12/06/2024
One of the first things that We can remember around 2 years old we believe.
Minyip,
1st October, 1895
Dear Sir, In connection with the wish of the president of the Ballarat Fine Arts and Public Gallery for the gift or loan of the flag that floated above the Eureka Stockade, I have much pleasure in offering loan of flag to the above association on condition that I may get it at any time I specify, or on demand of myself or my son, Arthur King. The main portion of the flag was torn along the rope that attached it to the staff, but there is still part of it around the rope so that I suppose it would be best to send the whole of it as it now is. You will find several holes, that were caused by bullets that were fired at my late husband in his endeavours to seize the flag at that memorable event:- Yours, &c.,
Mrs J. King (per Arthur King)[83]
In a letter to his father, Fred Riley recalled visiting Ballarat in 1912 and acquiring a fragment of the Eureka Flag that now resides at the National Library of Australia. He said:
"I went to the Art Gallery to see the flag the men fought under and strange to say no-one there seems to value it in the least. It is hung over a trestle affair exposed to the public. Well I got into conversation with the keeper, and persuaded him to give me a bit of the flag, and much to my surprise and astonishment he gave me a bit. I was with him when he tore it off. It seems wanton sacrilege, vandalism or something worse to tear it still he did and I am in possession of that piece."[84]
As a result of this practice the pieces of the flag in the art gallery collection represent only 69.01% of the original specimen.[85] In Labour History, Ballarat historian Anne Beggs-Sunter wrote that the art gallery displayed the flag "in various unsuitable ways" until it was put in a glass case alongside the sword of Captain Wise in October 1934, which she described as an "unlikely juxtaposition". When peace activist Egon Kisch visited the gallery the following year, he wrote that the Eureka monument "heroes and minions of the law, fighters and executioners ... on the same level".[86]
The Eureka Flag remained at the art gallery in continued obscurity "under a cloud of skepticism and conservative disapproval."[87] After being told about it by his friend Rem McClintock, in December 1944, Sydney journalist Len Fox, who worked with the Communist Party media, published an article about the flag during his investigation that followed on from Withers'. He entered into correspondence with the King family, the art gallery, and Ballarat local historian Nathan Spielvogel. Fox was sent a piece of the flag by the art gallery in March 1945, along with a drawing. Spielvogel offered to assist, although he had reasons to doubt the authenticity of the flag held by the art gallery. Later that year, Fox visited Ballarat to inspect the flag, and the custodians gave him two more pieces.[88] Fox self-published a booklet in 1963 that advanced his argument as to why the flag at the art gallery was authentic.[89] It was probably due to Fox's interest that in 1963 the flag was transferred to a safe at the art gallery.[90] Eventually, the librarian discovered that the safe had been broken into; however, the robber left the flag that was still there wrapped in brown paper. At this point, it was stored in a vault at the National Bank. The final irrefutable validation of its authentication occurred when sketchbooks of Canadian Charles Doudiet were put up for sale at a Christie's auction in 1996. Two sketches, in particular, show the design is the same as the tattered remains of the original flag that were first put on public display at the art gallery in 1973, being unveiled during a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.[91][note 4]
The art gallery had received a $1,000 grant from the state government to cover half the estimated cost of repairing and mounting the flag.[94] Ballarat seamstress Val D'Angri did the conservation work in May 1973. Along with a pin, there was a "W" mark discovered at the fly end of the cross that D'Angri believes may be the signature of her great-great-grandmother Anastasia Withers.[95] Later additions to the gallery placed the flag in a dedicated shrine in the building's centre, surrounded by Eureka-related works.[86]
