During the 19th century, defence was a major issue in Victoria as indeed it was in other
British colonies and the United Kingdom. To help defend themselves, self governing
colonies throughout the Empire enlisted local citizens to serve as part time soldiers on
a voluntary basis.
The Victorian government in 1859 - 60 took a calculated risk in adopting a Volunteer
Force to underpin the whole colonial defence scheme, particularly as the military
effectiveness of the citizen soldiers was questionable due to the lack of any real
discipline within the Force and the part time nature of the military service. Whilst the
savings which resulted (from using Volunteers rather than expensive Imperial troops)
were spent on building forts and purchasing ordnance to protect Port Phillip Bay, there
were other advantages to be gained from the government decision. It harnessed the
considerable groundswell of public patriotism and pride in the Empire to ensure the
development of a colonial society with strong links to Britain.
The Government also linked Volunteering, stability and patriotism together as part of
a less obvious agenda for the goldfields. In a period of lingering unrest only a few
short years after Eureka, the Volunteers provided a clear indication of government
power and yet another sign (along with the judicial system, education, language) of the
importance and expanse of British society. Should there be any civil unrest on the
goldfields, the local Corps were ideally suited to the role of civil control. On a number
of occasions, the Volunteer Corps were called out to maintain law and order.
The thesis studies a major group of over 5,100 men on the goldfields over two
decades, particularly with regard to their motives for joining the Volunteers and their
demographics such as ages, occupations, addresses, activities and the networks
between members. By addressing the Corps demographics it is possible to understand
the role played by the Volunteers in the development of goldfields society.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/236004 |
| Date | January 2003 |
| Creators | Marmion, Bob, victorianvolunteers@hotmail.com |
| Publisher | La Trobe University. School of Arts and Education |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | http://www.latrobe.edu.au/copyright/disclaimer.html), Copyright Bob Marmion |
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