Aussie History Podcast: Recent Episodes
James Dampier
On 27 October 1857 a party of Yiman warriors killed 12 people at Hornet Bank Station. On 16 October 1861 another massacre of settlers took place at Culin-la-Ringo when Gayiri warriors killed 19 people. What emerges is a story of frontier wars where local Aboriginal people fought to protect thier hunting lands and sacred sites which they saw were being defiled by white settlers.
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Vera Deakin is one of those great women in Australian History that you have probably never heard of. However, if your family has roots that go back to WWI she may have had a significant impact on your life. Vera Deakin was the daughter of Alfred Deakin and his wife Elizabeth. She is known for her long involvement with the Australian Red Cross of over 60 years and establishing the the Australian Wounded and Missing Enquiry Bureau to trace missing and killed soldiers, bringing comfort to their families. My main source for this episode is Carole Woods' excellent book 'Vera Deakin and the Red Cross'. You can get a copy at: https://www.historyvictoria.org.au/bookshop/
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We wrap up our four part series on the Australia First Movement. There's one final inquiry, led by Justice Clyne, to investigate the internments. We look at what happened to some of the key people after the War and ask what to make of it all?
Finally, it's ANZAC Day, the day Australians and New Zealanders commemorate those who have served in war.
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Following the internments of Australia First members, there is disquiet about why, in a democracy, people could be detained without trial. Some appeal against their internment. The Government establishes a number of inquiries and most internees are released over 1942. Except, that is, for Percy Stephensen and a few others.
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The security forces, police and political leaders take a close interest in Australia First members. After WWII is declared the Publicist ceases and there is public opposition to Australia First, particularly in Sydney. In Western Australia the police send in an undercover agent and get evidence of a conspiracy to suport a Japanese invasion, sabotage and the assassination of public officials. The police swoop and arrest key Australia First members on 9 March 1942. Check out Barbara Winter's book 'The Australia First Movement, Dreaming of a National Socialist Australia'.
Apologies for the sound quality at the end of the epsisode. This was due to a severe thunderstorm hitting Canberra.
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On 9 March 1942 four people were arrested in Perth on suspicion of a plot to contact the Japanese armed forces to help with a Japanese invasion and to assassinate public officials. They had formed an organisation called the Australia-First Group. A few days later 16 people, members of the Australia First Movement, were arrested in Sydney. In Parliament they were all denounced as traitors – because WWII was underway and Australia was in fear of a Japanese invasion. Two were sentenced to prison and most of the others were secretly interned for the duration of the war.
Australia Day is celebrated on 26 January each year. But how much do you really know about the history of Australia Day? 26 January is not the date the First Fleet arrived in Sydney Harbour, nor is it the day the Colony of NSW was proclaimed. And it may surprise you that the first public holiday to be actually called Australia Day was held on 30 July, not 26 January.
On 8 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II died. In this episode we explore what it meant for Australia. Oh, and I also rave on a little about cricket.
It's ANZAC Day and we commomorate those Australians who served on HMAS Perth which was sunk in the Battle of the Sunda Strait on 1 March 1942.
Learn about the amazing story about Oskar Speck a man who paddled his kayak from Germany to Australia, starting in 1932 and taking 7 years to complete his voyage. By the time he arrived in Australia the world was at war and so he was, like many German nationals, interned. After the War Speck settled in Australia, becoming a successful opal dealer.
In the 1930s the inner suburbs of Sydney were in turmoil as rival gangs fought it out for supremacy in what was called the Razor Gang Wars'. The Razor Gangs were led by two women - Tilly Devine and Kate Leigh.
We also pay tribute to Shane Warne (Warnie) who passed away at the young age of 52. For his ball of the century see:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44WLwHEWJ4M
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are advised that this episode mentions the names of people who have passed away.
Governor Macquarie uses military force to effectively end the Sydney Wars. We also wrap things up and conclude that the history I learned at school was not accurate.
We also pay tribute to John Landy, the second person to break the 4 minute mile, who has passed away. He is also famous for helping Ron Clarke to his feet in the 1956 Australian mile championships. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LZK5YbJkYQ
We wrap up our coverage of the 1971 Springbok Tour. The Sprinboks arrive in Australia and are met with protests wherever they go. Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
The 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia was controversial. Protests erupted against the South African policy of apartheid and in Queensland a state of emergency was declared.
The implications of the Tour also went broader than the rugby tour. No Apartheid-era sporting team from South Africa ever toured Australia again. It also made Australians reflect on our treatment of our Indigenous peoples
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The wetlands around Koo Wee Run in Victoria had a long Indigenous history before they were drained for agricultural use.
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Ernest Fisk may be a name you have never heard of. But, as the man who bought radio to Australia, he has had a huge impact on your life.
Also, be sure to catch the History Detective Podcast series 'Ladies in the House'
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are advised that this episode mentions the names of people who have passed away.
Things hot up on the Cumberland Plain as large bands of warriors exact reprisals as far south as Razorbank Range. Farms are abandoned as the settlers fear for their lives.
Apologies for the poor recording quality.
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Mary MacKillop founded the Sisters of St Joseph, the first Catholic order founded by an Australian. She and her order established schools and welfare institutions throughout Australia and New Zealand, with an emphasis on education for the rural poor. She was the first Australian to be canonised as a Saint by the Catholic Church.
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James Hardy Vaux was an English-born convict transported to NSW. He is probably the dodgiest convict ever and was, in fact, transported three times. But he also wrote the first full length autobiography in Australia and the first Australian dictionary.
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Aboriginal and Torres Islander people are warned that this episode mentions the name of people who have passed away.
Pemulwuy may have been killed but the attacks continue. Governor King is forced to act and orders punitive responses. Meanwhile, Mosquito and Bull Dog are caputured and sent to Norfolk Island and Pemulwuy's son Tedbury joins the fight
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Reg Saunders was a war hero who won the Military Medal. He was also the first Indigenous Australian to be commissioned as an officer in the Australian Army.
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Australia has had censorship since Captain Arthur Phillip planted the Union Jack at Sydney Cove in 1788. During the mid 20th century Australia is said to have had one of the strictest Censorship regimes in the western world.
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We finish our look at Malcolm Fraser, the 22nd Prime Minister of Australia. Why did he turn his back on the Party he led did he become a left winger after he retired from politics?
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In this and the next episode we look at the life and career of John Malcolm Fraser, the 22nd Prime Minister of Australia. Malcom Fraser was extremely divisive in his day, predominantly because of his role in the Dismissal of the Whitlam Government. I hope to convince you that he is a much misunderstood figure.