In 2001, legal ownership of the Eureka Flag was transferred to the art gallery. There was a second extensive restoration of the specimen undertaken in 2011 by leading textile conservation specialists Artlab Australia. The City of Ballarat had received a permit from Heritage Victoria to proceed with the conservation work. A full assessment of the state of the flag was commissioned. The report compiled by Artlab described the flag as "arguably the most important historical textile in Australia." The old backing cloth was replaced with state-of-the-art materials that are less prone to deterioration, along with the timber backing board. A new, purpose-built, low-light, temperature-controlled display case was also constructed.[96][97] The art gallery then loaned the flag to the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka (MADE) in 2013. When MADE closed in 2018, the interpretive centre came under the management of the City of Ballarat.[98] The flag was retained as the centrepiece of a visitor experience now branded as the Eureka Centre Ballarat while remaining part of the art gallery collection.[99]
Other notable fragments
Over the years, a number of additional pieces of the Eureka Flag have been entrusted to the Art Gallery of Ballarat and other organisations or sold at auction. Martha Clendinning claimed to have a piece of the Eureka Flag that was given to her by doctor Alfred Carr. Clendinning's daughter married Robert Rede, who was the Ballarat gold commissioner at the time of the battle. In his 1896 article, Withers states that these fragments were sent to him by Rede. They were compared to the pieces loaned to the art gallery in 1895. After a minute comparison by Mr Grainger of Sunnyside Woollen Mills, they were adjudged to be the same.[72][100] A small piece of blue material was later donated to the Melbourne Public Library by Mr A.S. Kenyon, who died in 1943. Along with the fragment was a written statement signed by a Mrs Clendinning that reads, "Piece of the flag set up in the Stockade. Given to me by Dr Alfred Carr immediately after it was taken."[101]
Before it was given to the Ballarat Historical Society, the Bradford fragment was stored for many years in a leather pouch containing a note written by J. Bradford. It reads: "This piece of cloth is part of the original Eureka Stockade Flag. It was given to me by my father Wm. Bradford who had it given to him by his father Wm. Bradford Snr, who fought for freedom at Ballarat, Victoria, in 1854."[101][102] On his 1963 visit to Ballarat, Frank Cayley compared the Bradford fragment to the pieces held by the art gallery. He found they matched in both texture and colour. Acquiring a small sample of the Bradford fragment Cayley then compared this to the piece held by the Melbourne Public Library. Apart from some variations in colour due to fading he could detect no difference.[103] Cayley shared his findings with fellow Eureka investigator Len Fox. They organised for experts from the School of Textile Technology at the University of New South Wales to test a piece of the Bradford fragment and a piece from the art gallery in Fox's possession. On 19 November 1963, the report was released, concluding that the two fragments "are most probably from the same source."[104]
The Billings fragment was discovered in Kybram, Victoria, inside a compartment of a sea chest that had once belonged to J.D. Williams, the camp surgeon in Ballarat in December 1854. Williams obtained a piece of the Eureka Flag as a souvenir while taking care of the wounded after the battle. His descendants donated it to the art gallery in 1993.[105]
A piece of the Eureka Flag was placed in a safe at St Patrick's Christian Brothers College in Ballarat in the early 20th century. On 21 June 1996, it was donated to the art gallery.[106] It was then loaned to the Royal Australian Navy when HMAS Ballarat was commissioned and went on the warship's maiden voyage.[107]
The five tiny pieces that were given to Len Fox during his investigation were returned to the gallery by Professor Anne-Beggs Sunter in January 1997.[108]
Evelyn Healy was sent a fragment of the Eureka Flag by her mother, Myrtle Shaw. Healy was active with the Communist Party, and the party wanted a replica of the flag for a May Day parade in 1938. Healy believed the pieces of the Eureka Flag at the art gallery were genuine, and Shaw spoke to the gallery's custodian William Keith. He gave Shaw a snippet along with some rough sketches and a written description. Healy then forwarded these materials to party leader Rem McClintock. When Healy asked for it back, she was told it was still needed and then that it was lost. In July 1997, McClintock's son Alex tried to sell a piece of the Eureka Flag through Christie's auction house in Melbourne, with a reserve price of $10,000. It was the same piece Len Fox mentioned in his 1986 Overland article. Healy obtained an injunction blocking the sale on the grounds that she was the lawful owner. A lengthy court case ensued, and her claim was eventually upheld. After the fragment was returned, she gave it to the art gallery in March 1998.[49]
