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Mrs Kelly: The astonishing life of outlaw Ned Kelly's mother
The astonishing life of Ned Kelly's mother
While we know much about the iconic outlaw Ned Kelly, his mother Ellen Kelly has been largely overlooked by Australian writers and historians - until now, with this vivid and compelling portrait by Grantlee Kieza, one of Australia's most popular biographers.
When Ned Kelly's mother, Ellen, arrived in Melbourne in 1841 aged nine, British convict ships were still dumping their unhappy cargo in what was then known as the colony of New South Wales. By the time she died aged ninety-one in 1923, having outlived seven of her twelve children, motor cars plied the highway near her bush home north of Melbourne, and Australia was a modern, sovereign nation.
Like so many pioneering women, Ellen, the wife of a convict, led a life of great hardship. Born in Ireland during a time of entrenched poverty and sectarian violence, she was a mother of seven when her husband died after months in a police lock-up. She lived through famine and drought, watched her babies die, listened through the prison wall while her eldest son was hanged and saw the charred remains of another of her children who'd died in a shoot-out with police. One son became Australia's most infamous (and ultimately most celebrated) outlaw; another became a highly decorated policeman, an honorary member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and a worldwide star on the rodeo circuit. Through it all, 'the notorious Mrs Kelly', as she was dubbed by Victoria's Assistant Police Commissioner, survived as best she could, like so many pioneering women of the time.
By bestselling biographer Grantlee Kieza, Mrs Kelly is the astonishing story of one of Australia's most notorious women and her wild family, but it's also the story of the making of Australia, from struggling colony and backwater to modern nation.
While we know much about the iconic outlaw Ned Kelly, his mother Ellen Kelly has been largely overlooked by Australian writers and historians - until now, with this vivid and compelling portrait by Grantlee Kieza, one of Australia's most popular biographers.
When Ned Kelly's mother, Ellen, arrived in Melbourne in 1841 aged nine, British convict ships were still dumping their unhappy cargo in what was then known as the colony of New South Wales. By the time she died aged ninety-one in 1923, having outlived seven of her twelve children, motor cars plied the highway near her bush home north of Melbourne, and Australia was a modern, sovereign nation.
Like so many pioneering women, Ellen, the wife of a convict, led a life of great hardship. Born in Ireland during a time of entrenched poverty and sectarian violence, she was a mother of seven when her husband died after months in a police lock-up. She lived through famine and drought, watched her babies die, listened through the prison wall while her eldest son was hanged and saw the charred remains of another of her children who'd died in a shoot-out with police. One son became Australia's most infamous (and ultimately most celebrated) outlaw; another became a highly decorated policeman, an honorary member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and a worldwide star on the rodeo circuit. Through it all, 'the notorious Mrs Kelly', as she was dubbed by Victoria's Assistant Police Commissioner, survived as best she could, like so many pioneering women of the time.
By bestselling biographer Grantlee Kieza, Mrs Kelly is the astonishing story of one of Australia's most notorious women and her wild family, but it's also the story of the making of Australia, from struggling colony and backwater to modern nation.
496 pages, Paperback
First published February 20, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
November 11, 2017
Incredible. So well researched. Able to skirt both sides of the debate of whether the Kelly's were heroes or villains, whether the police were at fault or not and leave you sympathetic to all. There were mistakes and bad choices on both sides. Victims of the time and circumstances in which they lived. What a harsh life for Ellen and her family. This book brought Kelly history alive for me. I live in Mansfield not far from Stringybark Creek and drove to the Toombullup State Forrest while reading that part of the story. It was eerie. The bush is oppressively thick. I can't believe McIntyre made his way through it and back to Mansfield! My husband is born and bred in this area and is related to Joe Byrne as his Mum is a Byrne (although the family were not proud of this for many years). His great-grandfather Singleton Gardiner on his Dad's side had two stories of meeting
Ned Kelly. The first time he was a kid and his family had just moved to Lurg to select land and farm. He and a brother Frank wandered far from home and got lost. They arrived on the doorstep of the Kelly home and Mrs Kelly asked Ned to saddle the horses and take the boys 10km home, which he did. The next time he met Ned he was a teenager and riding out to visit his sister Sara who lived in Greta. It was twilight. He was on his own in the bush and he came upon a person he recognized as Ned Kelly. Ned said to him "aren't you afraid being out here on your own with the Kelly's out of gaol?" Singleton replied "the Kelly's wouldn't hurt me, they took me home to my family when I was a small boy and lost". Ned said to him "you're right sonny, the Kelly's wouldn't hurt you" and he rode off into the night.
Ned Kelly. The first time he was a kid and his family had just moved to Lurg to select land and farm. He and a brother Frank wandered far from home and got lost. They arrived on the doorstep of the Kelly home and Mrs Kelly asked Ned to saddle the horses and take the boys 10km home, which he did. The next time he met Ned he was a teenager and riding out to visit his sister Sara who lived in Greta. It was twilight. He was on his own in the bush and he came upon a person he recognized as Ned Kelly. Ned said to him "aren't you afraid being out here on your own with the Kelly's out of gaol?" Singleton replied "the Kelly's wouldn't hurt me, they took me home to my family when I was a small boy and lost". Ned said to him "you're right sonny, the Kelly's wouldn't hurt you" and he rode off into the night.
July 1, 2017
The use of the term 'epic' in this book's title is wholly deserved – Kieza has pieced together an archive that is astonishing in its depth and detail.
