In 1764 Woollarawarre Bennelong was born in Port Jackson,
He was a member of the Eola tribe and grew to be a man of action,
In 1788 the British First Fleet established a settlement there,
The Fleet consisted of 1000 rough and ready convicts who just didn’t care,
About the aborigines or the Natural animals or trees they felled,
Led by Arthur Phillip who regarded the harbour as the best in the world.
Bennelong learned enough English to communicate with the white invaders,
And the Indigenous peoples who were excellent hunters and fierce warriers,
In 1790 Phillip built a hut for him on the site of Bennelong Point.
Because of conflict with the white settlers Bennelong moved away
And died in Kissing Point on the Parramatta River in 1813.
The Sydney Opera House stands on the Bennelong Point,
Bennelong himself is just a note in history books,
As I sat in the Opera auditorium listening o Madama Butterfly,
Which is an Opera about betrayal,
Sadly we cannot amend history and reconcile the past,
I felt the presence of Bennelong’s ghost, a trapped soul without any release,
A ghost now cursed to haunt his ancestral sacred land, unable to rest in peace.
The Sydney Opera House is a shameful tombstone and a silent steeple,
Built on sacred ground on top of the cold bones of dead indigenous people.
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Author:
David Wakeling (
Offline) - Published: February 18th, 2025 01:45
- Category: Unclassified
- Views: 12
Offline)
Comments4
Not even a memorial marker!? And Mrs Macquarie gets a chair 🪑 commanding over the point. Tsk, tsk… poor show🫤🙏🏻🕊️
I agree.I don't even think it is taught in schools.Anyway that's life.Thanks for your comments
But it’s now etched in historical poetic literature, thanks to you🙏🏻🕊
I am glad I read this, I was not aware of the history off the opera house, I will think off it in a different light now, enjoyed the read
Thank you for reading and commenting
You are very welcome
It is only recent history that tells us of genocide and its cold cruelty how many millions in unrecorded past were subject to this tool that has carved our species and honed it into what it is today. A poignant write with feeling and that is what poetry is all about
Thank you so much. You are right about history.Thank you for your insight
Excellent write David
Thank you
You're welcome
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