In 2017, the Victorian Trades Hall Council purchased a fragment of the Eureka Flag through the Melbourne auction house Mossgreen for $32,000. The seller was Adrian Millane, who inherited a piece of the flag that was reportedly handed to his great-grandfather Francis Hanlon by Peter Lalor. The auction house subsequently went bankrupt with $12 million in debt. Millane claimed he was still owed $20,000 and that he intended to use the funds to support an orphanage in Bengal, India.[109] In 2013, Millane loaned his fragment to the former Museum of Australian Democracy, where it was displayed for the 159th anniversary of the battle.[110]
Customary use
Since the 1854 miner's revolt, the Eureka Flag, born out of adversity, has gained wider notability in Australian culture as a symbol of democracy, egalitarianism, trade unionism, white nationalism, and a general-purpose symbol of protest.[111][112] Whilst some Australians view it as a symbol of nationality,[113][114] it has more often been employed by historical societies, re-enactors and trade unions such as the former Builders Labourers Federation. More recently, far-right organisations and political parties have adopted it, including the Australia First Party, National Action, and some neo-Nazi groups,[115] much to the frustration of more established socialist and progressive claimants. Depending on their political persuasion, these groups either see it as representative of the miner's efforts to free themselves from political or economic oppression[116] or their sentiments favouring restricting non-white immigration and the eventual 1855 Chinese poll tax.[117][118]
Construction union boss Kevin Reynolds, and the Northern Territory's nomination for Australian of the Year, Warwick Thornton, both raised fears in 2010 that the Eureka Flag could "become a swastika-like symbol of racism." Professor Greg Craven said that 20 years prior, the Eureka Flag rivalled the official Australian flag. However, it had become so tainted through appearing on bumper stickers with racist slogans that "The Southern Cross is becoming a symbol not of unity but of exclusion." According to Craven, the union movement has also politicised the Eureka Flag as "The Eureka Stockade was not exclusively about the working class but also the middle class."[118][119]
In a 2013 survey about national symbols, McCrindle Research found the Eureka Flag eliciting a "mixed response with 1 in 10 (10%) being extremely proud while 1 in 3 (35%) are uncomfortable with its use."[120]
The City of Unley refused a request to fly the Eureka Flag at the local civic centre to commemorate the 166th anniversary of the Eureka Stockade in 2020. Councillor Jennifer Bonham noted the flag's place in the "struggle for democracy." However, she said it must be acknowledged that "the Chinese were persecuted on the goldfields" and "The Eureka flag can also be a symbol of that persecution." Councillor Jane Russo said that it had become symbolic of "white supremacy."[118]
Late 19th century – present
here is an oral tradition that Eureka Flags were on display at a seaman's union protest against the use of cheap Asian labour on ships at Circular Quay in 1878.[121] In August 1890, a crowd of 30,000 protesters gathered at the Yarra Bank in Melbourne under a platform draped with the flag in a show of solidarity with maritime workers.[122][123][124] A similar flag was flown prominently above the camp at Barcaldine during the 1891 Australian shearers' strike.[125]
After the first world war and the Great Depression, the Eureka Flag once again returned to the public domain, being adopted by the New Guard[126] and "the radical left wing of the Australian Labor Party and the Communist Party" in the 1930s.[127]
In 1948 a procession of 3,000 members of the Communist affiliated Eureka Youth League and allied unionists led by a Eureka Flag bearer marched through the streets of Melbourne on the occasion of the 94th anniversary of the Eureka Stockade.[128] The same year, headlines in the Melbourne Argus stated "Police in serious clash with strikers" and "Battle over Eureka flag" following a violent clash between about 500 strikers and police during a procession on St Patrick's Day in Brisbane. The marchers were singing "It's a Great Day for the Irish" and "Advance, Australia Fair" whilst carrying shamrock-shaped anti-government placards and a coffin with the label "Trade Unionism." Readers were also told that: "Conspicuous in the procession was a Eureka flag, a replica of the flag Peter Lalor's followers carried at the Eureka Stockade in 1854." It was reported that two protesters were injured and five arrested "In a fight for the Eureka flag" where the "strikers resisted, and blows were struck. Police, caught up in the melee, drew batons and used them."[129]
