Eureka Jack Mystery

Lore & Background

The Eureka Jack Mystery stems from an Argus report published the day after the Eureka Stockade battle, stating that both the Southern Cross flag and the Union Jack were captured by foot police. Private Hugh King's affidavit, sworn four days after the battle, mentions a flag 'like a union jack' taken from a prisoner. During committal hearings in December 1854, King testified that the flag was found rolled up in the breast of an unidentified prisoner.

Historian Peter FitzSimons has argued the two-flag report is not credible, citing no independent corroboration in other newspapers, letters, or diaries, and noting that eyewitness Charles Doudiet's contemporary watercolours show no Union Jack. Military historian Gregory Blake has proposed that the rebels may have flown two flags to assert British rights, or that the Union Jack was souvenired from the flagpole as the garrison fled.

Another theory suggests the Eureka Jack was an 11th-hour response to divided loyalties after Peter Lalor chose 'Vinegar Hill' as the rebel password, which associated the rebellion with Irish independence and caused many supporters to withdraw. The Art Gallery of Ballarat holds Doudiet's drawings, which show only the Southern Cross flag, and its director has stated these contemporary images should take precedence over newspaper reports.

Reader's Guide

The Eureka Jack Mystery highlights the challenges of reconstructing historical events from fragmentary and contradictory sources. The dispute centers on whether a Union Jack was flown beneath the Eureka Flag at the stockade, as claimed by an Argus report and Private Hugh King's affidavit, or whether this was an error, as argued by historians like Peter FitzSimons and supported by Charles Doudiet's contemporary drawings. The mystery has persisted since the 19th century, with commemorations and investigations continuing into the 21st century, including the 2014 release of 'Fall Back with the Eureka Jack' by the Australian Flag Society. The question remains unresolved, reflecting broader debates about the nature of the Eureka Rebellion and the reliability of historical evidence.

Did You Know?

• The Argus reported the day after the battle that both the Southern Cross flag and the Union Jack were captured by foot police.
• Private Hugh King's affidavit mentions a flag 'like a union jack' taken from a prisoner at the stockade.
• Charles Doudiet's contemporary watercolours of the flag ceremony and battle show no Union Jack.
• The Art Gallery of Ballarat holds Doudiet's drawings, which its director says should take precedence over newspaper reports.