to Cannabaygal vanished. They 'burst into fits of laughter and were highly delighted' at his fear of the white men. Caley asked his friends to invite Cannabaygal to his house at Parramatta or, alternatively, to come close to the settlement so that Caley could go out to meet them. It is unlikely that the rendezvous ever took place.
When Caley had first met Cannabaygal and his three companions he was surprised that there were 'such huge beings in so barren a part of the country' but he later discovered, of course, that they were only visiting the Cowpastures from somewhere else - probably the area between Yerrinbool and Aylmerton which was known as Callumbigles (or Kannabygles) Plains until at least 1816. (Turbet 2011)
This informative account reveals that Canabygle and his people visited areas to the north of their traditional lands, closer in towards Sydney, though primarily on the south. Parramatta was west of Sydney and north of these areas.
* 12 March 1804 - George Caley writes to Sir Joseph Banks regarding his recent explorations (Banks Papers, State Library of New South Wales). Canabygle and his people are referred to in the letter, but not by name. Relevant extracts include the following:
... Of late I have been out a good deal. I have pretty well ascertained the distance of ground occupied by the Wild Cattle; and by the next ship I mean to give you a sketch of it, which may serve until that part of the country is surveyed. In going this journey I fell in with some natives who had never seen white men before. I should not have seen them had not I met with a native who knew me, & gave me the hint, & he conducted me to the place where they were along with some others, who also knew me. On his shouting to his party they came running in a hurry towards him, & the strangers along with them, & were close upon me before they perceived me. They seemed to be quite of a different race to those that I am acquainted with not only by their features, but in size; their hair was black & in height they were about 5 feet 10 inches, & very stout made The other natives told me that they eat human flesh, but whether they are Cannibals or not I shall not take upon me to say, however I should not like meet such as they were without being well armed. There were 3 men & 1 woman, the woman had had a kind of cloak on, made out of different skins of animals. I could not have believed that there were such large beings as these in such a barren rocky country had not I seen them in person. I held out great offers to induce them to come to Parramatta, and I am apt to think that the other natives will persuade them to venture. I had strict orders from the natives who knew me, to acquaint the Parramatta natives of it, & for them to come that way & meet them. Those strange natives were on a visit. The place where I saw them was near Poppy Brook, for which I refer to a sketch I sent you by the Glatton.
* R. Else Mitchell, Cannabaygal - The Native Chief, in George Caley: His Life and Work, Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Australian Historical Society, XXV, 1939, VI, 489-90. Includes extracts from Caley's report of 'A Journey to ascertain the Limits and Boundaries of Vaccary Forest' (State Library of New South Wales):
Cannabaygal - The Native Chief. It had been Caley’s intention to begin his survey “at the termination of the range where I began my S.S.W. course in the discovery of Scirpus Mere,” [Caley's Report, p.18] but before he had gone very far he heard a native who, responding to calls, “came running to me and called me by my name.” Caley learnt that there was a large party catching kangaroos by setting the grass on fire, and that the famous chief, Cannabaygal, and some followers was amongst them, and asked to meet him. The native coo-eed to the party, and when they came up Caley conversed with Cannabaygal, who was a stranger to those parts, through the chief of the local tribe as interpreter. Cannabaygal and his tribesmen had not seen a white man before, and were much feared by the Cowpastures natives owing to their reputation as fierce mountaineers. Caley describes the strangers with great detail:—
They seemed to be quite a different race to those that I am acquainted with not only by their features but in size; their hair was black and in height they were about 5 feet 10 inches and very stout made. The other natives told me that they eat human flesh but whether they are cannibals or not I shall not take upon me to say. [Caley to Banks, 12 March 1804]
In his journal he says:-
The strangers were four in number, three men and one woman; the men were void of cloathing except a belt to fix the Mogo; the woman had a kind of cloak upon her back made of the skins of animals but which did not conceal her nakedness in the least. They were of gigantic stature in comparison with the rest; their hair being long flowing upon the shoulders, and their features in general gave them a frightful countenance, though I must own that Cannabaygal had something pleasant in his while I was conversing with him. [Caley's Report, p.21 ]
Caley then shot a bird with his gun to demonstrate the power of firearms, and, though the natives showed surprise, he was unable to detect whether or not the report had terrified them. At length he says, “finding that my absence was more wished for than my company,” Caley left the natives, but before doing so sought topographical information from them. The source of the Hawkesbury they indicated to be in the south-east, and Nay toy (Nattai — Barrallier’s depot) in a direction west by south.