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On Tuesday 18 January 1977 a crowded commuter train derailed and careered into the supports of the Bold Street Bridge in the Western Sydney suburb of Granville. The bridge collapsed, killing 83 people and injuring 213 others. The Granville Rail Disaster remains the worst rail disaster in Australian history.
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The conflict on the Cumberland Plain and along the Hawkesbury River ramps up. Pemulwuy takes it to the colonists and leads his band of warriors in serious guerrilla warfare. In the Battle of Parramatta, he and 100 warriors fight it out with the NSW Corps. On the Hawkesbury, the Dharug and Darkingjung people resist the encroachment of the colonists. In the end Pemulwuy is killed after Governor King offers a reward for his capture or death.
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In this episode we learn about Tilly Aston, the blind Australian writer and educator, who founded The Victorian Association of Braille Writers and The Association for the Advancement of the Blind. Tilly Aston is remembered for achievements in promoting the rights of vision-impaired people.
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On Remembrance Day I want to bring you the story of two best friends - Harold West and George Leonard. Private Harold West and Private Leonard were among about 5,000 Indigenous Australians who served during the Second World War.
Here is a link to a YouTube video which is a trailer for a film about Harold West and George Leonard. Alas the film has not yet been made.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvLCu1i0m-w&feature=youtu.be
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In June 1826 local Campbelltown farmer Frederick Fisher disappeared. Four months later John Farley ran into the local pub claiming to have seen Frederick Fisher's ghost sitting on a bridge pointing to where his body lay.
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On 15 October 1970, 50 years ago, workers were busy constructing a new bridge over the Yarra River in Melbourne. Suddenly the bridge started to groan, a pinging noise filled the air and the bridge just fell away. As a result of this tragedy 35 workers died.
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On 1 January 1915 Badsha Mahommed Gool and Mullah Abdullah shot dead four people and wounded seven more just outside the western NSW mining town of Broken Hill. Was this incident an act of war during WWI, a terrorist attack, or simply a criminal act by the two men concerned?
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In this episode we are a taking a look at two eccentrics who lived in Sydney in the early and mid 20th Century - Beatrice Miles and Arthur Stace
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The Bathurst Rebellion of 1830 was the strangest rebellion of the convict era. It took place around Bathurst about 170 kms to the west of Sydney. And it all started from a skinny-dipping incident.
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On 13 August 1940 a Royal Australian Airforce Lockheed Hudson aircraft crashed near the Canberra airport, killing all 10 passengers and crew on board. This crash had a significant impact on the Australian Government as the passengers on board included three Cabinet Ministers. The crash contributed to the downfall of the UAP Government of Robert Menzies.
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From 1950-53, 17,000 Australians in the Army, Navy and Air Force fought in the Korean War. In this episode we delve into some of the battles Australians fought in and the stories of a number of Australians who served in Korea.
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June 2020 marks the 70th anniversary of the start of the Korean War. The Korean War is often called the forgotten war. But, from 1950-53, 17,000 Australians fought as part of the United Nations Multinational Force, defending South Korea from the Communist forces of North Korea.
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It's back to bushrangers. In this episode were are focusing on Frank Pearson also known as ‘Captain Starlight' and James Alpin McPherson who went by the moniker the 'Wild Scotchman'. Check out the following YouTube video on the 'Wild Scotchman' and his escape attempt from St Helena prison island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wITSpdaZj9g
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In this episode we take a gander at one of Sydney’s most iconic landmarks – the Sydney Opera House. Sitting on Bennelong Point, the Sydney Opera House sits resplendent, with its white sails dominating Sydney Cove.
Take a look at Stevie Wright performing Evie Parts 1, 2 and 3 at the Sydney Opera House in 1979.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPveBD6WWXc .
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Francis Greenway was an English-born architect who was transported to New South Wales as a convict for the crime of forgery. He was the colony’s first Government architect. Greenway is admired for his buildings such as St Matthew’s Church in Windsor and St James’ Church and the Hyde Park Barracks in Sydney. He was an extremely talented, but deeply flawed man.
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In this episode we learn about Douglas Grant, an Indigenous man who served in the trenches in World War I. He was treated as an equal in the AIF but faced discrimination upon his return home. Then there is Douglas Berneville-Claye, my English teacher at St Greg's Campbelltown. He passed himself off as a war hero. But he was actually a traitor, a British officer who joined the SS.
The conflict between the British settlers and the local Indigenous people is heating up. The settlers push into the extremely fertile river flats along the Hawkesbury River near Windsor, Richmond and Wilberforce. This deprives the local people of access to traditional food sources.
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In 1813 Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Charles Wentworth made the first successful crossing of the Blue Mountains. Or did they? Were Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth really the first to cross the Blue Mountains? And what of the implications of their explorations for the local Indigenous people?
On 17 February 2020, General Motors announced the end of the Holden brand. This has shocked the nation and it truly is the end of an era. Watch the Holden TV advertisement 'Football, meat pies, kangaroos and Holden cars at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGW-WX77zjY
On Wednesday 26 May 1971, a man calling himself “Mr Brown" telephoned saying that Qantas Flight 755 from Sydney to Hong Kong was carrying a bomb. It was set to detonate as the plane came in to land and it could only be prevented if he was paid $500,000.
Check out the movie 'Call me Mr Brown' on YouTube athttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUDku9ha0-A
PLEASE DONATE TO THE RED CROSS BUSHFIRE RECOVERY APPEAL AT: www.redcross.org.au
Today we are into Aussie cryptozoology; the Bunyip and the Blue Mountain's Panther. Do they really exist? Well yes!. There is a real Bunyip right here in Canberra - Alexander the Bunyip - and you can find him at Gunghalin Library.
Check out the truly remarkable ABC cartoon 'Bluey'. For you parents and grandparents out there it provides great parenting tips for toddlers. You can watch episodes on the ABC website or the ABC i-view App for free. Here's a YouTube video of highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1SgpcIULLY&list=PLUptLdhc0cdHxTE1_ZBNP5ZaPgjePZGWC
The local Sydney people continue to find it tough going after the arrival of the British. A smallpox epidemic breaks out killing many Indigenous people. Bennelong is captured and Arthur Phillip is speared and recovers from his wound. Arthur Phillip then orders reprisals after the apparently unprovoked killing of John McIntire.
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Nancy-Bird Walton was one of the great pioneers of flight in Australia. Learn about her remarkable life and achievements. A youtube video aired by the ABC on the day of her funeral can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjfUSjh-muo
Episode 100! I never dreamed I would still be going after 100 episodes and 6 years. In this episode we cover Australia becoming a nation. When the six colonies of Australia decided to federate and become a nation in its own right.
