S1 Ep 3 Domestic and Family Violence Something New to Australia?

Is Domestic and Family Violence Something New in Australia?

No. Domestic and family violence is not new — it is centuries old.

Its origins can be traced through English common law, European social norms, and early colonial practices that shaped gender relations in Australia long before modern legal reforms.

In this episode, we look at:

• Family Violence Before Colonisation: English Law and the “Right to Chastise”
• 18th‑Century England: Wife Beating as a Social Norm
• Early Victorian Colonisation: Importing Patriarchy to Australia
• Why the Legal System Offered Almost No Protection in the Past
• Queen Victoria and Early Reform
• Women’s Rights Movements Begin

For more information, visit https://domesticfamilyviolencelawyers.au/