1805
2 November, George Caley's observations on the Cow Pastures, which he called Vaccary Forest, with Governor King's remarks on such parts as he had visited, 2nd November 1805 (Historical Records of New South Wales, volume 5, 1803-1805, Government Printer, Sydney, 1892, 721). This is a retelling of the 1804 encounters between Canabygle and Caley referred to above.
Near Stone-quarry Creek Caley fell in with a party of Cow Pasture natives whom he knew, and enquired after a chief who had often been talked of at the settlements, named Cannabygal or Cannamikel, who then happened to be on a visit to this party. Caley describes Cannabygal and his tribe or family to be a stout athletic band, far surpassing the other natives in height and stoutness. Following the range about two miles from Stone-quarry Creek, Cayley makes that the western termination of his Vaccary Forest, and from thence he turned to the northward.
1814-15
Drought in New South Wales results in people from the outskirt areas of Sydney, temporarily moving in towards the settle areas to get access to food. This includes the so-called Mountain People (the Gundungarra) from the west and south west, and Canabygle's group from the south. Canabygle acts as an intermediary in discussions between the Sydney tribes and those seeking to make use of their resources. During these years there are violent encounters between the settlers and Gundungarra, with deaths on both side. This gives rise to the punitive actions taken by Governor Macquarie the following year.
* 4 June 1814, Sydney Gazette: Report on fears that the combined Jervis Bay and Mountain tribes (i.e. the Dharawal and Gundungara people) will attack settlers.
The hordes of natives that shew themselves at a distance in the environs of the Cow Pasture settlement, excite considerable alarm among the settlers. Many of their wives and children have forsaken their dwelling, and sought shelter in securer places. The natives of Jarvis's Bay are reported in good authority to have coalesced with the mountain tribes. They commit no depredations on the corn fields, but have declared a determination, that when the Moon shall become as large as the Sun, they will commence a work of desolation, and kill all the whites before them. - The full of the moon, which yesterday took place, was clearly understood to be the fixed period alluded to; and the settlers, in self defence, had formed a resolution to watch their respective farms by night, and by voice or gun communicating to each other any immediate danger of attack; in case of which all within the settlement were to repair to the place of danger. But by the advice of Mr. Moore, the worthy Magistrate of Liverpool, this plan, however meritorious or excellently designed, underwent an alteration which seems to promise greater security. This was the constituting a regular corps-de-garde at the farm of Mr. Hume, which is nearest the Nepean in Appin, comprising 8 or 10 settlers of the district; who alternately keep a night watch, and are intent on making the best defence practicable, in case of attack; and if hard pressed by their assailants, who appear to have less dread of fire arms than formerly, they retire upon the district of Airds, which being more numerously settled, will be capable of affording them a shelter.
The natives of Jarvis's Bay have never been otherwise than inimical to us; for small vessels have never touched there without experiencing their hostility in some degree or other. Small crews have been obliged to fire upon them (we should hope in self-defence alone), and these skirmishes may have strengthened their aversion, in which they have ever appeared determined.
The mountaineers are a much more athletic and hardy race than those of this part of the sea coast. They are taller, lighter coloured, much more comely in their persons and features, and wear their hair tied in a bunch behind: but one circumstance is observable in their present encampments which seems to prognosticate that their designs are not so hostile as might have been feared (not by a body of armed men), but by the remote families who are most exposed to their attack: This is, a knowledge we have gained that the mountain natives, unlike those of the coast, go to war unattended by their women and children - who are now along with them. Their chief, whose name is Cowgye [Gogey], has wholly abandoned them, and gone to Broken Bay, from a personal wish to maintain a friendly footing with us. He calls the mountain tribes cannibals; but that they are so has never yet been known to us. As soon as the whole of the maize is gathered, we may hope they will retire; but we cannot before expect it, although it is certain they have not for the last fortnight committed any act of depredation whatever. We are happy to learn that the settlers have adopted the best possible measures for their own security, and the best calculated to prevent any further mischief.