Thank you to all my listeners for your support and encouragement since I started this little podcast. A big shout out to Laszlo Montgomery from the China History Podcast who started me in this podcasting caper.
In this episode we cover the history of the Sydney Harbour Bridge – or as local Sydney-siders call it, the coat hanger. The Sydney Harbour Bridge is an iconic bridge that joins the north of Sydney Harbour to the south. At the time of its completion in 1932 it was considered the epitome of modern bridge design and engineering ingenuity
In this episode we finish our look at Ben Chifley. Chifley spends many years in the political wilderness before being re-elected to Parliament. After the death of John Curtin he becomes Prime Minister.
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We continue our look at Ben Chifley. Chifley finally gets elected to Federal Parliament and enters the Minsitry as Minister for Defence. But disunity in the Labor Party costs Labor government, and Chifley his seat, all at the hands of Jack Lang. Chifley and Lang become bitter enemies.
I was struggling with a sore throat and I bit my tongue (ouch). So bear with my poor delivery in this episode.
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In this and the next few episodes we are going to take a look at Ben Chifley. Chifley was born in Bathurst, New South Wales and worked on the NSW Railways for 25 years as an engine driver.
Chifley was Australia’s 16th Prime Minister who came to the Prime Ministership in July 1945 following the death of John Curtin. Chifley is an icon in Labor Party history. He is most famously remembered for his ‘light on the hill’ speech.
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should note that that in this episode I mention the names of people who have or may have passed away.
In this episode we look at the life of Oodgeroo Noonuccal or as you might know her Kath Walker. She was a great poet, writer and activist who played a significant role in the 1967 referendum.
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I've decided to rename the podcast to the Aussie History Podcast. Thanks to Artistic Visual Design Director Ken Dampier for the new artwork
In this episode my good friend Kate joins me to talk cricket and the infamous Bodyline series of the 1930s. Check out Six and Out's cricketing song 'Can't bowl, Can't Throw'. The band was made up of Australian Test and First Class cricketers, including Brett Lee. As a band they made good cricketers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcH-unNO7L0
Would you believe that on the banks of Kati Thanda or Lake Eyre, South Australia, lies the world’s second-largest geoglyph? Did you know that from the 1940s until the 1970s cats lived in the Sydney Harbour Bridge. And finally, were you aware that at the end of WWI a French orphan was smuggled to Australia in a sack by Australian troops?
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this episode mentions the names of people who have passed away.
At school we learned that the the settlement of New South Wales was a pretty peaceful affair and that the local Aboriginal people accepted the colonists. Also that, where there was conflict, it was very much small scale and out of the ordinary. But was it really like that?
Bushrangers!! This time it's Captain Moonlite and Jackey Jackey.
And we say farewell to the Hon. James Robert Lee Hawke MP, one of Australia's best Prime Ministers who died several days before this episode was recorded. Vale Bob Hawke. Australia is a better place because of you.
It's election day today in Australia. As we head to the polls learn about the first woman who is known to have cast a vote in an Australian election - Frances Finch. Would you believe it actually happened in 1856, some 46 years before universal suffrage was introduced in Australia.
It's ANZAC Day. Marion Leane Smith is the only known Indigenous Australian woman to service in WWI. Let's learn about her story.
We wrap up our series of episodes into the murder of Donald Mackay. The inquest into the death of Donald Mackay gets underway, Bob Trimbole is finally found and Detective Inspector Ellis goes before the courts. Finally three men are charged over conspiracy to murder Donald Mackay.
In this episode we follow the Royal Commission into Drug Trafficking in NSW. The findings from the Royal Commission were explosive and the identities of those responsible for Donald Mackay's murder are revealed at the Inquest into Donald Mackay's murder.
On 15 July 1977, local Griffith businessman Donald Mackay disappeared from the car park of a local hotel. Blood was found on and around his mini-van. And there were three spent .22 bullet casings lying on the ground. This incident led to a Royal Commissioning the illegal drug trade in New South Wales.
In this episode we complete our look at Edward Eyre, focusing on 'The Great Northern Expedition' where he overlanded from Adelaide to Albany. We also cover his later career, particularly his time as Governor of Jamaica and his role in suppressing the Mount Bay Rebellion. How is it that the 'friend of the Aborigine' became known as the 'monster of Jamaica'?
We finally start our look at Edward John Eyre one of the great explorers of colonial history. Despite his exploits he is largely forgotten these days. In Australia Eyre is often known as the friend and protector of Aborigines. But after his time in Australia he became Governor of Jamaica. Here he brutally put down a local revolt and became known as the 'monster of Jamaica'.
A key source for this episode is Ivan Rudolph's book 'Eyre, The Forgotten Explorer'. Thank you to listener Gary for suggesting this topic.
So long to my dear friend Glen, a friend of nearly 35 years, who died this week.
On 5March 1804, 233 Irish Nationalist convicts led by Phillip Cunningham staged an uprising at Castle Hill in the penal colony of New South Wales. Their plan was to steal a ship and head back to Ireland to rejoin the fight for Irish independence against the British.
On 21 June 1966 an assassination attempt was made on Arthur Calwell the leader of the Australian Labor Party and Opposition Leader. It was only the second political assassination attempt in Australian history
In this episode we are going to review the life of Arthur Calwell, including the events of June 1966 when an attempt was made on his life by a 19 year old factory worker called Peter Kocan.
The common view of Calwell is that he was a racist old style Labor politician. He once said "two Wongs don’t make a White". Calwell was a staunch defender of the White Australia policy, but he also implemented the era of mass migration to Australia in the post-war era.
In this episode we are looking at the Battle of One Tree Hill. This was a battle fought by the Jagera people led by the warrior Multuggerrah in 1843. While Multuggerah and his forces defeated the white settlers it did not end well for a people who had inhabited the Darling Downs region of South East Queensland for some 30-40,000 years.
In the early to mid-1970s the NSW Builders Labourers' Federation imposed 'Green Bans' in Sydney. These bans were imposed by the builders labourers employed to construct t office-block skyscrapers, shopping centres and luxury apartments
The builder’s labourers refused to work on projects that were environmentally or socially undesirable.
The Green Bans movement was the first of its type in the world.
Advice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people: this episode refers to people who have or may have passed away.
It's Reconciliation Day and we look at the Mabo Case which overturned the concept of Terra Nullius - which was that before white settlement the land was empty and belonged to no one. In its decision, the High Court ruled that native title had existed on Murray Island and throughout Australia since time immemorial and that native title continued to exist where it had not been extinguished. Join me as learn about the Mabo Case and the man behind it all - Eddie Koiki Mabo.
