HERITAGE

Originally developed from a first settlers farm and then a convict maintained Colonial Gardens, the crucial resource in the fledgling colony; a Botanical Gardens were born. The Royal Tasmanian Botanic Gardens were established in 1818 by Lieut-Governor William Sorell. He dubbed this place the ‘Government Domain and Garden.’

It was a successor to Sorell, the tough and driven Govenor George Arthur that pushed for the 14-hectare site to be developed along systematic lines, thus creating one of Australia’s first scientific institutions and formalising the Gardens’ significant role in acclimatising plants from around the world.