<P> The First Fleet was the 11 ships that departed from Portsmouth , England , on 13 May 1787 to found the penal colony that became the first European settlement in Australia . The Fleet consisted of two Royal Navy vessels , three store ships and six convict transports , carrying between 1,000 and 1,500 convicts , marines , seamen , civil officers and free people ( accounts differ on the numbers ) , and a large quantity of stores . From England , the Fleet sailed southwest to Rio de Janeiro , then east to Cape Town and via the Great Southern Ocean to Botany Bay , arriving over the period of 18 to 20 January 1788 , taking 250 to 252 days from departure to final arrival . </P>
<P> The First Fleet was the 11 ships that departed from Portsmouth , England , on 13 May 1787 to found the penal colony that became the first European settlement in Australia . The Fleet consisted of two Royal Navy vessels , three store ships and six convict transports , carrying between 1,000 and 1,500 convicts , marines , seamen , civil officers and free people ( accounts differ on the numbers ) , and a large quantity of stores . From England , the Fleet sailed southwest to Rio de Janeiro , then east to Cape Town and via the Great Southern Ocean to Botany Bay , arriving over the period of 18 to 20 January 1788 , taking 250 to 252 days from departure to final arrival . </P>
where did the first fleet stop on the way to australia
where did the first fleet stop on the way to australia
Rio de Janeiro Cape Town Botany Bay
Rio de Janeiro Cape Town Botany Bay