The 13 "traitors"
On 22 February, 1855, the government began the trials of the Eureka 13 in the Supreme Court before Victoria's Chief Justice. There had been several strange administrative stuff-ups beforehand, causing many to believe the trials would be called off. Nonetheless, here the authorities were on 22 February, about to get stuck in.
But, didn't I say there were 14 of them? Indeed, I did. But poor Henry Seekamp was tried earlier for sedition, as opposed to the treason charges the other 13 faced. His jury was unsympathetic and he was found guilty and imprisoned. He ended up serving several months, although he was let out half way through his sentence. His wonderful wife kept the paper going while he was in jail. There was a strong feeling among conservatives that they wanted Henry back as his wife was more trouble.
So, to the trials of the 13 actually accused of being treacherously involved at Eureka. These men were:
James Beattie, Irish, who when about to be murdered at the stockade by police trooper Rivell, Sergeant Riley heard his calls for mercy and took him prisoner;
James Campbell, a black man from Kingston, Jamaica, a British colony at the time;
Raffaello Carboni, Italian, involved in the Garibaldi actions in Italy, although not in quite as great a role as he claimed;
Thomas Dignum, born in Sydney;
Timothy Hayes, Irish, Chairman of the Ballarat Reform League;
John Joseph, the only American to reach trial because the US consul didn't regard it as his duty to represent black Americans, and who is one of a couple of men credited with firing the shot that eventually killed Captain Henry Wise;
John Manning, Irish, a Ballarat Times journalist originally from Ireland, who was in the stockade as a rebel, not a journalist, unlike the government-supporting Argus journalist who was shot by troopers for no reason outside the stockade, and who later died of his wounds;
William Molloy, Irish;
John Phelan, Irish, and a friend and business partner of the elected leader of the Eureka rebellion Peter Lalor;
Henry Reid, Irish;
Jacob Sorenson, Scottish;
Michael Tuohy, Irish;
Jan Vennik, Dutch, whose tent mate reckoned he was with him all day, and that he was arrested at the tent because he wore red trousers.
You will undoubtedly have noted that while the government was trying to whip up fears of "foreign" revolution, 10 of the 13 were British. Of these 1 was "Australian", from New South Wales, 1 was a black Jamaican, 1 was Scottish, and 7 were Irish. Interestingly (!), none were English.
Of the remaining 3, only one, Carboni, could possibly be called a professional revolutionary, and he had proved to be of significantly more talk than action. What's more, the work he did with the great Italian revolutionary Garibaldi seems principally to have been as a middle ranking clerk.
Of the other two, one was only there because he was black and the American consul hadn't bothered to weasel him out as he had done with the white Americans, and one may have been misidentified as having been in the stockade at all, although we're not too sure of the veracity of his mate's evidence.
But, didn't I say there were 14 of them? Indeed, I did. But poor Henry Seekamp was tried earlier for sedition, as opposed to the treason charges the other 13 faced. His jury was unsympathetic and he was found guilty and imprisoned. He ended up serving several months, although he was let out half way through his sentence. His wonderful wife kept the paper going while he was in jail. There was a strong feeling among conservatives that they wanted Henry back as his wife was more trouble.
So, to the trials of the 13 actually accused of being treacherously involved at Eureka. These men were:
James Beattie, Irish, who when about to be murdered at the stockade by police trooper Rivell, Sergeant Riley heard his calls for mercy and took him prisoner;
James Campbell, a black man from Kingston, Jamaica, a British colony at the time;
Raffaello Carboni, Italian, involved in the Garibaldi actions in Italy, although not in quite as great a role as he claimed;
Thomas Dignum, born in Sydney;
Timothy Hayes, Irish, Chairman of the Ballarat Reform League;
John Joseph, the only American to reach trial because the US consul didn't regard it as his duty to represent black Americans, and who is one of a couple of men credited with firing the shot that eventually killed Captain Henry Wise;
John Manning, Irish, a Ballarat Times journalist originally from Ireland, who was in the stockade as a rebel, not a journalist, unlike the government-supporting Argus journalist who was shot by troopers for no reason outside the stockade, and who later died of his wounds;
William Molloy, Irish;
John Phelan, Irish, and a friend and business partner of the elected leader of the Eureka rebellion Peter Lalor;
Henry Reid, Irish;
Jacob Sorenson, Scottish;
Michael Tuohy, Irish;
Jan Vennik, Dutch, whose tent mate reckoned he was with him all day, and that he was arrested at the tent because he wore red trousers.
You will undoubtedly have noted that while the government was trying to whip up fears of "foreign" revolution, 10 of the 13 were British. Of these 1 was "Australian", from New South Wales, 1 was a black Jamaican, 1 was Scottish, and 7 were Irish. Interestingly (!), none were English.
Of the remaining 3, only one, Carboni, could possibly be called a professional revolutionary, and he had proved to be of significantly more talk than action. What's more, the work he did with the great Italian revolutionary Garibaldi seems principally to have been as a middle ranking clerk.
Of the other two, one was only there because he was black and the American consul hadn't bothered to weasel him out as he had done with the white Americans, and one may have been misidentified as having been in the stockade at all, although we're not too sure of the veracity of his mate's evidence.