Koori Britain

Updated Sunday 15 May, 2011 12:18 PM

The coming of the Aboriginal Empire of Australia to the Island of Britain in 1788

On 26 January 1788 the Atlantic Ocean Naval Task Force (1^st Colonial Fleet) , of the Koori Empire, arrived at Portsmouth England not long after dawn. By dusk Captain Pillipi had taken possession of England in the name of King Wirraway III. Of course there were many circumstances that had taken place leading up to this historic event both in Britain & Australia. Nevertheless, it was a significant moment in the history of the Koori Empire & one which would have a fundamental impact upon the British natives, not to mention Europe as a whole.

On Britain Day, as 26 January 1788 would become celebrated as, the island of Britain was the least developed region of Europe. Having missed many of the changes that had transformed much of the mainland, the very fact that Britain was an island ensured that it enjoyed isolation. Various invasions over the centuries did take place, but these invaders eventually became “native” in the end. Nonetheless, the result was a rather subdivided region had developed: one which had not changed much since the Roman Empire had collapsed somewhere after 500AD.

In fact it would be safe to say that the natives of Britain in 1788 were not that much different to the Koori Peoples of Australia in 1 000AD. Unlike the British natives, though, the Kooris along the South-Eastern Coast of the Australian continent settled down & developed an advanced society, swapping the nomadic life of hunter/gather to farmer. Elsewhere in Australia, though, the Kooris to the north & centre of the continent, as well as those in Tasmania, remained as nomads. Those, however, in the south-western part of the continent had also settled down. By the time Christ walked the Holy Lands, these two settled regions of Australia reflected the same levels of civilisation as the Mediterranean region of Europe.

But that is where the similarity ended. Unlike Europe, which appeared to be in constant turmoil & war, Australia hardly experienced such things. Having a thoroughly different approach to life, war was rare. Trade, however, was another thing entirely &, in fact, it would be trade with Asia which would transform Aboriginal society. Ironically, this all started, not due to the settled Aboriginal regions, but thanks to the nomads to the north. It was these Peoples who made contact with, first Malay traders & then Chinese & Indians. These items that the nomads had traded had, within a year, had worked their way south-east & south-west where they were keenly sought after.

Thus the settled Aboriginal civilisations began their own expeditions, not only to make permanent contact with their nomadic cousins, but to also make permanent contact with the traders. Within a century, these traders were regularly calling in on the major centres along the eastern & western coasts. Probably more importantly, though, was the fact that these centres now had direct contact via the sea between themselves. It thus did not take long for the Aboriginals to construct their own sea going vessels which, not only sailed between Aboriginal ports, but began to head to South-East Asia as well.

The Koori Empire, however, had not yet been founded. This would come later. At this point several nations existed around the continent. Three of the four important ones, those that would be the cornerstones of the Empire, at this stage were located in the south-eastern region: that being Darkingung {Sydney area OTL}, Wiradjuri {a large inland area from Canberra to Tamworth OTL}, & Yarrie {Melbourne area OTL}. The fourth nation was located in the south-western region of the continent called Aranda. But thanks to the sea trade, & the vastly improved communications which followed, by 1400AD these four nations had formed a commonwealth. One hundred years later the commonwealth would become a kingdom.

It was with the establishment of the United Kingdom of Koori which would later usher in the Koori Empire. The first steps involved in empire building was the taking of possession of the southern coastline of New Guinea (in 1491) for use as a trading station. Next came possession of land with a good harbour in northern Australia {Darwin OTL}. With these two trading stations, the Koori negotiated with the landowners of the island of Timor & (in 1502) the island was incorporated into the Kingdom. However, the Koori’s major trading partners were still at great distance, even from Timor. As a result, negotiations with the Malay’s began in 1521, & five years later, the Koori’s were finally granted the island of Singapore as another trading station.

Such expansion, though, only fuelled further efforts at expansion. But this was difficult. At this point in time, China was the trading giant in Asia followed by the Indians & Arabs. Koori soon discovered that it was impossible for them to expand any further. The only exception was the discovery & annexation of the Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean, which incidentally, brought them closer to India.

Yet five years, after the establishment of the Singapore Colony, China began a policy of Isolationism. All of a sudden a vacuum took place in Eastern Asia & Koori immediately took advantage of it. In fact by 1560, the Koori presence in Eastern Asia was so powerful even the isolationist Chinese had to open a door. In 1565 the Chinese granted Koori the island of Hong Kong to act as a trading post. Furthermore, the Koori gained exclusive access to China from the Chinese city of Shanghi. Although this arrangement was strictly governed by the Chinese, it was nonetheless the Koori who profited from it.

