---
node: au_john_macarthur
type: person
slug: john_macarthur
title: "John Macarthur"
lead: "A settler and entrepreneur who laid the foundations of Australia's merino wool industry and wielded great influence in the politics of the early colony."
published: 2026-07-15
updated: 2026-07-15
---

## Who they were

Macarthur came to the colony as a soldier and, with his wife Elizabeth, introduced merino sheep and built up the production of fine wool, which became the colony's chief export.

## What they did

In his pursuit of land and power he clashed fiercely with governors and was a central figure in the 1808 Rum Rebellion that deposed Governor Bligh.

## Legacy

The wool industry became a pillar of Australia's economy and gave rise to the idea of a country that rode to prosperity on the sheep's back. Macarthur is regarded as the father of that industry and also remembered as a man of great ambition.