BATHURST has a rich, storied and dark history and it'll all be commemorated on Sunday.
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On April 25, 1815, Governor Lachlan Macquarie left Sydney on an expedition to inspect the newly built road over the Blue Mountains.
Macquarie arrived in what was to be Bathurst on May 7, 1815, where he officially proclaimed the new town, Australia's first inland settlement.
Bathurst deputy mayor Ben Fry it's an opportunity to celebrate Bathurst's history, while making sure the community tells the "right story".
"Bathurst has a particularly colourful history and it's appropriate to make sure we're telling the right story in the right way, truthfully," he said.
"For that reason, we've designed the event in collaboration with Wiradyuri elders, noting the cultural history of Bathurst's colonial past."
Sunday's ceremony will take place at the Flag Staff and Proclamation Cairn on Stanley Street, the exact location Macquarie placed the Union Jack flag, marking Bathurst as Australia's first inland European settlement.
Bathurst historian Christopher Morgan will lead the service on Sunday.
Proclamation Day had been for a number of years the day the city's new Living Legends were announced, but that has since been moved to Australia Day.
200 years since martial law
Bathurst has a rich history and icons that are worth remembering.
It has produced one prime minister in Ben Chifley, has an internationally celebrated motor sport track at Mount Panorama and was the centre of the first gold rush in Australia.
But it also has a dark history, especially in the city's early years.
The Bathurst War was fought for the vast majority of 1824, a bloody conflict between the local Wiradyuri nation and the British colonists.
Tensions between the Wiradyuri nation and the colonists had been strained for years, but an influx of settlers crossing the Blue Mountains in the years prior lead to a tipping point.
After months of fighting, Governor Thomas Brisbane declared martial law on August 14, 1824.
Cr Fry said Bathurst Regional Council will be doing a number of things to acknowledge the 200th anniversary of martial law later this year.
"Council will be doing many things this year to mark that 200 year commemoration, alongside local Aboriginal groups, to make sure we're telling the story accurately and appropriately," he said.
"Those will start to be announced in the coming months, with events hosted by Bathurst Regional Council and Aboriginal groups later in the year in August. There's lots to come.
"I think it's an important story to tell."
