of absence to return to London. Fitzwilliam wrote again the following year, to inform Castlereagh that Wentworth had been: suspended from the duties of his office & consequently from its emoluments, this devoted man is retained a prisoner in the Colony. Bligh named D’Arcy Wentworth as one of the twelve ringleaders of the Rum Rebellion, declaring them to be in a state of mutiny and rebellion He wanted them arrested and charged with treason. he forbad them leaving the Colony under any circumstances, proclaiming that ships’ masters would take them, at their peril. In late July 1808, Wentworth finally received permission from Lord Castlereagh to leave the Colony, allowing him to return to England, but it had come too late. Bligh was under house arrest in Government House, his rage undiminished, and plans were under way for him to return to England. All those involved in the Rum Rebellion anticipated harsh repercussions. Wentworth knew Bligh’s anger would be directed at him; he believed he would be arrested and charged with treason when he arrived in England. He expected no leniency. He replied, I am under the painful necessity of declining to avail myself of the leave granted me, until the result be known. He resolved to remain in the Colony and see out the storm from a safe distance. In 1818 Wentworth entered a period of grief and dark reflection: he lost his energy, he was tired, his health began to trouble him. He decided to withdraw from his commitments. On 5 May 1818, after a conversation with Macquarie, he submitted his resignation as Principal Surgeon. By July 1820, he had resigned from all his public offices, other than a weekly attendance on the bench at Parramatta. Wentworth’s hopes for a quiet retirement were disrupted by the arrival of Commissioner Bigge, who asserted his authority over the Governor, attacking him and his administration. Wentworth was called to attend Macquarie, as stress and despair affected his health. In 1821, Wentworth leased Wentworth Woodhouse in Parramatta, and moved to live at his farm Home Bush. By 1823, he had acquired 17,000 acres of land, that he used to produce meat for the Colony just as he had done on Norfolk Island. In the early 1800s, he had bought a prize stallion named Hector, imported from India, from Arthur Wellesley, later Duke of Wellington. When Hector arrived, there were fewer than three hundred