And McGill?
But what about McGill? He's said to have told people he needed to be in Ballarat town to protect the American Consul, and that's why he was absent at the time of the army's attack on the stockade. Yep, he was absent without leave. Apparently he claimed that protecting the Consul was his job. In which case it seems he may have had some sort of official or semi-official US government role. Were the remainders of the 200 also official or semi-official? If so, why? And were they also following McGill around Ballarat protecting the Consul? They would have been rather conspicuous, one would think.
Apparently Victoria and the US were not particularly happy with one another at the time, and the US was concerned about the safety of its citizens. But would the US government be so concerned as to send 200 armed men to hang around the goldfields? The likelihood was high the British officials, even being the incompetent, bullying brutes they were, would twig to something going on, and then all hell would break loose. And did the US government give that much of a toss about a bunch of very non-law abiding miners?
Even if it sent a single agent, would the US government send a 21 year-old barely trained army officer, and entrust him with a huge wad of cash? The story sounds rather bizarre, but history has many stories even more bizarre which are adequately supported by evidence.
And if McGill was trying to pull some sort of a trick, how did he know there was going to be an attack on Sunday morning? No-one else seems to have known, apart from the couple of officers and Rede doing the planning. Perhaps the US Consul had been able to warn him, but why? And how did he find out? Mind you, with the sort of money McGill reportedly had access to, spies would be very easy to buy.
Or, maybe McGill saw all the miners leaving to carouse in the pubs and brothels rather than awaiting what anyone who observed the English would know would be a violently retributive assault sooner rather than later. And perhaps he consequently and wisely decided not to waste himself or his men on what was already a lost cause. Perhaps the story of the weapons cache was his effort to save the remainder of his men without obviously ordering them out. If so, it didn't work.
But McGill's story gets mysteriouser and mysteriouser. Lalor afterwards said it was McGill who gave permission for most of the rebels to leave the stockade, without Lalor's knowledge. When had McGill returned to the stockade? Well, when indeed. This order was given, according to Lalor, while he was in bed and McGill was left in charge, when he was also claimed to be out lying in ambush. Ah, the old two places at once trick. Or, was it three places?
Except it seems he may have deserted two of his posts to, he claimed, go and protect the US Consul, despite the fact he was, according to Lalor, meant to be in charge while Lalor slept. And, of course, would therefore have been in charge at the time of the attack if he hadn't buggered off. When Lalor was woken by the shooting, he found his men leaderless and McGill mysteriously absent. Presuming he was there in the first place. Oh, and of course we don't know if Lalor was telling the truth, because he no doubt wanted to minimise public sense of his role in the causes of the defeat. Good grief!
Whatever the heck was going on, the usual story about Eureka says that Lalor made the appalling decision to allow McGill and his men ride out to ambush the supposed reinforcements, which may have been the artillery reinforcements expected by the army, or a concoction of somebody's, even perhaps Rede, although he didn't later mention having been responsible. There
Thinking of these artillery reinforcements, one source speculates that the US Consul may have warned them that miners were awaiting them in ambush. If this is true, who may have taken the message to the artillery? Could it have been McGill? Well, before we make any speculative accusations, it has to be made absolutely clear there is no evidence of such a betrayal of his mining comrades. In fact, there's damn all incontrovertible evidence about McGill at all.
In the same light, Vern accused McGill of accepting an £800 bribe to vacate the stockade, and if that's true, although goodness only knows how Vern would have found out after the battle, McGill may have been willing to ride out or send one of his men to ride out and warn the artillery. However, again, let's be quite clear that any of Vern's pronouncements have to be taken with a whole ocean-load of salt, he seems to have hated McGill, and no other sources made such specific claims.
One could go on and on. It's worth noting, however, although a number of miners accused McGill of treachery for his absence from the stockade during the battle, and Ballarat was not, therefore, the most welcoming place he could live, McGill spent most of the rest of his life in Ballarat, and showed no sign of having much cash, nor of any employment by the US government.
While Americans hid McGill (after the uprising McGill fled Ballarat on a coach, dressed as a woman, met Train, and was put on board a US ship anchored in the harbour), it's unknown if they did so at the behest of the US Consul. It was Train who took him directly to Hotham to seek clemency, which was apparently granted on the basis of his youth. What contacts Train had with the Consul are unknown.
