We finally finish our five-part series on the Eureka rebellion. In this episode we see what happened at the trials of the men charged for their role in the rebellion, the outcome of the Committee of inquiry, and just what happened to some of the main players. We also try and get a handle on why it happened in Ballarat and briefly reflect on the legacy of the Eureka rebellion for Australia. Was it really the birthplace of Australian democracy?

It all finally comes to the battle. After a tense stand-off the Government forces finally storm the Eureka Stockade. The diggers are overwhelmed and at the end of it all 22 diggers and 6 soldiers lie dead. Though some put the death toll as high as 60.  13 men are charged with treason, but the key ring leaders including Peter Lalor (who is severely wounded) remain at large.

The Victorian population do not take kindly to the Government's actions and there is concern that there might be an uprising.  

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me!  To celebrate here is part four of our five part series on the Eureka Rebellion.

Things are hotting up on the Ballarat goldfields and things inch closer to the ultimate battle.  Anastasia Hayes and two of her friends sew the southern cross flag - five stars and a white cross on a blue background. Then the diggers engage in a skirmish with the police and Redcoats.

On 30 November 1854 the miners meet and there is a mass burning of licenses in protest. The authorities under the command of Commissioner Rede launch another license hunt. The diggers construct a stockade on a hill on the Eureka Diggings. Peter Lalor leads 500 diggers to swear on the southern cross flag to stand by each other and to defend their rights and liberties.

Things are getting crazier and crazier on the Ballarat goldfields. A young miner called James Scobie is murdered and the diggers are outraged when the justice system fails them. Not only that the police rough up Johannes Gregarious the disabled servant of the local Catholic Priest. In retribution the diggers burn down the Eureka Hotel. 

It's late 1854 and the Victorian town of Ballarat. A gold rush is on and we are the gold diggings, but things are extremely tense. The gold miners are mounting a strong oppostion against the Victorian Government because of the mining license fee it is imposing. Police are undertaking raids into the miners camps and demanding that miners produce their license.

So the miners respond by burning their licenses. On 30 November 1854 a mass burning of licences takes place at Bakery Hill. Under the leadership of Peter Lalor, the diggers march to the Eureka diggings. Here they construct a stockade and inside the stockade some 500 diggers take an oath on the Southern Cross flag

Then at dawn on Sunday 3 December the miliatry launch an attack on the stockade. The diggers are outnumbered and the battle is over in twenty minutes. Twenty-two diggers and five troops lie dead.

The Eureka rebellion is considered by some to be the birthplace of Australian democracy.

In this episode we remember the late Peter Richard Woolnough - or as you may know him Peter Allen.  Allen was one of Australia's most successful entertainers.  Amongst the songs he has written include: I Still Call Australia Home, Tenterfield Saddler, I Go the Rio and The More I see You.

In this episode we look at two more bushrangers, Frank Gardiner and Ben Hall.  Both of these Bushrangers plied their trade around the Canberra region in the late 1850s and early 1860s.

In this episode we look at WWII coastal defences around Newcastle and in particular at Tomaree near Port Stephens.

Check out the NSW Parks and Wildlife site for Fort Tomaree at: http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/visit-a-park/parks/tomaree-national-park

Jack Lang was twice the Premier of New South Wales and was one of Australia's most controversial politicians. In 1932, at the height of the Great Depression, he was dismissed from office by the NSW Governor Sir Philip Game. He was expelled from the Australian Labor Party in 1942 and only re-admitted to the Labor Party in 1971 a few years before his death.

At 11 pm on 12 October 2002, three bombs were detonated on the Indonesian resort island of Bali. Two went off in busy nightspots in Kuta – the Sari Club and Paddy’s Bar and the third in front of the American consulate. The explosions killed 202 people, 88 of whom were Australian.

At the height of the Cold War, in April 1954 Vladimir Petrov a Soviet diplomat sought political asylum in Australia. Petrov, and his wife Evdokia, were working in Canberra at the Soviet Embassy as diplomats. But they were really spies. The incident had a massive impact on Australian politics. It ended the political career of the opposition leader and leader of the Labor Party Dr Herbert 'Doc' Evatt. And it led to a split in the Labor Party when anti-communist elements of the Labor Party, particularly the Catholic groups, split off to form the Democratic Labor Party. Partly as a result Labor languished in opposition until 1972. 

For those Russian speakers out there, apologies for mangling the pronunciation of Russian names.

On 27 May 1967 a referendum to amend the Australian Consitution was held. This month is the 50th anniversary of that referendum, so it’s a good time to remember this important part of Australian history. The referendum allowed Indigenous Australians to be counted in the population and for the Commonwealth Government to make policies in respect to Aboriginal people.

On 5 August 1944, Japanese prisoners of war staged a breakout from the detention camp in Cowra, New South Wales. Armed with improvised weapons including baseball bats and sharpened mess knives, they stormed the perimeter fences and overcame the machine gun posts. In all 231 Japanese prisoners were killed during the escape attempt. Four Australian soldiers were also killed in the breakout

In this episode we look at five inventions you may never have realised were made right here in the land Downunder. These are: spray on skin, the bionic ear or cochlear implant, the black box flight recorder, the pacemaker, and the cervical cancer vaccine.

Remember, you can always email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com

Between 1952 and 1963 the British Government carried out 12 major nuclear weapon tests in Australia in the remote Montebello islands and in South Australia at Maralinga and Emu Field.

Why did the Australian Government agree to nuclear weapon testing in Australia? Let’s find out!

Every Australian knows the words to 'Waltzing Matilda'. On the surface it's a song about a swagman who steals a sheep and drowns himself in a billabong to avoid capture.  But, it's more than just a quaint bush ballad.  Behind the story of the song lies politics, industrial unrest, class divisions and of course economics.  

In this episode we look at a man who was one of the most important people in Australia in the 20th century. But I doubt you have ever heard of him. This man is  Herbert Cole Coombs – or as he is most often called – Nugget Coombs.

In this episode resume our review of Robert Menzies. Menzies became Prime Minister for a second time on 10 December 1949. Menzies founded the Liberal Party and was the dominant figure in Australian political and social life for the next two decades.  

Menzies, was in many ways, a paradox. He was 'British to his bootstraps' but under his leadership we began to move closer to the United States and take our place in the Asia Pacific region. His period in office coincided with a long economic boom - but he was a poor economic manager. 

Love him or loathe him, he was and remains an extremely interesting figure!

Here's a link to Robert Menzies in full swing over his love for a young and blushing Queen Elizabeth II: https://youtu.be/6ibGwqMM6uU