In this episode we wrap up our take on Ned Kelly. Was he really a larrikin hero? Or should he be more properly remembered as a common criminal and murderer?
In this and the next episode we will be looking at the life and times of Edward 'Ned' Kelly. We will be asking the question does Ned Kelly deserve his place in Australian culture as a larrikin hero who stood up to the British ruling elite because of oppression faced by him, his family and the broader Irish-Catholic community? Or was he a ruthless criminal and cop killer who deserved what he got?
A big warning here: I'm not a Ned Kelly fan!!
It's ANZAC Day, 25 April 2018.
Over the two days, 26 and 27 November 1942, Australian and American servicemen fought a 'battle' against each other on the streets of Brisbane. Find out what caused this little known incident.
In this episode we wrap up the assassination attempt on Price Alfred by Henry O'Farrell.
We cover O'Farrell's trial, his hanging and ask whether O'Farrell was a Fenian terrorist or a man with significant mental health issues that led him into insanity. We also draw some modern day parallels between the anti-Irish-Catholic sentiment that existed at the time.
It’s the 12th March 1868 and Prince Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh and second son of Queen Victoria is visiting Australia. It’s the first ever Royal Tour of the Australian colonies. He is invited by Sydney’s high society to attend a popular picnic spot at Clontarf.
But not all is well in Australia. There is sectarian strife between the Irish Catholics and the British Protestant elite. At the picnic an Irishman called Henry James O’Farrell draws his pistol and fires a shot at Prince Alfred. The shot hits the Prince in the back.
Harry "Breaker" Morant was an Australian journalist, poet, drover and military officer. On 27 February 1902 he was executed by the British military for war crimes committed during the Boer War in South Africa. He did it in retaliation for the death of his commanding officer and close friend Captain Percy Hunt.
Welcome to 2018 and Episode 72. It’s summer in Australia and that means cricket. Learn about the extraterrestrial origins of the game of cricket – yes aliens invented cricket. And my friend Kate joins me in this episode to talk about cricket and some of the memorable Ashes clashes between Australia and the old foe England at the WACA Ground. We also talk about cricketing songs and how bad I was at cricket.
Be warned!! This is a very long episode.
Here’s some YouTube videos of cricketing songs:
The 'Come on Aussie Come on' advertisement:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uBjJAV3CMk
Greg Champion’s ‘I made a Hundred in the backyard at Mum’s’:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sjr9Y3oNW-4
Sherbet’s ‘Howzat’:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EmSanSFXEM
Paul Kelly’s ‘Bradman’:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjZHfEIEJ54
And of course 10CC’s ‘Dreadlock holiday’ – “I don’t like cricket, oh no, I love it!!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fI2FC36lXXQ
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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
Welcome to 2017!
In this episode we recount the early career of Sir Robert Gordon 'Bob' Menzies, Australia’s longest serving Prime Minister. Menzies served as Prime Minister twice –for a total of 18 years and it is still the record term for an Australian Prime Minister. Menzies totally dominated Australian politics and life for the better part of three decades. He dominated Australia so much that his second term as Prime Minister from 1949 to 1966 is often referred to as "the Ming Dynasty.
For a truly worthwhile cause visit 'Batting for Change' at https://battingforchange.com.au. Ryan Carters, a young Australian cricketer, is raising money to support education for disadvantaged women and girls in cricket playing nations. You can donate just a dollar per six hit by the Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League cricket tournament. Since 2013 Ryan has raised over $350,000 and transformed the life of dozens and dozens of women. This year the target is $150,000.
In this episode we delve into an extremely controversial period in Australian history – the genocide of the Tasmanian Aborigines. We also look at Truganini, the most famous of the Tasmanian Aborigines. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are advised that this episode contains the names of people who are deceased.
Be warned! This is a very long episode by AWP standards.
It’s back to bushrangers - more bushrangers who were not Ned Kelly. In this episode we will be looking at four bushrangers: Jack Donohoe the ‘Wild Colonial Boy’; Mad Dan Morgan who roamed the Murray Valley area in the 1860s; Martin Cash the 'gentleman bushranger'; and Jimmy Governor – the last of the bushrangers about whom Thomas Keneally wrote his book "The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith".
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com.
Episode 50 - half a century!
In this episode we cover Ronald Ryan’s hanging and the public outcry that accompanied his execution. We then ask did Ryan really kill prison warder George Hodson?
Check out this excellent 15 minute documentary on the Ryan execution:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDyFJqru9UI
Also this website that seeks to prove Ryan's innocence: http://www.ronaldryan.info
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
At 8.00 a.m. on 3 February 1967 Ronald Joseph Ryan was hanged in Pentridge gaol in Melbourne for the murder of a prison officer named George Henry Hodson. He had been found guilty of shooting Hodson with a rifle he had taken off another prison guard while escaping from prison. Ronald Ryan was the last person to be executed in Australia.
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
On Fathers Day, the 2nd September R 1984, there was a shoot out between two rival motorcycle gangs at a British motorcycle swap meet in the Western Sydney suburb of Milperra. The shoot out had its origin in a bitter split within the Comancheros and Bandidos motorcycle or bikie gangs. At the end of the shoot out seven people were dead,including a 15 year old girl who was just standing by.
Check out the 60 Minutes documentary on the massacre – done in 2014 on the 30th anniversary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nFKnEwU4MI
On Saturday 19 March 1932 Captain Francis Edward de Groot, dressed in full military uniform, raced up on horseback, drew his ceremonial sword, and cut the ribbon declaring the Sydney Harbour Bridge open and proclaiming he was doing so "in the name of the decent and respectable people of New South Wales.”
Here is a YouTube clip that shows some of the footage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19R0d1VCGxM
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production and Emmie the AWP Wonder Dog for security.
Warning to Indigenous Australians -this episode may refer to people who have passed away.
On Australia Day 1972, four young Aboriginal men erected a beach umbrella on the lawns outside Parliament House in Canberra and put up a sign, which read 'Aboriginal Embassy'.
Check out a short youtube documentary about this important political protest site (but ignore some of the stupid racist comments in the comments section):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlBS4GO-xJE
Kenny Dampier, Executive Producer, is down with a bug. So apologies for the low production quality. But thanks to Emmie, the wonder dog, for helping with the recording.
Sixty years ago Melbourne hosted the Olympics. In this episode we look at two events– one in the lead up to the Olympic games and the other during the games. The first is the Olympic Torch Hoax and the second is the ‘blood in the water’ water polo match between the Soviet Union and Hungary.
Here’s a few YouTube videos of the water polo match, including one from a movie made about it all:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ca8P65IUkM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLoA5yLZ4l4
Executive Producer Kenny Dampier is still on other projects. So apologies for lower production quality than usual.