Thus, with the Chinese trade a Koori monopoly, India, more so than the Arabs, was forced to concede trading routes & profits to the Koori. This situation, after a few decades, changed even more so when Koori traders & shipping companies began demanding direct access to Indian industries. At first this was denied, but by 1600 this situation was reverse for all sorts of reasons. Although land in India was never sought after by the various Koori governments, treaties were signed with various provinces which ensured a permanent Koori presence at governmental level.

It is around this time that we can probably say that the Koori Empire was established albeit by accident. So far the Empire had been built by merely establishing trading stations along the water trade routes. This would now change with the Southern African Acquisition in 1635. Having moved on from India, contact was made with the east African coast. This was then followed to the southern tip. And here was vacant land. Although the acquisition of vacant land was tempting enough, it was its strategic position, however, which prompted the Koori government to annex the region. The fact that no one else was there to dispute the annexation made it even more a fait accompli.

Immediately a colony was established in Southern Africa. By 1685, fifty years after the Acquisition, some 250 000 Koori lived in the thriving colony & had already sent several expeditions along the western coastline of Africa. Although these expeditions discovered little of promise, by now the Koori were well aware of Europe. Knowing it to be a rich centre of trade, not to mention one of industry & technology, several expeditions were sent north in order to make contact with the Europeans. It was all exciting for the Koori. Here they where on the other side of the world exploring the unknown. Above all curiosity had captured their minds. It was rumoured that these Europeans were even white! (A few Europeans, Portuguese mostly, had already been met, but only by an extremely limited number of Koori).

A great day in history was made when, in 1770, the Koori Expedition Flotilla of the Royal Koori Navy arrived at their first European port at Lisbon. The Portuguese, who were themselves great sailors, gained a real shock. Here was a foreign power from the other side of the world who were clearly more advanced than themselves. Furthermore they were not Christian - not even Muslim (even though the Koori were aware of Islam from their contact with the Arabs). The only way, sadly, that the Koori Captain Coogee got any respect out of the Portuguese was a demonstration of his ship’s firepower. The Koori ships were twice the size of most of the Portuguese ones & their cannons were likewise larger. Fortunately, the language communication situation was better as both the Koori & Portuguese had personnel who spoke Arabic.

Having said all that, the Europeans, for the most part, wanted nothing to do with the Koori, especially considering the difference in naval strengths. Only France & Spain had some ships which were in the same league, but they saw the Koori Empire as a threat & not a trading partner. Only the Dutch showed some interest in trade: especially trade involving the spices of South-East Asia. But even though the trade was beneficial for the Koori, it was done at the control of the Dutch. The Dutch, in turn, then sold these Koori imports to the rest of Europe, even though Europe wanted nothing to do with the Koori.

It was, thus, in such a climate that the Koori Empire decided to take a large island off the coast of Europe in order to establish a trading station. The advantages were obvious, as such a strategy had been deployed successfully in the past. Furthermore, land acquisition had by now become common place for Koori ever since the Southern African Acquisition. Parts of India had been taken over via various means, as had the interior of Australia & the island of Tasmania. Even the Islands of the Maori, to the east of Australia, signed an alliance in 1758 which ensured that a “special relationship” existed between the two kingdoms.

Hence in late 1787 the Atlantic Ocean Naval Task Force (1^st Colonial Fleet), which included seven warships & eighteen transports, left Capetown in the Southern African Colony for the island of Britain. It would be an amazing achievement. An entire colony would be established on the other side of the world from Australia. Although the trip from Southern Africa was not the best of voyages, the sight of the harbour of Portsmouth, little used by the local natives, was a beautiful sight indeed. After Captain Pillipi held day long negotiations, the local landlords agreed to sell the land around the harbour for 10 000 gold pieces - an item which the Koori Empire had plenty within its treasury vaults.

Unknown to the local landlords & the rest of Britain, though, the Koori Empire had no intention of remaining only at Portsmouth. The 1 200 colonists & sailors of the 1^st Colonial Fleet knew they would be merely the first wave. Over the next fifty years some 500 000 Koori citizens, not to mention thousands of other nationalities, would arrive at Portsmouth & acquire more & more British land. Alas for the British natives, few would keep their land & a half century later they would lose their independence & country. The island of Britain would officially become part of the Koori Empire on 1 March 1840. Nonetheless, civilisation was brought to Britain &, by 1910, the Koori Domain of Britain would be the richest region in Europe & the jewel in the Empire’s crown.