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Radio National: Peter Lalor's Bakery Hill speech

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Etching of Peter Lalor
Radio National: Peter Lalor's Bakery Hill speech

SUBJECTS:  Civics and Citizenship, History

YEARS:  5–6, 9–10


What events led to the attack on the Eureka Stockade (Eureka rebellion) on the Ballarat goldfield in 1854?

This audio clip examines the famous Bakery Hill speech by activist Peter Lalor.

Listen to Dr Anne Beggs-Sunter discuss the effect that the speech had on the assembled miners.

Find out why this is considered a key event in Australia's history.


Things to think about

  1. 1.What do you know about the events leading to the attack on the Eureka Stockade on the Ballarat goldfields on 3 December 1854? Why is this considered a key event in Australia's history?
  2. 2.What were the miners meeting about on Bakery Hill on 30 November 1854? Why did Lalor step forward to speak to the crowd at the meeting? Lalor says 'We swear by the Southern Cross to stand truly by each other, and fight to defend our rights and liberties'. What rights and liberties does he refer to?
  3. 3.The miners (diggers), were men of over 20 nationalities. What action did Lalor's speech (here reconstructed from various sources and performed by an actor) inspire these men to undertake? Why might Lalor have asked the diggers to swear an oath to be faithful to the Southern Cross? What did the Southern Cross stand for?
  4. 4.Create a timeline of the events that led to the attack on the Eureka Stockade on the Ballarat goldfield on 3 December 1854. How did this event lead to a change in miner's rights?



Date of broadcast: 2 Jul 2007


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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