Date Palm on Muddawahnyah

I’ve often wondered about the date palm that stands alone on Sydney Harbour’s Fort Denison. I wonder who planted it and why (apparently there were originally two). What would the traditional owners of this harbour have made of it? And what would they've made of their rocky island known as Muddawahnyah being razed to sea level to build a defence, ironically against an invasion.

This painting pairs well with "Harbour Regatta II".