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Analysis of the reportage of the day reveals Kelly’s actual last words, and explains how they were transmuted by one journalist into the catchy expression quoted as fact by many historians. It shows that the image of Kelly standing tall and defiant, saying ‘Such is life’ as the rope was placed around his neck, is nothing but a highly ...
- Stuart E Dawson
- Eras
- 2016
- 13
- The History
- Ned Kelly's Suit of Armour
- Trial and Execution
- Kelly's Death Mask
- The Jerilderie Letter
Quick facts
Ned Kelly: 1. was born sometime between December 1854 and June 1855, in Beveridge, Victoria. His precise birthdate is not known. 2. was the eldest son of eight children to John 'Red' Kelly and Ellen Quinn. 3. as a child saved another boy from drowning – the boy's family awarded him a green silk sash in recognition of his bravery. 4. was twice convicted and sentenced to prison in the 1870s, first for assault and then for receiving a stolen horse. 5. attacked Constable Fitzpatrick while he was...
How it all began
Kelly’s criminal life started early. In 1869, when he was 14, he was arrested for allegedly assaulting a Chinese man. In 1870 he was arrested again, this time for being a suspected accomplice of bushranger Harry Power. The assault charge was dismissed and the accomplice charges with Power were also dropped after witnesses could not identify Kelly. Power was also of the belief that Kelly had given him up in exchange for his freedom. It was not long before Kelly was in trouble with the law agai...
The Fitzpatrick Incident
After his release from gaol Kelly worked as timber cutter and in other labouring jobs. In April 1878, a police officer named Fitzpatrick went to the Kelly home to arrest Kelly’s brother Dan for stealing horses. Fitzpatrick was shot in the wrist by Ned Kelly, and their mother Ellen was arrested for aiding and abetting an attempted murder. Ellen was sentenced to three years' imprisonment by Judge Redmond Barry (who also sentenced Ned Kelly to death by hanging). Ned and Dan went into hiding, and...
Prior to the Glenrowan siege and Ned's ultimate capture – the Kelly gang began constructing the suits of armour from mouldboards, the thick metal parts of a farmer's plough. The suits allowed the gang to walk away unharmed from close-range shooting, but they also made the gang members – Ned in particular – seem larger, more intimidating; even ghost...
After his capture at Glenrowan Kelly was taken to Melbourne where he stood trial. He was found guilty and sentenced to execution by hanging by Judge Redmond Barry. He was hanged in the Old Melbourne Gaol on 11 November 1880. His execution was witnessed by various prison and police officials and by a number of journalists. His final words were repor...
In the 19th century, it was common for plaster 'death masks' to be made of the face and skull of executed criminals. At the time, these masks served several purposes. Firstly, death masks were used for phrenological analysis, whereby the shape of a person's head was studied to determine their character traits. Secondly, they were often put on displ...
There's no denying that Ned Kelly was a notorious criminal, feared around Victoria and beyond as a robber and murderer. However, while it is not known how many sympathisers Kelly had in his day, over time a national myth emerged that pitched Kelly as a victim of police harassment and an underdog with the courage to challenge the authorities. This p...
Sep 1, 2011 · October 1880: Ned Kelly faces trial and is sentenced to death. 11 November 1880: Ned Kelly is hanged. Two Melbourne newspapers report his last words as “Such is life”. 1929: The remains of prisoners, including Ned Kelly’s remains, transferred from Old Melbourne Gaol to Pentridge Prison.
Kelly Gang, widely used in senior and tertiary literature courses, a fictional ‘pamphlet’ at the end of the story represents Kelly’s last words as “Such is life”.4. The phrase has been tattooed on enthusiasts’ bodies and emblazoned on tee-shirts and car decals, often with an image of a pistol-toting Ned in armour.
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Ned Kelly. Edward Kelly (December 1854 [a] – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout with the police.
Ned Kelly's last words before he was hanged in the Melbourne Jail, November 11, 1880. If my lips teach the public that men are made mad by bad treatment, and if the police are taught that they may exasperate to madness men they persecute and ill treat, my life will not be entirely thrown away.
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On 11 November, Kelly, aged 25, mounted the gallows inside the Old Melbourne Gaol. Moments before he was executed, Kelly reportedly uttered his famous last words: "Such is life". A complicated legacy