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!
On the 7th of July 1986, Australians Kevin Barlow and Brian Chambers were hanged in Malaysia for possession of 141.9 grams of heroin. They were the first ‘Westerners’ to be executed under new and tougher drug laws introduced in Malaysia in 1983.
Production quality is a little lower for this episode. But Ken Dampier, Executive Producer is busy on other projects.
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
In this episode we review the cycling career of one of the greats of Australian cycling – Phil Anderson. Anderson was the first Australian to wear the maillot jueune, or the yellow leader’s jersey, at the Tour de France.
Vive la France, Vive le Tour!!!
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier, Executive Producer, for post production.
In this episode we are going to look at four bushrangers you might never have heard of - John Cesar, Sam Poo, Mary Ann Bugg, and John Gilbert. John Cesar was our first bushranger, Sam Poo our only Chinese bushranger. and Mary Anne Bugg our first Indigenous female bushranger.
Some sources:
http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/First-bushrangers-trace-back-to-African-roots/2005/01/26/1106415665901.html
http://www.dailyliberal.com.au/story/2866513/australias-only-chinese-bushranger-remembered-150-years-on/
http://www.thunderboltbushranger.com.au/mary-ann-bugg.html
http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/gilbert-john-johnny-3609
The entire Dampier family has been ill with a really nasty virus. So apologies for taking this long to get this episode out.
You may never have heard of Howard Florey. But chances are you owe this Australian your life or the life of someone close to you. His work on the development of the first penicillin-based antibiotic medicines in the 1940s has probably saved millions of people worldwide.
We also revisit the Hilton Bombing. A new book by Rachel Landers called ‘Who Bombed the Hilton’ puts forward the case that it was actually the Ananda Marga that carried out the bombing. It seems I may have been wrong!!
In this episode we are looking at some strange Australian history that show just how weird a place Australia is. This includes: the Great Emu Wars, when female convicts mooned the Lieutenant-Governor of Tasmania, the woman on the $20 note, our Prime Minister who held a Guinness World record for beer drinking and how the Western Australian town of Esperance tried to fine NASA for littering when Skylab crashed.
Here’s a YouTube video on The Great Emu War, very funny:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9G6WCsfoow'
A picture of the $20 note featuring Mary Reibey:
http://www.polymernotes.com/australia20.html
Bob Hawke sculling a schooner in 10 seconds:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5mBShX9fdU
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production, and for his ever lasting knowledge
It’s the ANZAC Day long weekend. And it's also family history time!!
Find out how my grandfather Company Quartermaster Sergeant Major William Cook was captured in North Africa in November 1942, was made prisoner of war, and escaped via the Vatican. An amazing story and one I did not believe until my family was recently able to retrieve official War Office documents!! I’ll post these documents on the AWP Facebook page.
I know it isn't strictly Australian history, but it is a great story.
At 12,40 am on 13 February 1978, a bomb exploded outside the Hilton Hotel in Sydney. The bomb killed two garbage collectors and a police officer. The Hilton Hotel was the site of the first Commonwealth Heads of Government Regional Meeting.
Two members of the Ananda Marga Hindu religious sect, Tim Anderson and Evan Pederick were convicted of the bombing. Anderson was subsequently acquitted. Controversy and conspiracy theories have surrounded the incident and some have claimed that ASIO was responsible.
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
Do you know what the capital city of Australia is? If you live overseas you will probably answer Sydney. Wrong! It’s actually Canberra. Some people say that Canberra is a good sheep station spoiled. In this episode we learn about how Canberra came into being, how it got its name, and why it is located where it is.
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/documentaries/downloads/canberraconf_facts.pdf
https://www.nationalcapital.gov.au/index.php/fact-sheets
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier, who is currently on holidays in Thailand, for post-production.
Maybe you have seen a photo of the medal ceremony for the men's 200 meters at the Mexico City Olympics in 1968. U.S. sprinter and Gold medallist Tommie Smith and his compatriot John Carlos, the Bronze medallist, stand on the dais. They have no shoes on and each is wearing a single black glove on one hand. They are thrusting their fists into the air in a black power salute and their heads are bowed in protest as the Star Spangled Banner is played. It was an act of defiance aimed at protesting against segregation and racism against African Americans back home in the United States.
But let’s take our gaze away from Tommie Smith and John Carlos. You will see a small guy from Australia standing still. It’s Peter Norman. What few people realise is that Peter Norman is the forgotten hero of that medal ceremony.
Sources for this episode include:
http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2012/s3572112.htm
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/world-finally-recognises-littleknown-aussie-hero-in-iconic-photo/news-story/0ddb2750053826e4baf7c2c749ba606a
http://www.andrewleigh.com/3389
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9NsN0ybTec
http://salute.vhx.tv/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D35uvpN3IKk
http://corporate.olympics.com.au/news/peter-norman-not-shunned-by-aoc
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
On the morning of 19 February 1942, just 10 weeks after the Japanese navy launch its attack on Pearl Harbour, mainland Australia came under attack from the sky. Japanese forces mounted two air raids on Darwin. The raids involved 54 land-based bombers and approximately 188 attack aircraft, which were launched from four Japanese aircraft carriers in the Timor Sea.
For more details visit the Australian War memorial website at: https://www.awm.gov.au/talks-speeches/1942-bombing-of-darwin/
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
Juanita Nielsen was an Australian newspaper publisher and conservationist who was leading a campaign against high rise development in Victoria Street, Kings Cross in Sydney. On the 4th of July 1975 she disappeared, never to be seen again. A coronial inquest found that Nielsen had most likely been murdered. But the case has never been officially solved.
In this episode we are going to look at the criminal underbelly of Sydney in the late 1960s and 1970s. We will try and get to the bottom of just what happened to Juanita Nielsen and why.
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
On Christmas Eve 1974 Tropical Cyclone Tracy destroyed the northern Australian city of Darwin. The cyclone took Darwin by completely by surprise and 71 people died. This was before the internet and it took the rest of Australia a while to find out what happened.
Check out the you've video of the song Santa never made it into Darwin by Bill and Boyd at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HYbgLcIz2s
For more images and sounds of Cyclone Tracy visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvyuFmk6s_U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B89wBGydSvs
Finally, take a moment during the Christmas-New Year Break to have a look at Steve Lee's Gremlins Toolbox on Facebook. If you like fantasy fiction I think you will enjoy some of the uploads on this Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/GremlinsToolboxAudioLair/?fref=photo
And also take a listen to the talented Mr Lee's podcast, Audiolair. You can download it from iTunes, Google Play or any other podcast App.