The Eureka Flag was also used by supporters of Gough Whitlam after he was dismissed as prime minister.[130][131] In 1979, the Northcote City Council began flying the Eureka Flag from its Town Hall to mark the 125th anniversary of the uprising, and continued until at least 1983.[132][133]
During a 1983 royal tour, a republican supporter informally presented a small Eureka Flag to Diana, Princess of Wales, who did not recognise it. The event prompted a cartoon of the royal couple with Charles, Prince of Wales, observing "Mummy will not be pleased."[134]
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/Domain_19751124.jpg/220px-Domain_19751124.jpg
Australian Labor Party policy launch before a huge crowd in the Sydney Domain on 24 November 1975. Eureka Flags can be seen in the crowd and on the tribune.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/NSW_Parliament_Building%2C_Macquarie_Street%2C_Sydney.JPG/220px-NSW_Parliament_Building%2C_Macquarie_Street%2C_Sydney.JPG
NSW Parliament Building, Macquarie Street, Sydney, 3 December 2004.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Eureka_Flag_flying_on_HMAS_Ballarat_October_2021.jpg/220px-Eureka_Flag_flying_on_HMAS_Ballarat_October_2021.jpg
HMAS Ballarat flying the Eureka Flag and other flags in 2021.
To commemorate the 2004 Eureka sesquicentenary, the Eureka Flag flew at every state and territory parliament; the federal senate; City Hill, Canberra; and from the Sydney Harbour Bridge.[135][136] Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson made the flag a federal election issue that year. He was opposed to flying it at Parliament House, Canberra to mark the occasion, stating: "I think people have tried to make too much of the Eureka Stockade ... trying to give it a credibility and standing that it probably doesn't enjoy."[137]
The Eureka Flag has been adopted by a variety of civic and political organisations, including the City of Ballarat[138] and Federation University,[139] which use elements or stylised versions of the flag in their official logo. Several trade unions use it, including the CFMEU and ETU.[140] It is also often informally flown on-site by crews on building and other construction sites as a symbol of the construction, forestry, maritime, mining and energy unions to associate themselves with the values associated with the stockade, that of fairness, equality and a struggle against authority.[141] The flag flies permanently over the Melbourne Trades Hall[142] and the Ballarat Trades Hall.[116] The Prospectors and Miners Association of Victoria use it as their official flag.[143] In 2016 it was formally incorporated into the official logo of the Australia First Party.[141]
Sporting clubs have also made use of the Eureka Flag, including the Melbourne Victory and Melbourne Rebels. Melbourne Victory supporters adopted it as a club flag for the foundation year in 2004. However, it was subsequently briefly banned at A-League games by the Football Federation of Australia but rescinded in the face of criticism from the Victorian general public. The Football Federation of Australia claimed that the ban was "unintentional."[144]
HMAS Ballarat occasionally flies the Eureka Flag from its mainstay alongside the Australian White Ensign.[135][145]
In response to the use of the Eureka Flag at violent protests in recent times, efforts have been made by some, like Federal Labor MP Catherine King, to reclaim the Eureka Flag.[146]
Standardised design
The standardised Eureka Flag most often seen in circulation today is an enhanced and different version from the original specimen with blue key lines around each of five equal stars. It is frequently made in the proportions of 20:13.[147] The Eureka Flag features the stars of the Southern Cross, a constellation more visible to viewers in the Southern Hemisphere. The stars are arranged differently from the astronomical alignment of the Southern Cross. The "middle" star (Epsilon Crucis) in the constellation is off-centre and near to the edge of the "diamond." In contrast, the Eureka Flag features a star in the centre of the white cross.
Eureka Flag Bills
A bill was tabled in federal parliament on 23 March 2004 by Victorian Senator Gavin Marshall to "amend the Flags Act 1953 to recognise the Eureka Flag as an official flag of Australia, and for related purposes."[148] A mirror bill had previously been introduced into the House of Representatives by the member for Ballarat Catherine King in 2003.