1816
* 17 April - Canabygle is killed at Appin, along with other members of his tribe, when shot by Grenadier soldiers of the 46th Regiment of Foot under the command of Captain Wallis and on the orders of Governor Lachlan Macquarie. Lt. Parker takes the dead bodies of Kanabaygal and Durelle and hang them up on trees. He later takes them down and severs the two heads, plus another, before passing them on to Dr. Patrick Hill, a Royal Naval surgeon, who leaves Sydney by the Willerby on 28 October 1816. Hill then gives them to Sir George Mackenzie, subsequent author of Illustrations on Phrenology (Edinburgh 1820). The skull is eventually returned to Australia during the 1990s.
* Frances Bodkin's account
Numerous accounts of the Appin Massacre have been published and are listed in detail here. Frances Bodkin, a Bidigal Dharawal person and descendant of Canabygle, has to date provided the only detailed account of the lead up to the massacre from an Aboriginal viewpoint. She outlined some of her knowledge of the massacre in an interview recorded at Appin on 27 February 2014. The transcript below is by the present author and includes editorial comments. A variant of the account was published in Bodkin (2014) and Foley and Read (2020):
In 1813 [1814] there was a drought and in drought times the Gundangara were allowed [by the Dharawal] to come down from the high country and live on the plains because their country, having been high, dried out first. And of course because Canabayagal was living with the Gundangara at the time – he was a Dharawal man – he came down [with them] to start the proceedings, the requests. And of course the requests were made and the Gundangara were allowed to come down to the plains.
But what happened then was, the Gundangara are a very war-like mob – still are – and they came onto the plains and they expected them to be as they had been in the last drought, many years beforehand. But there were fences, there were strange animals, and they began a war of attrition. So much so that in 1816 there was a request made to Governor Macquarie to rid of the lands of the troublesome blacks. And so he vacillated on it, because many of his people were friends. Anyway, the rule of the use of the lands was that as soon as it rained the Gundangara had to go back to their own lands. And this particular night it began to rain, which meant that the Gundangara had to go back.
Well, Canabayagal was at the Dharawal encampment speaking to his brothers and talking with them and discussing about thanking them for allowing them to come down and apologising for the trouble. And that was when the [pause]. What it was – it’s really quite strange – a declaration of war was made, and it was made by a man called Thomas Davey, who had been Lieutenant Governor of Tasmania at the time, and it wasn’t signed by Macquarie as it should have been.
[NB: This is not correct. Macquarie made the declaration in his secret orders to his troops; Davey was in Tasmania at the time and sought to ameliorate the local people.]
So, anyway, the troops were sent out, the marines were sent out, on this declaration of war, to rid the lands of troublesome blacks. And what was happening – there were three contingents went out – one led by a man called Schaw who went to the north west. He did not find anyone. A Dawes went to the west and he found a family of Gundangara who were very sick, and they gave him their child and he brought it back to the Macarthur lands on his way back.
But the one Wallis led the troops down south west, and one of the people who was asked to guide -he was employed by Macquarie at the time - his name was Bundle. And he led the troops down to Glenfield farm where Throsby lived. And he got to the farm and Throsby warned him that the troops were actually going to, came with the specific order to kill the Dharawals, not the troublesome blacks.
So Bundle and Warby – John Warby who was his best friend – took off to go down and warn the Dharawal people. But, because there were three separate camps – there was the men meeting, the senior men meeting; there was the boys, or the young noisy teenagers; and then there was the women and the children. They went first of all to the children’s camp so that Bundle could take the yarra – which is a special implement, a very sacred object – and give that to his oldest son [D’haramuoy] who at the time was 14 and tell him to go and hide it so that no one can find it.
So young D’haramuoy took off with the yarra. They warned the women and the children. They were starting to get stirred up. By the time they got to the men’s camp the troops had already arrived, because the troops were on horseback, and with the kids they were running. And the most senior men were killed and had their heads removed. And Canabayagal's head is still to be returned to us. And we are still waiting for a decision to be made on that.