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
In this episode we will be looking at what happened immediately after the dismissal and how it al played out in the December 1975 election. We will also investigate the ramifications of the 11th November dismissal, including a number of crucial questions about Australian democracy and the Constitution.
Check out Sir John Kerr's letter dismissing Whitlam as Prime Minister: http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/snapshots/dismissal/dismissal-letter.aspx
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
At 1.15 pm on the 11th of November 1975, 40 years ago, Edward Gough Whitlam, the 21st Prime Minister of Australia, was dismissed by the Governor-General Sir John Kerr. The Dismissal of Whitlam and his Government was one of the most dramatic and controversial political events in Australian history. And this is the 40th anniversary of that event.
Checkout the excellent Tandberg cartoon on the dismissal at: http://whitlamdismissal.com/images/tandberg-large.jpg
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
Remember The Seekers? Only if you are over 50 years old, probably. The Seekers was one of the first Aussie Pop Groups to make it big overseas. I used to think their music was way too lame. But maybe I did them a disservice. The angelic voice of Judith Durham took them to the top of the charts in Australia, the UK and the US. For this episode listen to a few of their hit songs at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ga9Bs4fzSY&list=RD4Ga9Bs4fzSY#t=0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5pvpIvz5YQ&list=RD4Ga9Bs4fzSY&index=3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nze8B39OB0k&index=4&list=RD4Ga9Bs4fzSY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSVfLNCW4Fs&index=2&list=RD4Ga9Bs4fzSY
Very 1960s wholesome music.
On the 21 October 1978, 20 year old frederick Valentich dissappeared while on a training flight over Bass Strait. Some say he was taken by a UFO.
On 22nd August 1966, Vincent Lingiari, led a walk-off of 200 Aboriginal stockmen, domestic servants, and their families from the Wave Hill cattle station in the Northern Territory. The protest was about the poor work and pay conditions on the cattle station. But it was much more than that. It was also a struggle for Indigenous land rights and it changed Australia forever. Let’s see how ‘from little things big things grow’.
Check out the YouTube video of the Paul Kelly and Kev Carmody song ‘From Little Things Big Things Grow’. The didgeridoo solo at the end is pretty darned cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_ndC07C2qw
Also check out the original petition from the Gurindji people to the Governor-General Lord Casey:
http://indigenousrights.net.au/land_rights/wave_hill_walk_off,_1966-75/a_petition_to_the_governor-general
Over the course of two days –the 28th and 29th of April 1996, Martin Bryant killed 35 people at and near the historic Port Arthur convict prison site some 100 kilometres north east of Hobart.
This tragic event had significant implications for Australia. It enabled the introduction of tighter national gun control laws to ensure that an event like this never happened in Australia again.
In its aftermath conspiracy theories have arisen that challenge whether Martin Bryant was the killer. We take a quick look at some of these conspiracy theories. For a concise debunking of these conspiracy theories visit Brian Dunning’s Skeptoid podcast at: http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4253
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
It’s Tour de France time and this gives us an opportunity to remember a man who many consider was Australia’s best ever, competitive professional cyclist, Sir Hubert Opperman, or as he is more commonly, and affectionately known, Oppy.
Then we look at the life of Margaret McLachlan. McLachlan was a female cyclist who in the 1960s tried to enter the world of competitive cycling. But back in those days the cycling establishment was not a welcoming place for women. She was banned from competitive cycling despite the protestation from other cyclists. Margaret McLachlan with the support of her husband John then went on to set long distance records. Hers is an inspiring story of overcoming the odds despite discrimination against women.
Check out an article on Margaret McLachlan at: http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/51771035?searchTerm=Margaret%20McLachlan%20AND%20%22race%22%20AND%20(cycling)&searchLimits=exactPhrase=race%7C%7C%7CanyWords=cycling%7C%7C%7CnotWords%7C%7C%7Cl-textSearchScope=ignore%7Cignore%7C%7C%7Cfromdd%7C%7C%7Cfrommm%7C%7C%7Cfromyyyy%7C%7C%7Ctodd%7C%7C%7Ctomm%7C%7C%7Ctoyyyy%7C%7C%7Cl-word=ignore%7Cignore%7C%7C%7Csortby
In this episode we are in the Philipines - the birthplace of my gorgeous wife Nilda. We are visiting close friends and relatives in Kalibo on the island of Panay and in the province of Aklan. We also visit the beautiful island of Boracay. I had hoped to record some interviews but it didn't quite work out. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy this overview of Filipino history. I know it ain't Aussie history - but I do make some tenuous links to Australia in the episode.
Check out the photos on the AWP Facebook page.
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
On the night of 31 May 1942 – some 73 years ago - World War II came to Sydney when the Japanese navy launched a daring attack on Sydney Harbour. That night three Japanese midget submarines entered Sydney Harbour to destroy Allied naval and merchant shipping. While the attack inflicted minimal damage on shipping, 27 people died, including all of the crew of the Japanese submarines.
At the time of the attacks many Australians were outraged that the Japanese submariners were given a funeral with full military honours. But over time Australians have come to respect the courage and bravery that these men displayed.
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
The Ode of Remembrance is recited every ANZAC Day to to commemorate those Australian women and men who have made the ultimate sacrifice.
Ode Of Remembrance
They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old.
Age Shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun, and in the morning,
We will remember them.
Lest we forget.
On 25 April every year, Australians commemorate ANZAC Day. ANZAC Day commemorates the landing of Australian and New Zealand troops at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 during World War 1. This is the 100th anniversary of those landings.
Visit the amazing Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABCs) Gallipoli interactive website: http://www.abc.net.au/innovation/gallipoli/gallipoli2.htm#
And watch Channel 9’s Gallipoli series at: http://www.9jumpin.com.au/show/gallipoli/
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
Enter the AWP coffee mug giveaway by emailing me. Entries close on 31 May 2015. Unfortunately it is only open to Australian listeners.
In this episode we examine the aftermath of the Rum Rebellion. There were a series of trials and court martials after the coup and these had profound effects on the major players – particularly Bligh, Macarthur and Johnston.
Enter the AWP coffee mug competition. Entries close on 31 May 2015. It’s easy to enter – just email me. Unfortunately this completion is only open to Australian listeners. The cost of postage to international destinations is just too high.
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
As a schoolboy growing up in the Macarthur region on the outskirts of Sydney, John Macarthur and George Johnston were considered heroes who had deposed the cruel, villainous and cowardly tyrant William Bligh. But was it really like this? Were Johnston and Macarthur right to overthrow Bligh or have we got it completely wrong? Maybe Bligh should be seen as the man who stood up to the wealthy and powerful Macarthur?
