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St. Helena (South Atlantic Ocean)
Island of volcanic origin in the South Atlantic Ocean, 1,200 miles (1,950 km) west of the southwestern coast of Africa. St. Helena has an area of 47 square miles (122 sq. km). Discovered by the Portuguese navigator, Joao da Nova Castella, in 1502; afterwards possessed briefly by the Dutch (1645-51), and taken possession of in 1659 by the English East India Company.

The remoteness of St. Helena made it attractive to the European powers as a place of exile for Napoleon after his defeat at Waterloo. He remained confined on the island from October 1815 until his death there in May 1821.

Lachlan Macquarie visited St. Helena in March 1803 while returning to England on board the Sir Edward Hughes East Indiaman, after fifteen years of overseas military service in India, Sri Lanka and Egypt.
[see: Bibliography]

St. Helens (Isle of Wight, England)
St. Helens was an advanced anchorage to Spithead, located off the eastern side of the Isle of Wight. [Also referred to as 'St. Helen's Road']. It guarded the approaches to Portsmouth harbour and the important naval and dockyard facilities located there. Ships bound to the westward remained at St. Helens until an easterly wind allowed them to sail down the Channel. The Macquaries boarded their ship, the Dromedary, at St. Helens on 19 May 1809 and set sail for New South Wales [via the Cape of Good Hope] on 22 May 1809, accompanied by H.M. Hindostan.

St. Salvadore (also spelt St. Salvador) (Brazil)
St. Salvadore (Bahia) was the most important city of the Portuguese colony of Brazil until the 1820's when the success of the coffee industry in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo created a shift in economic and political power towards these other centres.

The Portuguese Court was resident in Brazil from 1808-1821. When the Surry visited St. Salvadore the colony was on the edge of major political change - though this is not evident in Lachlan Macquarie's 1822 journal. The Portuguese Court had been resident in Brazil 1808-1821. However, within months of the Macquaries departure, Brazil had declared its independence from Portugal (7 September 1822), and the Portuguese garrisons found themselves cut off by sea. Nearly all armed forces were persuaded to evacuate peacefully, and after complex international negotiations Brazil was recognised as a separate empire. The King of Portugal declared the independence of the Brazilian empire, by treaty, on 29 August 1825. Resistance was strongest in the region surrounding St. Salvadore and it did not gain its independence until 1823.

The main product of St. Salvadore was sugarcane, cultivated in the fertile soil of the Reconcavo, ( literally "bay shore,") the region surrounding the Bay of All Saints. Heavy, black, fertile soil called Massape covers the surrounding landscape Cotton, tobacco, and manioc (cassava) were also grown. The declining importance of its exports contributed to St. Salvadore (Bahia) becoming a second-class province in the period after 1823 until the end of the empire in 1889.

Schank's Plains (NSW) (also known as Schank's Forest Plains)
Named after Captain John Schank, the designer of H.M. armed tender Lady Nelson.

Sedaseer (also Seedaseer) [SIDDESHWARA] (Mysore, India).
Located on the border between Coorg (Kodagu) and Mysore. Site of a six-hour battle on 6 March 1799 between the Bombay Army (advancing from Cannanore) and Tipu's army (from Seringapatam). A hard-fought battle in densely-wooded and hilly terrain. British forces eventually prevailed, with heavy losses to Tipu. Macquarie was present at the battle and has left an account of his involvement in the battle and its aftermath.

Seringapatam [SRIRANGAPATTANA, SRIRANGAPATNAM or SRIRANGAPATTANAM] (Mysore, India)
City in southern India (near present-day Mysore). Located on an island in the Cauvery River, the ancient fortress city of Seringapatam was the capital of Mysore, and the site of two of the most famous sieges of the Anglo-Mysore Wars (in 1792 and 1799).

Lachlan Macquarie took part in the initial assault against Seringapatam in 1791; and the disastrous retreat that followed which left him close to death from dysentery in April 1792. The ruler of Mysore, Tippoo Sultan, sued for peace during a second assault against the city on 24 February 1792. Macquarie received a gratuity of £308 10s in lieu of prize-money and back in Bombay he eventually recovered his health, though the campaign left him with indelible memories.

When war with Tippoo Sultan broke out again in 1799, Macquarie's regiment was among those sent to attack Seringapatam. Again he suffered serious illness and had to be carried on a stretcher to witness the final assault on the city on May 4. The carnage that followed was horrific, and eventually Colonel Arthur Wellesley (the future Duke of Wellington) was ordered by Lord Harris to take over command from Major-General David Baird and to end the atrocities of the victors. The storming and capture of Seringapatam was regarded at the time as one of the most romantic engagements of British Indian history and Macquarie shared in this vision. Though he took no part in the final attack, he always regarded the victory as one of unparalleled glory, and he celebrated the battle with a 'bumper toast' each year. He expected his share in the prize-money to be between £2000 and £3000 sterling, but in fact, although it included seventeen ruby rings, he only received a total of £1300.

Major Henry Antill, Macquarie's aide-de-camp in New South Wales also fought at Seringapatam and was wounded while carrying the colours of the 73rd Regiment through the breach into the city.

Snares, The (South Pacific Ocean - New Zealand)
A group of small islands in the sub-antarctic waters of the South Pacific Ocean. Located 104 km south-west of Stewart Island (New Zealand); of which they are regarded as being distant outliers. There is one large island (North East Island), and a smaller island off to the south-east (Broughton Island), and several smaller offshore islands, outcrops and reefs that could be a danger to shipping.

The islands were discovered independently, on the same day, 23 November 1791, by Captain George Vancouver in the Discovery, and Lieutenant William Broughton of HMS Chatham. The name' the Snares' was propsed by Vancouver, who sighted the islands in the morning; and this took precedence over Broughton's choice of Knights Islands (since he did not sight the islands until the afternoon of that day). The island group was sighted again in December 1792 by Captain Raven of the Britannia.

South-End (Essex, England)
Village in Essex located at mouth of the Thames estuary, [on the north side]. Nearest sandy beach to London and owes its existence to the Prince Regent (later George IV) who in 1809 decided that the village of Prittlewell would provide a healthier atmosphere for his wife, Princess Caroline, than London. She lodged at Prittelwell's "south end", which henceforth became the town's name.

Spithead (Hampshire, England)
The Spithead was the main assembling point for naval vessels based at Portsmouth. It was well sheltered, with the mainland to the north, the Isle of Wight to the southwest, and various sandbanks to the east. It was relatively easy to get out of and once individual ships had been manned and fitted out they could be sent out to the anchorage to await there while other ships in a squadron or fleet were assembled. The Spithead also provided an important assembly area for large convoys of merchant ships - especially in the area off the Isle of Wight known as St. Helens. Macquarie's ship, the Dromedary, anchored at Spithead for almost five months in 1809 awaiting the completion of its victualling before sailing to New South Wales.

Spring-Wood (later known as Springwood) (NSW)
The oldest named town in the Blue Mountains. The military post here [post 1815] was also known as the Weatherboard Hut.

Sutton Forest (NSW)
First visited on 20 March 1798 by Barracks, (Governor Hunter's personal attendant) and the guides, Wilson and Collins. Received its name of 'Sutton Forest' during the visit to the area by Governor Macquarie on 2 November 1820: named after the Rt. Hon. Charles Manners Sutton (1780-1845), then Speaker of the House of Commons, and son of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Syke's Farm (NSW)
The most southerly occupied farm in the Appin district in 1815 belonged to William Sykes (present-day Mount Britain).

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