George the Third, etc., to our trusty and well-beloved Captain Arthur Phillip, greeting:
We, reposing especial trust and confidence in your loyalty, courage and experience in military affairs, do, by these presents, constitute and appoint you to be Governor of our territory called New South Wales, extending from the northern cape or extremity of the coast called Cape York, in the latitude of 10° 37' south, to the southern extremity of the said territory of New South Wales or South Cape, in the latitude of 43° 39' south, and of all the country inland to the westward as far as the one hundred and thirty-fifth degree of longitude reckoning from the meridian of Greenwich, including all the islands adjacent in the Pacific Ocean, within the latitude aforesaid of 10° 37' south and 43° 39' south, and of all towns, garrisons, castles, forts, and all other fortifications or other military works which now are or may be hereafter erected upon this said territory. You are therefore carefully and diligently to discharge the duties of Governor in and over our said territory by doing and performing all and all manner of things thereunto belonging, and we do hereby strictly charge and command all our officers and soldiers who shall be employed within our said territory, and all others whom it may concern, to obey you as Governor thereof; and you are to observe and follow such orders and directions from time to time as you shall receive from us, or any other your superior officer according to the rules and discipline of war, and likewise such orders and directions as we shall send you under our signet or sign manual, or by our High Treasurer or Commissioners of our Treasury for the time being, or one of our principal Secretaries of State, in pursuance of the trust we hereby repose in you.
Given at our Court at St. James's the twelfth day of October, 1786, in the twenty-sixth year of our reign.
By His Majesty's command.
SYDNEY.
GOVERNOR PHILLIP'S INSTRUCTIONS
G.R.
Instructions for our trusty and well-beloved Arthur Phillip, Esq., our Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief in and over our territory of New South Wales and its dependencies or to the Lieutenant Governor or Commander-in-Chief of the said territory for the time being. Given at our Court at St. James's the 25th day of April 1787 in the twenty-seventh year of our reign.
You are to fit yourself with all convenient speed, and to hold yourself in readiness to repair to your said command, and being arrived, to take upon you the execution of the trust we have reposed in you, as soon as conveniently may be, with all due solemnity to cause our said Commission under our Great Seal of Great Britain constituting you our Governor and Commander-in-Chief as aforesaid to be read and published.
And whereas we have ordered that about 600 male and 180 female convicts now under sentence or order of transportation whose names are contained in the list hereunto annexed should be removed out of the gaols and other places of confinement in this our kingdom, and be put on board of the several transport ships which have been taken up for their reception, it is our Royal will and pleasure that as soon as the said convicts, the several persons composing the civil establishments, and the stores, provisions, etc., provided for their use, shall be put on board the Supply, tender, and the transport ships named in the margin, and be in readiness to depart, that you do take them under your protection and proceed in the Sirius with the said tender and transports to the Port on the coast of New South Wales, situated in the latitude of 33° 41' called by the name of Botany Bay, agreeably to the instructions with which you will be furnished by the Commissioners of our Admiralty, in pursuance of our Royal commands already signified to them.