First floated by The Eureka Stockade Memorial Trust in 1997, the proposed amendment was moved ahead of the impending sesquicentenary of the Eureka Stockade in 2004. It sought to officially recognise the standardised design and put the legality of flying the Eureka Flag from public buildings beyond all doubt, with petitions presented to both houses of parliament calling for such recognition under the Flags Act.[149] It was claimed in parliament that former immigration minister Al Grassby had attested to a precedent where the Eureka Flag was flown from the old parliament house in 1972.[150]
The Australian Labor Party indicated support for the move, with opposition leader Mark Latham saying he was: "pledged to fly it [the Eureka Flag] above [Parliament House] Canberra if he became Prime Minister."[151]
Derivatives and variants
The Lambing Flat riots were a series of violent anti-Chinese demonstrations in the Burrangong region in New South Wales, Australia. The miner's local vigilante committee was known as the Miner's Protection League. On 30 June 1861, seven hundred miners led by a brass band went about sacking the grog-shops, which were havens for thieves before turning their attention to the Chinese section. Most fled, but two Chinese who stayed to fight were killed and ten others badly injured. There were further incidents throughout 1861, with the Chinese who returned targeted. Another large gathering was held on Bastille Day, 14 July. The demonstrators were eventually read the riot act and had shots fired over their heads before being dispersed by mounted troopers. The trouble gradually subsided as more soldiers and marines were sent from Sydney. In 1870 the town was renamed in honour of former New South Wales governor, Sir John Young.[117]
The Lambing Flat banner was painted on a tent flap, now on display at the Lambing Flat Museum. It bears a Southern Cross superimposed over a St Andrew's cross with the inscription "ROLL UP. ROLL UP. NO CHINESE."[152] It has been claimed that the banner, which served as an advertisement for a public meeting that presaged the Lambing Flat riots, was inspired by the Eureka Flag.[153]
Oath swearing scene from the 1949 motion picture Eureka Stockade featuring the star-spangled Eureka flag.
According to Whitney Smith, writing in 1975, the Eureka Flag "perhaps because of its association with labour riots and a time of political crisis in Australian history, was long forgotten. A century after it was first hoisted, however, Australian authors began to recognise that it had been an inspiration, both in spirit and design, for many banners up to and including the current official civil and state flags of the nation."[153]
Before the Eureka Flag went on permanent display to the public, it was often featured with no cross and free-floating stars as per the Australian national flag, such as in the 1949 motion picture Eureka Stockade starring Chips Rafferty.[154]
There is also a variant based on the red flag that is occasionally seen.[116]
Other Eureka flags
During his investigation in the late nineteenth century, William Withers found two women, Mrs Morgan and Mrs Oliver, who claimed to have sewn a starry flag at the time, but "they could not positively identify it as the one flown at Eureka."[72] John Wilson recalls that the Eureka Flag was taken down by Thomas Kennedy at sundown on 2 December 1854 and stored in his tent "for safe keeping."[155] However, when the government forces arrived in the early hours of the following day, it was already flying above the stockade. Frank Cayley has concluded that: "Wilson's flag was undoubtedly one of several flags, in various designs, that were made at Eureka."[156] His colleague and fellow Eureka investigator, Melbourne journalist Len Fox, has also stated: "Flags were popular on the goldfields, and it may well be that among the diggers at Ballarat were smaller (and different) versions of the Eureka flag."[157]
Concerning the provenance of the star-spangled Eureka Flag, Withers also interviewed police officer John McNeil, who recalled a meeting at Bakery Hill where Robert McCandlish "unbuttoned his coat and took out and unfurled a light blue flag with some stars on it, but there was no cross on it."[72]
Eureka Jack mystery
Main article: Eureka Jack Mystery
See also: Chartism and the Eureka Rebellion, Loyalism and the Eureka Rebellion, Republicanism and the Eureka Rebellion, and Nationalities at the Eureka Stockade
Further information: Hugh King (soldier)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Argus_Eureka_Jack_report_4_December_1854.jpg/220px-Argus_Eureka_Jack_report_4_December_1854.jpg
Extract of Argus report, 4 December 1854.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e9/Hugh_king.jpg/220px-Hugh_king.jpg
Extract of the affidavit by Hugh King, 7 December 1854.
