European settlement created major devastation for the Indigenous population. Living in Australia, they weren’t exposed to certain diseases until Europeans came to Australia. Because they had never been exposed to such diseases, they were particularly vulnerable to them. Another reason for the vast number of deaths is the violent conflicts between Europeans and Indigenous Australians.
A specific disease that caused many deaths during this period is Small Pox (Variola). Small Pox is a one of the world’s most distressing diseases and was found in all areas of the world. This disease introduced to Aboriginals by Europeans was a key cause of the decreasing Indigenous population. The infectious disease spread through the population killing hundreds of thousands. Imperialism and Colonialism was another factor in the fall of Indigenous population. Imperialism refers to the Europeans wanting to expand their empire and overpowering Aboriginals. Colonialism refers to the Europeans taking control over another country and land, exploiting it and the Indigenous Australians occupying it. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders understandably disapproved of this and started many confrontations between the races. Loss of land was also part of why there was a reduction. Because of Europeans taking and claiming land Aboriginals had less land to survive on. Their survival depends on the land and so losing it meant that many would die. In 1788, it was estimated that the Indigenous population was from a minimum of 315 000 to over a million but these issues were why by 1901 the number rapidly dropped to less than 80 000. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People population was then one-quarter of former size. |