This is a fictional autobiography of Sir James Stirling, young hero in Britain's 1812 war against the United States. Later, facing impossible odds and with the Stirling family in disgrace, he overcame ridicule and rejection to found a nation that, eventually, reshaped the world's southern hemisphere.
Until Stirling's vision came to fruition, Britain used Australia as its dumping ground for convicted felons. Stirling saw it differently, the unexplored western shore suggesting a haven for gentryfolk eager to escape the class turmoils of Europe.
Author John Ivor researched original Colonial and Admiralty sources and Stirling's own diary, adding his own conjecture to the unique historical sequence of events.