Territory ending explained: What does that dramatic finale moment mean?

But when he dies, a fraught battle breaks out between the family and outsiders who have long coveted the land for themselves – and will stop at nothing, even murder, to get their hands on it.

But how did it all play out? And what's next?

Read on for a full rundown of Territory's ending.

Territory ending explained

What does that dramatic finale moment mean?

Before the final credits rolled, Elton arrived in front of the big house at Marianne, which Colin had just given to Emily and his last remaining son as a peace offering. They would be running things from now on, something they had always wanted.

But Elton wasn't alone. Walking alongside him was Daniel's white horse.

He was there the day Emily had shot her brother-in-law's mount following an explosive argument. Dan had reneged on a deal to keep Marianne in the family and run it "together" when Colin retired. Instead, he was planning to sell it to mining magnate Sandra Kirby, in turn paying off the station's astronomical debuts.

On hearing this, Emily's rage got the better of her and she fired two shots. The first was a warning, but the second was aimed directly at Dan's horse, which threw him off when it was hit.

Emily then drove off, leaving him on the ground with a gnarly injury and no means of getting to safety.

A short time later, he was mauled to death by wild dogs.

Emily had already confessed the truth to Graham, but Colin was still in the dark about the circumstances surrounding his son's death. However, that all changed following Elton's arrival.

As he tipped the gun cartridges into the palm of Colin's hand, the Lawson patriarch looked long and hard at Emily as he finally learned the ugly truth.

He had always harboured a deep mistrust of his daughter-in-law given her Hodge roots, but that's about to deepen a whole lot further following this latest development.

However, unlike Dan, Emily was trying to keep Marianne in the family. Could that vital piece of information save her?

What will happen to Marianne Station?

In the finale, Sandra's son Lachie betrayed her when he informed Emily and her brother Hank what his mother was planning.

The gold mine she had reopened on Marianne Station was going to be used to store radioactive waste. Sandra would use the infrastructure to enrich uranium, which she would then sell overseas, before being paid to take it back, where it would be stored on Lawson land forever, in turn destroying their cattle empire.

But in order to get her plan off the ground, she needed to build a road through both Marianne and Brannock's property, which has access to the coast, where she planned to build her port. And to do that, she needed to blow up a sacred site where Indigenous peoples were massacred many years ago.

If the site had been officially registered, Sandra wouldn't be able to proceed. But ironically, Colin had previously blocked that ruling, leaving it vulnerable to exploitation.

And despite the Lawsons' best efforts to halt proceedings, the explosives were detonated, which means the first stage of Sandra's evil plan is complete.

Will they still be able to block the road by getting the site officially recognised? Or will Sandra's deep pockets and considerable connections prove too powerful a force to overcome?

Who died in season 1 of Territory?

The following characters all met their makers in the show's debut season?

• Daniel Lawson – thrown from his horse before being mauled to death by wild dogs.
• Susie Lawson – caught up in a fist fight between Marshall and Lachie, which ended when she was gored to death by a bull.
• Rich Petrakis – fatally shot by Colin Lawson after he held both him and Marshall hostage.

Cattle baron Campbell Miller was also shot during the shoot-out at the "Sorry Place", but while his fate has yet to be confirmed, we have a feeling he'll pull through and continue working to destroy the Lawson empire.

Will Marshall return in a potential Territory season 2?

Marshall, who had only just returned to Marianne, decided to leave once again in the finale.

"I don't belong here," he told Emily, but his decision was also motivated by his guilt over Susie's death.

And his hopes of a future with Sharnie also appeared to evaporate after she decided to go her own way.

"We can't fight who we are," she said, their plan to build a life together dashed.

But while we'd expect to see Marshall again, as one of the show's key players, it remains to be seen if Sharnie is gone for good.

Territory is available to stream now on Netflix – sign up from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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