In this episode we are going on a journey to the moment Major George Johnston and the NSW Corps entered Government House in Sydney and ousted William Bligh from office on 26 January 1808. This was the only military coup d’état ever to occur in Australia.
Enter the AWP coffee mug competition. Three coffee mugs are on offer. Entries close on Sunday 31 May 2015 - not 30 April which is what i say in the podcast. To enter email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Unfortunately this competition is only open to Australian listeners – the cost of postage to international destinations is just too high.
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
On 26th January 1808, exactly 20 years to the day after the arrival of the first Fleet, Governor William Bligh (of the Mutiny on the Bounty infamy) was deposed in a coup d’etat by the New South Wales Corps - under the command of Major George Johnston and with the backing of John Macarthur.
The history we learned at school was that Macarthur and Johnston were the heroes of the day. Bligh was a villainous and cruel tyrant. The real story is far more complex. The Rum Rebellion was really about political and economic control of the colony of New South Wales.
Music courtesy of Dano at: www.danosongs.com
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
In this episode we reflect on the First Fleet and come to some conclusions about it all. Then we look at two men – Pemulwuy and Bennelong. Both were Aboriginal men who played important roles in the early years of the colony of New South Wales.
Check out the YouTube video of Mirusia Louwerse singing the old Aussie folk song Bound for Botany Bay. It’s a song about a convict being transported to Australia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQCIUKgHc5k
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie Waves Podcast Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
On the morning of 13May 1787 the First Fleet weighed anchor and set sail from Portsmouth, England. On 26 January 1788 the First Fleet arrived in Sydney Harbour. In this episode we relive the journey out to New South Wales and see what it was like for the colonists in the first few years of the new colony. Needless to say, it was pretty hard going. There was a constant threat of starvation and there were skirmishes with the local Aboriginal people – the Eora.
For this episode check out the Sydney Museum website. There is an exhibition on the First Fleet ships at: http://sydneylivingmuseums.com.au/museum-of-sydney
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com and visit the Aussie waves Podcast Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/AussieWavesPodcast
In this episode we are embarking on a voyage to Botany Bay with the First Fleet. On 13 May 1787 eleven ships commanded by Captain Arthur Phillip set sail from Portsmouth, England and headed for Botany Bay. On board were 1420 people of which 755 were convicts. Eight months later they arrived in Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour) to found the penal colony of New South Wales.
For this episode I recommend Robert Hughes’ book The Fatal Shore. This can be downloaded as an e-book from Amazon and can be purchased in bookstores in Australia. Check out a YouTube video of the Australian folk song 'Bound for Botany Bay' at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEYseM_R6Hk
And since it's the Australia Day Long Weekend also have a look at a song called 'We Are Australian" written by Bruce Woodley of The Seekers fame and Dobe Newton from The Bushwackers and sung by Australian Soprano Marusia Louwerse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtpBUQoVups
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of the talented Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
In this episode we remember Gough Whitlam’s visits to China – the People’s Republic of China - in 1971 and 1973. The 1971 visit, when Whitlam was Opposition Leader, paved the way for the diplomatic recognition of China and sowed the seeds for a thriving cultural and economic relationship. In 1973 Whitlam became the first Australian Prime Minister to travel to China.
Visit the Whitlam Institute website – where much of the material for this episode was sourced: http://www.whitlam.org/
Also check out the It’s Time TV commercial from the 1972 election campaign. Whitlam shakes hands with Premier Zhou at around the 1 minute 15 second mark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqMCZBjvmD4
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
In the late 1800s Indian labourers were sent to work in Fiji in the sugar cane farms as indentured workers. Following the 1987 military coup and the coups that followed many have moved to Australia. According to the 2011 Census 57,000 Fijian born people live in Australia and of this 36,000 are Indian.
For this episode I recommend: www.girmitunited.org – a website dedicated to preserving the history of the Indian Fijians.
You can always email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
For more than 20,000 years the Snowy region was home to the Ngarigo people and a number of other Aboriginal peoples. White settlement meant that in the 1800s the Ngarigo people were forced from their lands.
Up until the mid 20th century the Snowy was the province of farmers and high country horsemen as immortalised on Banjo Patterson’s poem The Man from Snowy River.
But after WWII, it was populate or perish and in this environment the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electricity Scheme was built. Over 100,000 people from over thirty countries came to the mountains to work on the Scheme.
For this episode I recommend you read or listen to The Man from Snowy River:
http://www.poetrylibrary.edu.au/poets/paterson-a-b-banjo/the-man-from-snowy-river-0001004
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fs_-DKUimeo
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
We continue our two part series on how Australia’s system of Government works. In this episode we cover:
· how the House of Representatives and the Senate work;
· how a new law is created and passed by the Parliament; and
· how do we keep the Government honest?
Then we take a brief look at one of the founders of Australian democracy and the federal Australian Labor Party, King O’Malley
For this episode I recommend you watch Question Time from the House of Representatives at: http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/House_of_Representatives
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
This is Part 1 of a two part series on Australia’s system of Government. After white settlement the colony of New South Wales was divided up into the six colonies of Australia. Each of these colonies formed their own Governments and reported directly back to Britain.
From the 1850s, however, there became a view that the colonies of Australia should federate to form a new nation of Australia. On 1 January 1901 Australia did federate to form the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia adopted a hybrid model taking bits from the British Westminster and American Federal systems.
For this episode visit the Australian Parliament House website at: http://www.aph.gov.au
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
The first German people arrived in Australia on the First Fleet in 1788. Despite this, when World War I was declared around 4500 German-Australians found themselves interned in camps for the duration of the war.
For more information check out the Migration Heritage of New South Wales website at www.migrationheritage.nsw.gov.au and the National Archives of Australia website at: http://naa.gov.au/collection/snapshots/internment-camps/index.aspx
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
The first Jewish people to come to Australia arrived on the First Fleet on 26 January 1788. Among the 827 convicts on the English First Fleet were at least 8 and possibly up to 14 or 15 British convicts who were Jewish.
On board was Esther Abrahams. Esther would go on to become the First Lady of the Colony of New South Wales and an important landholder and farmer in her own right.
Over the past few hundred years there have been several waves of Jewish migration to Australia. More recently after the Second World War Australia accepted significant numbers of Jewish refugees from war ravaged Europe.
For this episode I recommend the excellent Australian history podcast Last Stop to Nowhere hosted by Michael Sloan and Kyle Sherer. You can download it from ITunes.