* Captain James Wallis report, 16-17 April 1816
16th April - Went to the banks of Georges River, and surveyed the settlement to procure information. This evening Tyson returned and informed the natives were still at Broughton’s. That there were seven murderers amongst them and that as more would arrive in that night. From Thomas Noble, a prisoner with information. About eleven o’clock he came and informed me Noble had seen their camp at sunset.
17th - A little after one o’clock a.m. we marched. Noble joined us, and led us where he had seen the natives encamped. The fires were burning but deserted. We feared they had heard us and were fled. A few of my men who wandered on heard a child cry. I formed line ranks, entered and pushed on through a thick brush towards the precipitous banks of a deep rocky creek. The dogs gave the alarm and the natives fled over the cliffs. A smart firing now ensued. It was moonlight. The grey dawn of the moon appearing so dark as to be able early to discover their figures bounding from rock to rock. Before marching from Quarters I had ordered my men to make as many prisoners as possible, and to be careful in sparing and saving the women and children. My principal efforts were now directed to this purpose. I regret to say some had been shot and others met their fate by rushing in despair over the precipice. I was however partly successful - 1 led up two women and three children. They were all that remained, to whom death would not be a blessing. Twas a melancholy but necessary duty I was employed upon. Fourteen dead bodies were counted in different directions. The bodies of Dunell and Kincabygal I had considerable difficulty in getting up the precipice - I regretted the death of an old native Balyin and the unfortunate women and children - from the rocky place they fell in. I found it would be almost impossible to bury these. I detached Lieut. Parker with the bodies of Dunell and Kinnabygal, to be hanged on a conspicuous part of a range of hills near Mr Broughton’s and after to lay in ambush at a ford where it was expected Boodbury was with other natives to pass. In the camp we found abundance of plundered potatoes and corn, and numbers of spears, clubs &c.
* Captain Schaw's report
Callumbigle's Plains........
* Sydney Gazette, 11 May 1816 - First public report of the massacre, more than one month after the event:
……It appears that the party under Capt. Wallis fell in with a number of the natives on the 17th ultimo, near Mr. Broughton’s farm, in the Airds District, and killed fourteen of them, taking two women and three children prisoners. Amongst the killed were found the bodies of two of the most hostile of the natives, called Durelle and Conibigal.
* Governor Macquarie’s report to England, 8 June 1816 - Macquarie's untruthful brief summary account of the massacre:
The occurrence of most importance which took place was under Captain Wallis’s direction, who, having surprized one of the native encampments and meeting with some resistance, killed 14 of them and made 5 prisoners; amongst the killed there is every reason to believe that Two of the most ferocious and sanguinary of the Natives were included, same few other prisoners were taken in the course of this route and have been lodged in Goal. This necessary but painful duty was conducted by the Officers in Command of the Detachments perfectly in conformity to the instructions I had furnished them.
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Post-massacre accounts
1820
* 17 October: Governor Macquarie, during his travels southwest from Sydney, refers to a locality known as Kannabygle's Plains.
* Dr. Reid, a member of Macquarie's party, mentions Cannabyagal's Plains.
* The Severed Heads of Kincabygal and Dunell
The skull of Canabygle is described and illustrated in a book published in England on Phrenology and authored by Andrew Mackenzie (1820). Mackenzie wrote about the Kanabaygal skull at length in this book and also included an illustration in his Review of Illustrations of Phrenology (Edinburgh Review, January 1821, p.106). During 1824 he deposited the skull with the Phrenological Society. It eventually came into the collection of the University of Edinburgh. Extract from Illustrations on Phrenology (1820):
The skull of Carnimbeigle, a ‘New Holland Chief’ had deep eye sockets suggestive of a lack of language skills. Other shapes on the skull indicated strong leadership skills.
