Powerpoint about the Eureka Stockade

1. The Eureka Stockade

2. Diggers hated having to pay for gold licences and
believed that the cost was too high.
They had to pay whether they found any gold or
not.

3. Diggers licensing, Forest Creek, 1852

4. Diggers hated the way the licence inspectors treated them roughly.
Miners were often dragged off to prison or chained to trees if they
could not produce a licence. The Diggers called these inspections
“hunts”.

5. Diggers hated the way the licence inspectors treated them
roughly. Miners were often dragged off to prison or chained to
trees if they could not produce a licence. The Diggers called
these inspections “hunts”.

6. Even if they paid for a licence the miners felt they got little in
return for their fees – like roads to the goldfields, buildings
and drainage systems or protection against bushrangers.

7. In June 1854, Sir Charles Hotham arrived from
England to become the new governor of Victoria.
He visited the goldfields and decided that more
money was needed from licences. He increased
licence inspections to twice a week.

8. In October 1854 a miner – James Scobie - was killed in a
fight outside a hotel in Ballarat. The local miners believed
that the hotel owner James Bentley was the killer but
because he was friends with the local police he was let off.
The miners were so cross they started a riot and burnt down
the hotel.

9. In November 1854 a proper trial was held and the hotel
owner was found guilty of killing the miner by accident and
sent to prison for 3 years. Some minors were sent to prison
for a short time for burning down the hotel.

10. On the 11th of November 1854 a group of 10,000 diggers
called the Ballarat Reform League wrote a list of demands
to Governor Hotham:
• More rights for citizens
• No licence fees
• Release of the rioters
Hotham refused them all.

11. When Hotham refused all the demands, the miners started
to burn their licences. The licence hunts became even
rougher and lots of fighting started between the
government troops and the miners.

12. 30 November 1854 a huge meeting of about 12,000 diggers
was held at Bakery hill and Peter Lalor told the miners to
build a stockade and they swore and oath

13. “We swear by the Southern Cross to stand truly by each
other and fight to defend our rights and liberties”

16. On the 2 December a stockade was built and Peter Lalor
was chosen to command it.

17. The government decided the miners were a threat and
started to prepare for a battle.

18. Satudrday night 2 December – many miners went home
with only a few inside the stockade. They did not think the
troops would attack on a Sunday when people were
supposed to be at church.

19. Sunday 3 December 04:45 a.m. the government troops
attacked and the miners were outnumbered two to one.

21. The battle was over in 15-20 mins

23. but the troopers kept bayonetting and shooting wounded
diggers.

24. 22 miners and 4 soldiers were killed and many injured. Peter
Laylor was shot in the shoulder. He escaped but his left arm
had to be amputated.
The Eureka flag was torn down and any remaining miners were
arrested.

25. Eventually 13 miners were accused of High Treason and sent
to trial in Melbourne
The general public and the newspapers were on the side of
the miners – who they said were heroes. They did not like
how rough the troopers had been and there were calls for
Governor Hotham to be sent back to England.

26. The government delayed the trials in the hope everyone
would forget about it but in the end all the miners were found
not guilty.

27. The Eureka stockade showed that a group of ordinary
people could demand their rights and change the way
Australia was governed.

28. The Victorian miners were given the vote – for the first time in
Australian men who did not own land had a say in making
laws.

29. Gold licences were replaced with a Miner’s rights costing
$1

30. The End