Brisbane here you come! State Library is offering travel bursaries of up to $500 to attend the Q ANZAC 100 Indigenous Soldiers Forum and Workshop. There are five bursaries for individuals/organisations from across Queensland to attend the Indigenous Soldiers Forum and Workshop on Friday 22 June 2018 at State Library of Queensland in Brisbane. As … Read more
This week’s commemoration of the Battle of Beersheba highlights the service of men in the Light Horse Brigade. Since 2014 the State Library of Queensland has been researching Indigenous participants in the First World War and we find that many were selected to serve with Light Horse Regiments. Several served during the Gallipoli campaign, where … Read more
In May 1917, the Australian Government issued a Military Order (No. 200) which relaxed the Defence Act (1903) provisions around indigenous enlistment. A resounding ‘No’ vote in the 1916 conscription referendum, heavy losses on the Western Front, and a decreasing number of willing recruits, prompted authorities to consider other strategies to fulfill the recruiting quota. … Read more
May 1917 saw the lifting of restrictions for the enlistment of men who were of Aboriginal descent. It is timely that 100 years on, the QANZAC team at the State Library of Queensland will this month begin to showcase stories and portraits of Queensland’s Aboriginal servicemen of the First World War. Through the HistoryPin platform … Read more
It is estimated that 1,200 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women volunteered for the AIF during WW1. It should be remembered that this was a time when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were not recognised as Australian citizens and suffered under the strict policies and practices of the Protection Era. The Defence Act … Read more
There have been several blog posts relating to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander soldiers who were killed in action on the WW1 battlefields. This post attempts to list the known Indigenous soldiers who are listed on various Rolls of Honour, including AIATSIS’ Indigenous Australians at War website. Others may also appear on War Memorials in their … Read more
Guest Blogger: Tilly Geary Maitland Madge was born in March 1894 at Cooktown, Cape York to Ella an Indigenous woman and Richard Madge an immigrant from Devon, England. In 1905 possibly to prevent his son from being taken away to a government mission Richard Madge applied for Maitland to be exempted from the Aboriginals Protection … Read more
The theme for NAIDOC Week 2014 is ‘Serving Country: Centenary and Beyond’ which honours all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who have fought in defence of our country. This theme allows a focus on the untold histories and stories of Indigenous involvement in War, particularly in light of the centenary of WW1 … Read more
Indigenous Australian, Frederick TEARE, 5th Light Horse Regiment Trooper Frederick TEARE was born on Barwon Station, Qld in 1889. When he stepped forward in July 1917 to volunteer with the first AIF, he named is brother Jack (John) as his next of kin. After Fred enlisted at Mackay he traveled to Brisbane where he trained … Read more
Indigenous Australian, Edward James SMITH, 54th Infantry Battalion Edward SMITH was born in south western Queensland around 1895 to William Mark Smith and Margaret Edward Gordon. In April 1916 Smith was working as a shearer in the Brewarrina district, when he volunteered to serve with the first AIF. He left Sydney in August with the … Read more
