Until recently it was common to have the Kelly story presented as a dilemma that couldn’t be resolved. Wherever you looked, whenever the Kelly story was mentioned, the question would almost always be asked “Ned Kelly: hero or villain?” If you wanted to believe he was a hero, you could make a case for it […]
Part Two of Morrissey’s latest book focusses on the detail of the attack at Stringybark creek, and the immediate aftermath. The accounts of what happened provided by McIntyre and by Kelly himself are well known and are repeated along with interesting commentary about the facts which debunk the Kelly myths and conspiracy theories about the […]
“I would rather have my eyes gouged out than read this book” Well known Kelly sympathiser and conspiracy theorist demonstrating his unquenchable thirst for knowledge and the truth.His FB page is dedicated to discrediting a Kelly book he admits to having never read! Writing this review of Doug Morrissey’s third and final book of […]
The trial of Ned Kelly took place in Melbourne over two days in late October 1880. Kelly was found guilty of the murder of Thomas Lonigan, and the presiding Judge, Redmond Barry sentenced him to death. In this post I am not going to describe the minutiae of the trial or dissect the legal mechanics […]
The final public act of the Kelly gangs outlawry is often called The Siege, a showdown between the Gang and the police made especially famous by the heavy suits of armour that the gang had been making in secret over previous months in readiness for the confrontation. It took place 150 miles north of Melbourne […]
Barely two months after they robbed the bank at Euroa of over £2000, the Kelly Gang went north over the Murray river into NSW and on Monday February 10th 1879, robbed the Jerilderie branch of the Bank of NSW of a similar amount. Once again, as at Euroa, instead of riding into town […]
Anyone who has read Frickes book and part One of my review might be wondering why I completely ignored its first four chapters. In those Chapters Fricke provides what he must have thought was relevant background detail, describing the origins of Melbourne itself, of Redmond Barrys early life in Ireland, the colonial milieu into which […]
“Ned Kelly as we all know, was no angel. But how much better was his nemesis, Sir Redmond Barry, who sentenced Ned to death and who succumbed to Kellys courtroom curse by dying within two weeks of the bushranger’s execution?” That question is asked on the back cover of “Neds Nemesis”, a small book written […]
Shortly after the police murders at Stringybark Creek, legislation was passed that made the Kelly gang outlaws, meaning they had no legal protections, and could be shot and killed on sight by anyone. Rewards were posted in ever increasing amounts for the supply of information that would lead to their capture, but nobody ever attempted […]
As recounted in the previous post, the Kelly Gang of four armed men bailed up two policemen at their Camp beside Stringybark Creek, killed the one who was armed almost immediately – Lonigan – spared the life of the unarmed one – McIntyre – and then laid in wait for the other two policemen in […]