Conflict in Van Diemen's Land

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Conflict in Van Diemen's Land

Conflict in Van Diemen's Land is a 1945 Australian radio drama by Catherine Shepherd, directed by John Cairns for ABC. It portrays Governor Arthur’s war against the Tasmanian Aboriginal people in colonial Tasmania. The play first aired on 17 April 1945 and was repeated later in 1945 and again in 1946.

In 1824 Hobart welcomed Governor Arthur, but his cold, strict rule soon caused trouble. He suppressed the press, jailed editors who criticised him, and dismissed officials who disagreed with his methods. He treated free settlers like convicts and led an expensive war costing £30,000 against the Aboriginal people, which ended in failure. The play’s message is that free people—whether Black or white—will not submit to tyranny.