logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2025
46m 1s

When Europeans reached Australia

History Hit
About this episode

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb delves into the dramatic story of the first European encounters with the indigenous people of Australia. She's joined by Professor Alistair Paterson who sheds light on the reported events of February 1606 when the Dutch unexpectedly stumbled upon the shores of Cape York Peninsula. Together, they'll examine the far-reaching consequences of this first contact and its impact on centuries of Australian history.


Presented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Alice Smith, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

Theme music from All3Media. Other music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcast.


Related episodes:

Batavia: The Worst Shipwreck in History >

The Founding of Cape Town >


Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. 


You can take part in our listener survey here: https://uk.surveymonkey.com/r/6FFT7MK

Up next
Jul 7
The Roma: Resistance & Survival
Professor Suzannah Lipscomb welcomes Dr. Madeline Potter to unravel the rich yet tumultuous history of the Roma people. From Tudor England, where the Egyptians Act sought to expel Roma under stereotypes of robbery and deceit through to the dark corridors of Eastern Europe to unde ... Show More
40m 13s
Jul 3
The Duchess of Malfi
A young widow stands against the expectations of her family. A woman striving for love and agency in a society which demands she claimed neither, she stands firm in the face of torture and even death.Unravel the gripping layers of John Webster’s 17th-century masterpiece The Duche ... Show More
49m 47s
Jun 30
Prelude to the English Civil War
What drives a nation to civil war? Why would a king turn on his own Parliament? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Jonathan Healey to explore the chaotic and combustible months - and the men behind the rebellion - that hurled 17th-century England into one of the bloodie ... Show More
55m 50s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2024
The First South Americans
The prehistoric archaeology of South America is fascinating and constantly developing. Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr. Tom Dillehay to discuss how early humans navigated their migration from North to South America, adapting to diverse environments and leaving a rich archaeologica ... Show More
46m 57s
Nov 2024
Ice Age America
A group of hunter-gatherers encounter diverse habitats full of creatures they’ve never seen before. A land of opportunity, but also danger. Join host Tristan Hughes and expert Dr David Meltzer as they delve into the Ice Age in North America, over 10,000 years ago, a land of saber ... Show More
49m 32s
Dec 2024
Lexington & Concord: The First Battles of the Revolutionary War
The shot heard ‘round the world'; the start of the American Revolution. An event that would have profound consequences for world history, especially western democracy. Who’d have thought that something of such magnitude would begin in a small settlement with as many cows as peopl ... Show More
42m 55s
Mar 2025
Jurassic America
Tristan Hughes explores Ancient America's true age; how 19th-century fossil discoveries across North America revealed a history far older than previously believed, challenging the notion that the Americas were a 'New World.' Tristan is joined by Professor Caroline Winterer as the ... Show More
43m 13s
Dec 2024
How Old is America?
When fossils were discovered in the US during the 19th Century, it altered American understandings of science, religion, race and more. So what was the Hadrosaurus Foulkii, and why did it have such an enormous effect? Caroline Winterer, William Robertson Coe Professor of History ... Show More
27m 55s
Dec 2024
Druids
Aligning with the winter solstice of 2024, Tristan Hughes and Professor Ronald Hutton delve into the ancient Druids of Britain and France.They discuss how Julius Caesar encountered this feared enemy in his Roman conquest of Gaul, and Cicero had meetings with a Druid leader in Rom ... Show More
45m 7s
Dec 2024
Was the Civil War Won by Chance?
How did a couple's holiday save Kyoto from certain ruin? How did a landslide contribute to the Revolutionary War? Basically, how have chance encounters and decisions influenced the history of the United States? Don is joined for this episode by Brian Klaas, author of 'Fluke: Chan ... Show More
34m 43s
May 23
Victorian Beauty Standards
Why did Victorians value pale skin so highly? And how were black bodies viewed by Victorian society?In this episode Kate is joined by author and historian Dr Rochelle Rowe of the University of Edinburgh.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The ... Show More
38m 6s
Jun 12
The Kushan Empire
Embark on an epic journey with Tristan Hughes and acclaimed author William Dalrymple as they unravel the enigma of the Kushan Empire, the ancient superpower of Central Asia. Together they tell the riveting stories behind the Empire's rise in Bactria (modern-day Afghanistan), thei ... Show More
59m 20s
Dec 2024
Origins of the Wheel
It is one of the most pivotal inventions in human history - the wheel. New research suggests that the wheel was first created by prehistoric miners in the Carpathian Mountains to transport copper. Tristan Hughes speaks to the team behind this fascinating theory; archaeologist Dr ... Show More
52m 10s