McGill doesn't appear to have made any effort to return to the US over the remainder of his life. Sadly, he ended his days as a destitute drunk, although his wife, the main source of the "US Government agent" stories, was still defending him from those who in the 1890s were continuing to question his role in the whole affair.
Apparently Victoria and the US were not particularly happy with one another at the time, and the US was concerned about the safety of its citizens. But would the US government be so concerned as to send 200 armed men to hang around the goldfields? The likelihood was high the British officials, even being the incompetent, bullying brutes they were, would twig to something going on, and then all hell would break loose. And did the US government give that much of a toss about a bunch of very non-law abiding miners?
Even if it sent a single agent, would the US government send a 21 year-old barely trained army officer, and entrust him with a huge wad of cash? The story sounds rather bizarre, but history has many stories even more bizarre which are adequately supported by evidence.
And if McGill was trying to pull some sort of a trick, how did he know there was going to be an attack on Sunday morning? No-one else seems to have known, apart from the couple of officers and Rede doing the planning. Perhaps the US Consul had been able to warn him, but why? And how did he find out? Mind you, with the sort of money McGill reportedly had access to, spies would be very easy to buy.
Or, maybe McGill saw all the miners leaving to carouse in the pubs and brothels rather than awaiting what anyone who observed the English would know would be a violently retributive assault sooner rather than later. And perhaps he consequently and wisely decided not to waste himself or his men on what was already a lost cause. Perhaps the story of the weapons cache was his effort to save the remainder of his men without obviously ordering them out. If so, it didn't work.
But McGill's story gets mysteriouser and mysteriouser. Lalor afterwards said it was McGill who gave permission for most of the rebels to leave the stockade, without Lalor's knowledge. When had McGill returned to the stockade? Well, when indeed. This order was given, according to Lalor, while he was in bed and McGill was left in charge, when he was also claimed to be out lying in ambush. Ah, the old two places at once trick. Or, was it three places?
Except it seems he may have deserted two of his posts to, he claimed, go and protect the US Consul, despite the fact he was, according to Lalor, meant to be in charge while Lalor slept. And, of course, would therefore have been in charge at the time of the attack if he hadn't buggered off. When Lalor was woken by the shooting, he found his men leaderless and McGill mysteriously absent. Presuming he was there in the first place. Oh, and of course we don't know if Lalor was telling the truth, because he no doubt wanted to minimise public sense of his role in the causes of the defeat. Good grief!
Whatever the heck was going on, the usual story about Eureka says that Lalor made the appalling decision to allow McGill and his men ride out to ambush the supposed reinforcements, which may have been the artillery reinforcements expected by the army, or a concoction of somebody's, even perhaps Rede, although he didn't later mention having been responsible. There
Thinking of these artillery reinforcements, one source speculates that the US Consul may have warned them that miners were awaiting them in ambush. If this is true, who may have taken the message to the artillery? Could it have been McGill? Well, before we make any speculative accusations, it has to be made absolutely clear there is no evidence of such a betrayal of his mining comrades. In fact, there's damn all incontrovertible evidence about McGill at all.
In the same light, Vern accused McGill of accepting an £800 bribe to vacate the stockade, and if that's true, although goodness only knows how Vern would have found out after the battle, McGill may have been willing to ride out or send one of his men to ride out and warn the artillery. However, again, let's be quite clear that any of Vern's pronouncements have to be taken with a whole ocean-load of salt, he seems to have hated McGill, and no other sources made such specific claims.
One could go on and on. It's worth noting, however, although a number of miners accused McGill of treachery for his absence from the stockade during the battle, and Ballarat was not, therefore, the most welcoming place he could live, McGill spent most of the rest of his life in Ballarat, and showed no sign of having much cash, nor of any employment by the US government.
While Americans hid McGill (after the uprising McGill fled Ballarat on a coach, dressed as a woman, met Train, and was put on board a US ship anchored in the harbour), it's unknown if they did so at the behest of the US Consul. It was Train who took him directly to Hotham to seek clemency, which was apparently granted on the basis of his youth. What contacts Train had with the Consul are unknown.
McGill doesn't appear to have made any effort to return to the US over the remainder of his life. Sadly, he ended his days as a destitute drunk, although his wife, the main source of the "US Government agent" stories, was still defending him from those who in the 1890s were continuing to question his role in the whole affair.