“In Plate 8 we have a more interesting subject for phrenology, which bear conspicuously some of the marks most prominent in the last plate. This is drawn from the skull of Carnimbeigle, a chief of New South Wales, who was killed by a party of the 46th Regiment in 1816. His skull is now on our possession, having been presented to us by Mr Hill, Surgeon, R.N. who received it from Lieutenant Parker of the 46th. The sockets of the eyes are so deep, and so concave upwards, that it may be presumed Carnimbeigle was not an adept in language. The organ of number is very small indeed, remarkably so, as well as the organs of tune, order, and colour. Relative position or locality is large, and Form about the ordinary size, rather small. The forehead is very low, inclining rapidly backwards ; hence Nos. 19. 30. 31. 32. are small. There is but little benevolence ; and 7. and 9. are small. There is a large development of 17v 18. 10. 11. 12. 5. 4. 3. ; and 2. is considerable, while, I . is small. The organ of veneration is the highest part of the head. If we are to judge of the natives of New Holland from this specimen, and from two others, of which casts are in our collection, we should say that the knowing and reflecting faculties give little hope of their being capable of improvement in knowledge, while the religious and moral faculties may be improved by exertions properly directed.” Although, therefore, the progress of these people may be slow; and although their reasoning powers are not such as to lead us to think that their lower propensities can be under perfect control; still, by working on their love of approbation, by acts of kindness, much may be done for these miserable beings in improving their moral and religious condition. Their lower propensities do not seem considerable, when compared with foreheads that indicate more intelligence than they seem to possess, although they are large in proportion to their own. The first step towards improving such a people, is to give them confidence, before any attempt is made to work upon their feelings. As their reasoning powers are weak, and their self-esteem strong, much patience must be bestowed upon them ; and firmness being well developed, renders the necessity of patience and perseverance more apparent. Carnimbeigle clearly possessed all the qualities which we should expect to find in a chief of such a people. Confidence in himself, courage in a high degree, ambition, a strong sense of justice, much cautiousness, with a talent for stratagem, are qualities that constitute a leader among savages ; and such also are the qualities which, when united with great talents, form a great leader in civilized life. * From the marks of its action on the bones of the skull, the temporal muscle, which appears to have been uncommonly large, must have been in almost constant and laborious activity. Connected with this, is the remarkable condition of the teeth of both jaws. They are much worn, and look as if they had been ground away and polished. Although the enamel of the points is totally gone, and the bony portion wasted almost to the sockets, not one of them has the least appearance of having been carious. Having mentioned to Mr Hill, that these circumstances had struck us as remarkable, and requested him to inform us if the natives of New Holland were as careless about their food as those of Madagascar, who eat up sand and whatever else may chance to adhere to it, he was so kind as to give us the following account, in which will be found some farther particulars respecting Carnimbeigle.
“In New South Wales, I was at one time a fortnight among the natives, at the Five Islands, a place about sixty miles from Sidney, and had an opportunity of observing their mode of living. At that place there is a creek, which abounds with mullet ; and from that circumstance, it is a favourite haunt with the natives, fish being their most choice food. Their mode of cooking is very simply merely placing them on the fire or hot ashes without any preparation. When half roasted, they tear out the entrails, which, after having been placed for a little on the fire, they devour, generally covered with ashes, sand, and other impurities. This is always their first, and apparently most savoury morsel. They then proceed to the rest of the fish, which they eat half roasted, giving no quarter to the head, or any part that can be masticated : this is invariably covered with sand. It is truly astonishing the quantity of mullet one of these savages will consume, and that without salt, or any kind of substitute for it. Next to fish, the oppossum and other wild animals seem to be in the greatest request, which they prepare and eat much in the same way. When at the Five Islands, I may observe, that we had two huts erected, and between them we had a large fire. We had always a number of the natives round us, both night and day ; and I had frequent opportunities of seeing the process of cooking and eating their fish. I had also occasion to see a native devour an oppossum and its young one. He placed both on the fire at the same time, without skinning the animals, frequently turning them, and rubbing off with his hand the singed fur. He then commenced operations on the smaller, which he completely demolished, bones, entrails, &c. I then thought he had made a pretty good meal, and that he would have shared out the large one to the other natives who were sitting round the fire, and whose greedy eyes and watery mouths seemed to anticipate the pleasure of the meal ; — but no ! To my utter surprise, the large one went the same road with the smaller, with the exception of a few of the hard bones, which he could not masticate. This was done in silence. During the whole process he did not exchange a word with any one ; and I observed this to be a general rule. When a native joined our party with a stock of provender, he squatted himself down before the fire, and did not condescend to speak to any one until he had stuffed himself. Then, if he had any to spare, he shared it among the rest, joined in the conversation, or went to sleep. In the case of the oppossum, the savage looked round with perfect satisfaction, and want to sleep. When hard pressed with hunger, I am told, they eat the root of the fern, which I have no doubt will be covered with sand. I have never had occasion to see them eat it.