Since 2012 various theories have emerged, based on the Argus account of the battle dated 4 December 1854, and an affidavit sworn by Private Hugh King three days later as to a flag being seized from a prisoner detained at the stockade, that a Union Jack, known as the Eureka Jack may also have been flown by the rebels. Readers of the Argus were told that: "The flag of the diggers, 'The Southern Cross,' as well as the 'Union Jack,' which they had to hoist underneath, were captured by the foot police."[8]
In his Eureka: The Unfinished Revolution, Peter FitzSimons has stated:
"In my opinion, this report of the Union Jack being on the same flagpole as the flag of the Southern Cross is not credible. There is no independent corroborating report in any other newspaper, letter, diary or book, and one would have expected Raffaello Carboni, for one, to have mentioned it had that been the case. The paintings of the flag ceremony and battle by Charles Doudiet, who was in Ballarat at the time, depicts no Union Jack. During the trial for high treason, the flying of the Southern Cross was an enormous issue, yet no mention was ever made of the Union Jack flying beneath."[158]
However, Hugh King, who was a private in the 40th (the 2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot, swore in a signed contemporaneous affidavit that he recalled:
"... three or four hundred yards a heavy fire from the stockade was opened on the troops and me. When the fire was opened on us we received orders to fire. I saw some of the 40th wounded lying on the ground but I cannot say that it was before the fire on both sides. I think some of the men in the stockade should – they had a flag flying in the stockade; it was a white cross of five stars on a blue ground. – flag was afterwards taken from one of the prisoners like a union jack – we fired and advanced on the stockade, when we jumped over, we were ordered to take all we could prisoners ..."[159]
During the committal hearings for the Eureka rebels, there would be another Argus report dated 9 December 1854 concerning the seizure of a second flag at the stockade in the following terms:
"The great topic of interest to-day has been the proceedings in reference to the state prisoners now confined in the Camp. As the evidence of the witnesses in these cases is more reliable information than that afforded by most reports, I shall endeavor to give you an abstract of it."[160]
Hugh King was called upon to give further testimony live under oath in the matter of Timothy Hayes. In doing so went into more detail than in his written affidavit, as the report states that the flag like a Union Jack was found:
"... rollen up in the breast of a[n] [unidentified] prisoner. He [King] advanced with the rest, firing as they advanced ... several shots were fired on them after they entered [the stockade]. He observed the prisoner [Hayes] brought down from a tent in custody."[160]
Military historian and author of Eureka Stockade: A Ferocious and Bloody Battle, Gregory Blake, has conceded the rebels may have flown two battle flags as they were claiming to be defending their British rights. Blake leaves open the possibility that the flag being carried by the prisoner had been souvenired from the flag pole as the routed garrison was fleeing the stockade. Once taken by Constable John King, the Eureka Flag was placed beneath his tunic in the same fashion as the suspected Union Jack was found on the prisoner.[70] In 1896, Sergeant John McNeil, who was at the battle, recalled shredding a flag at the Spencer Street Barracks in Melbourne at the time. He claimed it was the Eureka Flag that he had torn down;[161] however, Blake believes it may have been the mystery Eureka Jack.[162] Another theory is that the Eureka Jack was an 11th-hour response to divided loyalties in the rebel camp.[163][note 5] The oath swearing ceremony in Eureka Stockade (1949) features the star-spangled Eureka Flag with the Union Jack beneath.[166] In The Revolt at Eureka, part of a 1958 illustrated history series for students, the artist Ray Wenban would remain faithful to the first reports of the battle with his rendition featuring two flags flying above the Eureka Stockade.[167]
In 2013 the Australian Flag Society announced a worldwide quest and a $10,000 reward for more information and materials relating to the Eureka Jack mystery.[163] The AFS also released a commemorative artwork, "Fall Back with the Eureka Jack" illustrating Gregory Blake's theory for the 160th anniversary of the battle in 2014.[168]
See also
-- Australian Flag Society https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Flag_Society
-- Republicanism and the Eureka Rebellion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republicanism_and_the_Eureka_Rebellion
-- Silver fern flag https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_fern_flag
