Notorious Strumpets tells the story of each of the 1675 convict women sent to Van Diemen's Land (now known as Tasmania) from 1803 in the first three decades of European settlement. The women's experiences as convicts were infinately diverse. For some their lives where marked with tragedy, others faced brutality; some found a type of redemption, while others spent their lives rebelling against the colonial authority. Many built a new life for themselves in their new land.

The title comes from the description given to the convict Julia Mullins by Ship's Surgeon Matthew Burnside. At the end of the voyage from England to Hobart, a clearly exasperated Burnside wrote:

'She is a notorious Strumpet and a most dangerous Girl. The trouble which she gave me is unaccountable. Repeatedly I have been obliged to put her into irons and confined her in the Coal-Hold. Hard labour or solitary confinement ought to be assigned to her'.



Includes bibliographical references (p. 1727-1734) and index.