* Another favourite morsel of theirs, is a large grub which is found under stones. The particular insect to which it appertains, I believe, is not yet known in England. I shall endeavour to ascertain its habits, and procure a specimen. I have seen a native pick them from under stones, and eat them with avidity.
* As you appeared to have taken an interest in this subject, I thought perhaps the preceding observations might account for the appearance of the teeth in the skull in your possession. Be assured I shall endeavour to ascertain if there is any other circumstance connected with their history, which will account for it.
* In the upper jaw, you will observe one of the alveolar processes absorbed. At the age of puberty, it is a general custom of these people to knock out one of the front teeth. I may observe, that Carnimbeigle was a most determined character, one of the few who were hostile to the settlers, and who annoyed them very much by destroying their cattle. A party of the military were sent out against him and his confederates ; but he could not be found, until they procured two native guides. He was then traced to his den, and, being placed at bay, he died manfully, having received five shots before he fell."
1824
* List of Donations made to the Phrenological Society – Skull of Carnimbeigle, a New Holland Chief, presented by Sir G.S. Mackenzie, Bart. Transactions of the Phrenological Society, 1, 1824, p.xv.
1829
* [Comparison of skulls - Carnimbeigle and Robert Bruce], The Monthly Review, X, 1829, p.547:
…Mark what follows. “The reader is requested to compare the skull of Carnimbeigle, the New Holland Chief, with that of Robert Bruce.” Sir George possesses this inestimable treasure, to wit, Carnimbeigle’s skull, and finds the he had confidence in himself, courage in a high degree, ambition, a strong sense of justice (in which Bruce was very deficient), beside much cautiousness, and a talent for stratagem.
* 2 April - The New South Wales Colonial Secretary, in a letter of this date, refers to:
....a place on the Argyle Road ... called Cannabygle, commonly known by the name of Little Forest.
1937
* 28 September, The Southern Mail, Bowral: Reference to Canabygle's Plains.
[Canabygle's Plains] is in the Parish of Colo. The place is named after an Aboriginal elder who was well known between 1800 and 1816. George Caley came across him during one of his exploratory journeys through the Cowpastures, when he was pointed out to the explorer. Caley spells his name as Cannabygal. Cunningham (Cunningham’s Journal, Mitchell Library) who passed through the spot, mentions that it .... was called by the Aborigines “Carra-bija plains.” [Governor Lachlan] Macquarie camped there on 17 October 1820, and calls the spot 'Kannabygle's Plains.' Cannabygal appears to have been one of the leaders in the native outbreak which occurred in 1816.
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2010
* Mark Tobin, Call to return massacre site to Aboriginal people, 8 November 2010, ABC On Line.
Call To Return Massacre Site To Aboriginal People
'Kannabi Byugal was one of my ancestors. He was my great grandfather's grandfather, I think. I get mixed up with all the greats,' Ms Bodkin said. She [Ms Bodkin] still does not go to the cliffs where the women and children fell to their deaths. 'You know it's fear and I don't understand why I am afraid, but I am afraid and I have this awful choking feeling inside me so I can't face it. Even now I still can't face it,' she said. The massacre site is on land owned by the New South Wales Government. Ms Bodkin believes the site of the massacre should be in Aboriginal hands. 'I'd like to return it to what it was before to make it a place that is happy, that it was before the massacres,' she said.
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2014
27 February 2014 - Frances Bodkin, descendant of Canabygle, records an interview in which she provides some context around the Appin massacre. A transcript is included above at 1816.
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References
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| Appin massacre 1816 | Canabygle | Cook & Appin | Gingenbullen | Macquarie's War 1816 | Southern Highlands |
Last updated: 9 March 2023
Michael Organ, Australia (Home)
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