‘Willing to fight to a man’: The First World War and Aboriginal activism in the Western District of Victoria

Abstract

In April 1916, 'The Age' ran a short story headed 'Aborigines in camp: Others willing to fight', announcing the presence of two 'full-blooded [sic] natives' among the soldiers at the Ballarat training camp.1 The men's presence blatantly contradicted popular interpretations of the 'Defence Act 1909' (Cth). Only men of 'substantial European origin' were eligible to enlist in the First Australian Imperial Force (AIF), although, in May 1917, the regulations were modified allowing 'half-caste' Aboriginal men entry. The Aboriginal men volunteering to fight in April 1916 were James Arden and Richard King, Gunditjmara men from the Lake Condah Aboriginal Reserve in the Victorian Western District. In the Condah area there was already an acceptance of Aboriginal men's participation in sport and labour; during the First World War, this extended to military service. The men's 'splendid physique' may have justified their acceptance into the military. James Arden was a 'well known rough rider' and Richard King had 'claimed distinction as a footballer and all-round athlete'. The journalist portrayed the spectacle of the Aboriginal men at the Ballarat training camp to promote white men's enlistment. Articles announcing Indigenous enlistments were published across south-eastern Australia during the 1916 and 1917 recruitment drives.