Check out the Sydney Jewish Museum’s website: www.sydneyjewishmuseum.com.au
Also have a listen to Renee Geyer singing Heading in the Right Direction – such a beautiful voice:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjYfkswK_yssp
Finally, read the Australian Geographic article on the discovery of an 18th Century Chinese coin found on Elcho Island off the coast of Arnhem Land, Northern Territory:
http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2014/08/18th-century-chinese-coin-found-in-arnhem-land
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
In this episode we explore the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples before the arrival of white European settlers. We also look at first contact with Europeans – the Dutch explorers and finally the British. I use the Aussie rock band Goanna’s song Solid Rock to tie the episode together.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should execise caution if listening to this episode as it may contain the names of people who have passed away.
Check out a YouTube clip of Goanna performing Solid Rock on Countdown (an Australian TV music show of the 1970s and 1980s):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t94RBuiOgsA
Another great Aussie Song is Christine Anu’s version of My Island Home. The video is from the closing ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDyc-T2AYt4
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
In this episode we consider ten sometimes strange but true facts about Australia. These are:
- Australia really is populated by extremely dangerous animals that can and will kill you
- Australia was established as a penal colony
- The Prime Minister is missing
- Our strange ‘population’
- Giving women the vote
- How much can a koala bear?
- Australians love a good fence
- We eat our coat of arms
- We have a Queen - Australia is a Monarchy
For this episode I recommend thee movie Rabbit Proof Fence and also check out the Northern Territory News – it’s bound to have a croc story. Check out their web page at: http://www.ntnews.com.au/
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
AWP-07-Sugar Slaves and the Eurovision Song Contest
This deplorable part of Australian history is not widely known about. Between 1863 and 1904, some 62,000 South Sea Islanders were brought to Australia as indentured labour, and some say as slaves, to work on the cane fields in Queensland. It was on their backs that the Queensland sugar industry was built.
Despite the hardships, many Australians of South Sea Islander heritage have achieved a high profile in the community as civil rights activists, in politics and sport. We focus on one of the great Rugby League players of all time Mal Meninga.
Then we turn our attention to the Eurovision Cong Contest. Every year, around a million Australians tune into Eurovision. This year was special as Australian singer Jessica Mauboy was given the honour of performing at Eurovision as a guest artist.
Check out:
‘Sugar Slaves’ by Imelda Miller (2010) http://www.qhatlas.com.au/content/sugar-slaves
George Negus Tonight interview first broadcast on 13/09/2004. Transcript at: http://www.abc.net.au/gnt/history/Transcripts/s1197807.htm
The ABC article ‘A Form of Slavery’:
http://www.abc.net.au/federation/fedstory/ep2/ep2_people.htm
Jessica Mauboy’s appearance at Eurovision:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUsJi8nKsj0
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music courtesy of Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production.
AWP-06-Famous Chinese-Australians
In this episode we take a peak at four remarkable Chinese-Australians. These are:Billy Sing the decorated WWI war hero; Helene Chung the journalist and author; Dr Victor Chang the path breaking heart surgeon, whose life was so tragically cut short; and Penny Wong the Australian politician and former Government Minister.
For this episode I recommend Helene Chung’s book Ching Chong China Girl – from fruit shop to foreign correspondent. You can buy a copy by following the links from Helene Chung’s website: http://www.helenechung.com
Music by Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post-production and Mr Laszlo Montgomery for continued encouragement and advice.
Email me at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
AWP-05-The Chinese and the Gold Rush
Ni Hao!
The Gold Rushes of the 1850s bought the first large numbers of Chinese settlers to Australia. Before 1850 fewer than 50 or so Chinese migrants had come to Australia, but by the early 1860s this number had risen to 40,000. Many came out as bonded labourers having to work long hours mining for gold to pay off their fare.
The Chinese have had a great influence on Australian culture and of course cuisine. On the goldfields, however, they faced discrimination and violence. Two of the most infamous cases were the Lambing Flat Riots and the Buckland Riot.
This month’s recommendation is The Rise and Fall of China by the late Professor Richard Baum. The audio book may be downloaded from: http://www.audible.com/
Also check out:
-
Bill Richardson’s article on Gavin Menzies’ claims at: http://www.1421exposed.com/html/imaginography.html
-
Laszlo Montgomery’s China Histroy Podcast on the remarkable life of Admiral Zheng He at: http://www.1421exposed.com/html/imaginography.html
Music by Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
AWP Episode 4 - The Dunera Boys
On 10 July 1940, 2,542 detainees, all classified as ‘enemy aliens’, were placed on the HMT Dunera in Liverpool the United Kingdom and 57 days later they docked at Sydney Harbour. On board were over 2,000 male Jewish refugees who had fled Nazi Germany. Conditions on board were appalling and during the voyage these men were badly mistreated by their guards with many beaten.
Despite this, a large number of the ‘Dunera Boys’ remained in Australia, made a life for themselves and alos contributed greatly to Australian science, academia and culture.
One of the Sources used for this episode: Ken Inglis “From Berlin to the Bush” Monthly, August 2010. http://www.themonthly.com.au/monthly-essays-ken-inglis-berlin-bush--2638
The recommendation for this month is “A Bridge Too Far” by Cornelius Ryan.
Music by Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier, jet engine extraordinaire for post-production.
Email me at: jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Aussie Waves Podcast Episode 3:The Afghan Cameleers
This episode tells the story of the Cameleers who with their camels played a critical role in opening up inland Australia from the 1860s until the early 1900s. Their story is one of hardship and discrimination.
The invention of the internal combustion engine eventually secured the end of the Cameleer era. By the late 1920s there were almost no cameleers left plying the inland.
For more information on the cameleers go to http://www.cameleers.net/
Music by Dan-O at: http://www.danosongs.com/
Thanks to Ken Dampier for post production.
Episode 2 of the Aussie Waves Podcast with James Dampier. In this episode we look at 'Ten Pound Poms'.
After World War II around a million people migrated to Australia from the British Isles under an assisted migration scheme. Thr cost of the boat trip out to Australia was ten pound sterling. Hence the term 'Ten Pound Poms'. These people made a great contribution to Australia and their children continue to do so. While many made a great life for themsleves, it wasn't all beer and skittles.
This month's recommendation is the History of England Podcast by David Crowther. You can download from iTunes or at: http://historyofengland.typepad.com/
If you want to email me I can be contacted at jamesdampier.awp@gmail.com
Music by Dan-O at: danosongs.com
Welcome to The Aussie Waves Podcast by James Dampier. The Aussie Waves Podcast tells Australian history though the lens of all those peoples who have made the journey from other lands to call Australia home. Episode 1 is a short introductory episode.
Each week I will make a recommendation. This week's it is Laszlo Mongometry's China Histroy Podcast. Visit the CHP webssite at: http://chinahistorypodcast.com