-- Southern Cross Flag https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Cross_Flag
Notes
According to measurements made during the 1973 restoration, only seven per cent of the left star remains with about 130 square centimetres (20 sq in) missing. Five per cent of the top star remains with 130 square centimetres (20 sq in) missing. This star is positioned 18 centimetres (7.1 in) from the fly end of the flag and 20 degrees left of vertical. The top star has a number of irregularities and is missing 200 square centimetres (31 sq in). It also features several holes and stains. The bottom star is seventy degrees to the right of vertical and is mainly intact with two areas of about 20 square centimetres (3.1 sq in) missing, along with a number of smaller holes. Unlike the woollen field, the cotton material used for the cross is in a state of advanced decay. The horizontal arm has large holes along with brittle threads and dishevelled edges.[5]
Anastasia Withers was first mentioned in connection with the Eureka Flag in a 1986 article entitled "Women and the Eureka Flag" published in Overland.[38] The author Len Fox had received correspondence from Val D'Argri who had been informed by an aunt, May Flavell, that her great grandmother was one of three women responsible for sewing the Eureka Flag. In 1992 Fox also named Anne Duke for the first time on the basis of oral tradition preserved by the organisation Eureka's Children, which was formed in 1988 by descendants of those that took part in the Eureka Rebellion. Anastasia Hayes was only put forward in 2000 by her descendant Anne Hall, a Children of Eureka committee member.[39] In 1889, William Withers interviewed Anastasia Hayes for his 1870 book on the history of Ballarat. Hayes recalled being present when Peter Lalor's arm was amputated in the St Alipius presbytery, although she apparently mentioned nothing about the Eureka Flag.[40]
Ballarat militaria consultant Paul O'Brien has carried out an expert analysis of the Cayley sketches concluding that: "This sketch, once in the collection of the Ballarat Historical Society, location now unknown, was originally displayed with another sketch representing the 'Eureka' or 'King' flag and was labelled 'Found in a Tent After the Affair at Eureka'. The sketches were first reproduced in Frank Cayley's book Flag of Stars.[44] The assumption made in the accompanying text was that the sketch was a draft design for the making of the flag. While this assumption is quite plausible, it would seem more likely that the sketch was made after the capture of the flag. Note the tattered leading edge and indistinct star. The number of points to the stars represented also does not tally with those on the surviving 'King' flag. This sketch was, perhaps, drawn after the flag was 'brought in triumph' to the government camp and while it was being savaged by eager souvenir hunters. The two sketches have been drawn by different hands, and many details of design differ considerably (notably the hoist edge and number of star points). The size of the flag in the sketch with figure does not tally with the enormous size of the 'King' flag, and is probably a later, not contemporary, representation."[45]
One notable inconsistency in Carboni's account is that he describes the Eureka Flag as made of silk,[63] and the cover of the first edition has an illustration that features diamond-shaped stars. These incorrect descriptions plagued early Eureka investigators, with the fragments held by the Art Gallery of Ballarat being of cotton and mohair construction.[92] However, the blue ground is said to have "a high sheen that gives a silk-like appearance."[93]
Peter Lalor made a blunder by choosing "Vinegar Hill" – the site of a battle during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 – as the rebel password. This led to waning support for the Eureka Rebellion as news that the issue of Irish independence had become involved began to circulate.[164][165]
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eureka_Flag
External links
-- Art Gallery of Ballarat
http://www.balgal.com/?id=eureka
-- Eurekapedia
http://eurekapedia.org/Eureka_Flag
-- Eureka Centre Ballarat
https://www.eurekacentreballarat.com.au/
-- He Found and Raised Eureka's Trampled Flag: a Tribute to Len Fox R.D. Walshe
https://web.archive.org/web/20051125094537/http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/lab/86/walshe.html
The Eureka Flag was flown at the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which took place on 3 December 1854 at Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. It was the culmination of the 1851–1854 Eureka Rebellion on the Victorian goldfields. Gold miners protested the cost of mining permits, the officious way the colo...
