| Site Name | King's Plains |
| Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Place Name | |
| Language Group, Nation or People | Wiradjuri |
| Present State/Territory | NSW |
| Colony/State/Territory at the time | NSW |
| Police District | |
| Latitude | -33.433 |
| Longitude | 149.286 |
| Date | Between 1 Sep 1824 and 1 Jan 1824 |
| Attack Time | |
| Victims | Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People |
| Victim Descriptions | |
| Victims Killed | 6 |
| Victims Killed Notes | |
| Attackers | Colonists |
| Attacker Descriptions | Settler(s), Soldier(s) |
| Attackers Killed | 0 |
| Attackers Killed Notes | |
| Transport | |
| Motive | Reprisal |
| Weapons Used | Firearm(s) |
| Narrative | A traveller through the King's Plains reported that during the conflict with Wiradjuri people in 1824, there had been 'much bloodshed' and 'slaughter':
'King's Plains are swampy, and have been generally, and are now chiefly located for the depasturing of cattle. During the period of hostilities with the natives in 1824, this vicinity was the scene of much bloodshed. The atrocities of these misguided people on that occasion, called forth the most active measures of the local authorities, in which nearly all the respectable settlers of the district joined, under the direction of the then Commandant, Colonel Morisset. Before the termination of hostilities, martial law being in full operation, the slaughter was dreadful, but the result decidedly proved the good policy of the course adopted, for since that time the most amicable feeling has subsisted between the Aboriginal and Anglo-Australians' (The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, 19 Jan 1832, p 3). This account is clear about the location of the massacre and its connection to Morriset's campaign in September 1824. Beyond that it is difficult to assign the massacre to any particular group of perpetrators. Historian Stephen Gapps relates that Morisset sent a detachment to Swallow Creek following a raid by Wiradjuri people at King's Plains. Two Aboriginal people were reported killed and three taken prisoner. However, Gapps notes that much of the killing during 1824 may have been done by colonists other than soldiers. 'Uncle Bill Allen Junior and other Wiradyuri people today, however, are clear that it was not necessarily the "redcoats" who conducted the killings at this time, but rather that the declaration of martial law and the conditions surrounding the military campaign allowed for an "open slather" of violence' (Gapps, 2021, p 181). Killings in this area may have also occurred as part of Morisset's campaign. According to Gapps, while two divisions headed north east the division lead by 'Magistrate Walker headed to the west' (Gapps, 2021, p 173). However, this appears to be the western arm of Morisset's sweep to the north. |
| Sources | The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, 19 Jan 1832, p 3 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/2204528; Gapps, 2021 (Sources PDF) |
| Corroboration Rating | * |
Colonial Frontier Massacres
in Australia, 1788-1930
