Tongerlongeter

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An epic story of resistance, suffering and survival. Tongerlongeter resurrects a once-in-a-generation leader all Australians can admire.

Australia has no war hero more impressive than Tongerlongeter. Leader of the Oyster Bay nation of south-east Tasmania in the 1820s and ’30s, he and his allies led the most effective frontier resistance ever mounted on Australian soil. They killed or wounded some 354 – or 4 per cent – of the invaders of their country. Tongerlongeter’s brilliant campaign inspired terror throughout the colony, forcing Governor George Arthur to launch a massive military operation in 1830 – the infamous Black Line. Tongerlongeter escaped but the cumulative losses had taken their toll. On New Year’s Eve 1831, having lost his arm, his country, and all but 25 of his people, the chief agreed to an armistice. In exile on Flinders Island, this revered warrior united most of the remnant tribes and became the settlement’s ‘King’ – a beacon of hope in a hopeless situation.

‘Raw and engaging, Reynolds and Clements have rescued this forgotten hero from obscurity. Despite being stripped of their lore and having British law imposed upon them, Tongerlongeter and his allies fought fiercely for their country. I admire them greatly.’ — Dianne Baldock, CEO of Circular Head Aboriginal Corporation

‘Through meticulous research and imaginative reconstruction, Reynolds and Clements have given Tasmania a new hero – Tongerlongeter. Australians should revere him as much as their Anzac heroes – he defended his country to the death.’ — Professor Peter Stanley, UNSW Canberra

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