Who Was Ned Kelly?

We’ve heard great news in recent weeks: Australia’s vaccination rate is on track to soon open its borders to international visitors again, after a nearly 2 year hiatus! While first priority goes to re-patriating Australian citizens stranded abroad, travelling down under for the rest of us should be a possibility again in 2022.

To commemorate this news, we’re sharing the story today of one of Australia’s most legendary citizens - the infamous Ned Kelly. Local guide Leanne is a direct descendent of one of the families who lived in Ned’s community in the late 1880s, and has true tales to tell about his infamy.

Who Was Ned Kelly?

Perhaps he is the only real Robin Hood that has ever lived. - Ian Jones – Kelly historian

Ned Kelly is a divisive character in Australia, even now, 140 years after his death. He is admired for standing against corruption in turbulent economic times, yet hated for leading a reign of serious crime in north east Victoria during the 1870s. He was taken alive in a blaze of gunfire at Glenrowan, before being tried and hung for his crimes in 1880. Larger than life and whatever your view, Kelly is a legend.

Kelly’s Early Life

My family and the Kellys were among the first farming settlers in Victoria in the 1840s. Edward (Ned) Kelly’s father was an ex-convict who was trying to make a new start and honest life as a farmer. Ned was born in Beveridge, near Melbourne, in 1854. Ned Kelly’s childhood home is currently being restored.

Ned’s family fell on hard times and were forced to move further north where land was cheaper but of poorer quality, thereby making it difficult to earn a living from agriculture. Ned’s father died in 1866, leaving Ned as head of the family at only 12 years old.

Bushranger Training

In 1868, the family finally settled at Eleven Mile Creek near Wangaratta. Ned was heavily influenced by bushranger Harry Power who took him into the Strathbogie Ranges and taught him survival skills and the fine art of horse and cattle stealing. From Powers Lookout, Kelly kept a watchful eye over the police and his sympathetic supporters in the King Valley below.

Marked Men

On 15 April, 1878, Ellen Kelly, Ned’s mother, was arrested after hitting a police officer for harassing her teenage daughter. Ellen was found guilty and jailed for three years. Ned was incensed at the injustice and vowed revenge. A few months later, a police party came looking for the now-Kelly Gang of four, were ambushed, and three officers shot dead. A reward of 500 pounds was offered for the capture or shooting of any of the gang members, no questions asked. They were marked men.

The Kelly Gang eluded the police for the next two years. They robbed banks in Euroa and Jerilderie, taking cash to disperse among their family and supporters and destroying farm mortgage documents. These actions earned them loyalty and the “Robin Hood” status because they justified their crimes as a means of helping the downtrodden.

The Last Stand

By mid 1880, Kelly knew it was only a matter of time before his life as a bushranger on the run would end. The Gang fashioned heavy body armour from plow mouldboards that could withstand gunfire at close range. Plans were made for a Last Stand at Glenrowan on 26-28 June 1880. A shoot-out with police commenced in the early hours of Sunday morning after the Gang released local hostages they had taken inside the Glenrowan Inn. My great-great grandfather was on his way to church, heard the shooting, and took a detour in his horse and buggy. The gunfire into the hotel was heavy. Ned drew the shooting away from the other Gang members by heading outside to directly face the police. They were astounded to see a giant-like figure coming towards them in the early morning fog with bullets pinging off his armour. He seemed invincible. Eventually, twenty-nine shots to the parts of his body not covered by the armour, brought him down. Ned Kelly was taken inside the Glenrowan train station for medical treatment before boarding a train to Melbourne

The Last Word

Ned was taken by train to the hospital at (Old) Melbourne Gaol to recover from his injuries. His trial, for the murder of one of the police officers at Stringybark Creek, was held in October 1880. The jury’s verdict was quick and decisive – Guilty! Ned was hung on 11 November 1880. His mother, in the same gaol for her assault crime, admonished her son to “Die like a Kelly.” Ned’s final words were supposedly “Such is life.” Both of these phrases are now part of the Australian vernacular. Ned Kelly spent his final days in the (Old) Melbourne Gaol Hospital and Cell Block

My great-great grandfather decided to move to Queensland soon after the Last Stand. There was a lot of ill feeling towards community members like himself, who considered the Kelly Gang to be thugs. Other descendents of both my family and the Kelly family continue to live and farm in the area today.

We can perhaps consider the recent opinion of a descendent of Constable Fitzpatrick, who was one of the police officers murdered at Stringybark Creek: “Ned Kelly possessed a great natural ability, and under favourable circumstances would have become a leader of men in good society, instead of the head of a gang of outlaws.”

Want to learn more about Ned Kelly from a descendent of one of the first farming settlers in Victoria? Plan a tour with Leanne once Australia re-opens to international travellers. And in the meantime, she also offers live virtual tours, including one on the Kelly Gang. After hearing her stories, you can decide for yourself whether Ned Kelly was a hero or a villain of the Australian outback.