Elizabeth Macarthur: A Life at the Edge of the World

A groundbreaking portrait of an ordinary English gentlewoman who would go on to become one of Australia's most significant, if little known, historical figures.

In 1788, a young gentlewoman raised in the vicarage of an English village married a handsome, haughty, and penniless army officer. In any Austen novel, that would be the end of the story, but for the real-life woman who became an Australian farming entrepreneur, it was just the beginning.

John Macarthur took credit for establishing the Australian wool industry and would feature on the two-dollar note, but it was practical Elizabeth who managed their holdings while dealing with the results of John's manias: duels, quarrels, court cases, a military coup, long absences overseas, grandiose construction projects, and, finally, his descent into certified insanity.

Elizabeth Macarthur: A Life at the Edge of the World by Michelle Scott Tucker shines a light on an often-overlooked aspect of Australia's history in this fascinating story of a remarkable woman.