The only point of contention is that large chunks of the narrative are focused on the story of Ned Kelly and his gang to the exclusion of his mother. However, this is both unsurprising and unavoidable considering her life was largely lived in Ned's shadow, no doubt with scant historical regard for Kieza to draw on.
The only point of contention is that large chunks of the narrative are focused on the story of Ned Kelly and his gang to the exclusion of his mother. However, this is both unsurprising and unavoidable considering her life was largely lived in Ned's shadow, no doubt with scant historical regard for Kieza to draw on.
June 10, 2021
Admittedly, this story of Mrs Kelly contains a lot of story about her children, primarily Ned and Dan, but Kate and Grace and Jim and ....... But then, her life was bound up in them, and a lot of the documentary evidence about her life is in relation to the exploits of her children. We learn about her from her reactions to what happens to them, and what happens to them is a direct result of their home environment, which inevitably is something she had influence over.
I have read quite a number of purportedly Kelly biographies; not because I have a fascination for Kelly and his gang, but because I belatedly realised that my ancestors grew up in Beechworth at the same time as the Kelly family were in the area - may even have crossed paths or known them and their cohort. I can't be sure, but reading about the Kellys gives me an insight into what kind of world my gggrandmother and her brothers grew up in. A very different one to ours. All that aside, as a Kelly biography, this is an attempt at a balanced, researched and carefully documented history. It does not damn the authorities as brutes and torturers - although some individuals within their ranks, based on documented evidence, were very foolish, vain and out of their depth. Nor does it laud the Kellys as hard done by victims rebelling for a fairer deal - although there were instances where they were less than fairly dealt with, but not sufficiently to justify the behaviour that saw the families of slaughtered policemen struggle to survive, physically and mentally. True, Ned insisted that women and children were not abused, indeed were looked after during their exploits, but that alone doesn't make him a hero. His gang were products of their time, a rough and ready one where the authorities were not above abusing their position for financial gain. Ned and Co went a bit further than taking advantage, and the litany of horse and cattle theft that provided their livelihood, followed by the intense period of the Jerilderie and Glenrowan sieges were criminal. When they became outlaws, given the nature of the Australian colonies of that time, they could have hot-tailed it to another colony and started again, changed their names again and no-one would have been any the wiser. But they chose confrontation and fear. They chose what they perceived to be revenge. They twisted their story to justify their actions. And don't we all?
I found Ellen’s internment in Pentridge gaol particularly poignant. As hard as she was trying to be a model prisoner and achieve the maximum reductions in her sentence, her son was careering unchecked around the countryside until he was in the men's section of the same institution. Even after his death, she continued to be a model prisoner so that she could return to her children and grandchildren and look after them, in a world where their fathers were gone - dead or deserted, and their elder brothers were fast disappearing. She remained a model, if impoverished citizen until her death. Such a hard life, emotionally and physically, and yet she tried so hard to do the right thing, to be above reproach in her own right. If her family were victims, they were victims of their own notoriety, and of a rapidly changing society in an unforgiving landscape.
So I found this an interesting exploration of an era in Australia's history, as experienced through the life of Ellen Kelly and her family, in all their weird and wonderful ways. And as a rendition of the Kelly story, I found it well researched and referenced, with less bias than many others, and with an honest depiction of events and interpretation of their significance. Well told and enjoyable.
I have read quite a number of purportedly Kelly biographies; not because I have a fascination for Kelly and his gang, but because I belatedly realised that my ancestors grew up in Beechworth at the same time as the Kelly family were in the area - may even have crossed paths or known them and their cohort. I can't be sure, but reading about the Kellys gives me an insight into what kind of world my gggrandmother and her brothers grew up in. A very different one to ours. All that aside, as a Kelly biography, this is an attempt at a balanced, researched and carefully documented history. It does not damn the authorities as brutes and torturers - although some individuals within their ranks, based on documented evidence, were very foolish, vain and out of their depth. Nor does it laud the Kellys as hard done by victims rebelling for a fairer deal - although there were instances where they were less than fairly dealt with, but not sufficiently to justify the behaviour that saw the families of slaughtered policemen struggle to survive, physically and mentally. True, Ned insisted that women and children were not abused, indeed were looked after during their exploits, but that alone doesn't make him a hero. His gang were products of their time, a rough and ready one where the authorities were not above abusing their position for financial gain. Ned and Co went a bit further than taking advantage, and the litany of horse and cattle theft that provided their livelihood, followed by the intense period of the Jerilderie and Glenrowan sieges were criminal. When they became outlaws, given the nature of the Australian colonies of that time, they could have hot-tailed it to another colony and started again, changed their names again and no-one would have been any the wiser. But they chose confrontation and fear. They chose what they perceived to be revenge. They twisted their story to justify their actions. And don't we all?
I found Ellen’s internment in Pentridge gaol particularly poignant. As hard as she was trying to be a model prisoner and achieve the maximum reductions in her sentence, her son was careering unchecked around the countryside until he was in the men's section of the same institution. Even after his death, she continued to be a model prisoner so that she could return to her children and grandchildren and look after them, in a world where their fathers were gone - dead or deserted, and their elder brothers were fast disappearing. She remained a model, if impoverished citizen until her death. Such a hard life, emotionally and physically, and yet she tried so hard to do the right thing, to be above reproach in her own right. If her family were victims, they were victims of their own notoriety, and of a rapidly changing society in an unforgiving landscape.
So I found this an interesting exploration of an era in Australia's history, as experienced through the life of Ellen Kelly and her family, in all their weird and wonderful ways. And as a rendition of the Kelly story, I found it well researched and referenced, with less bias than many others, and with an honest depiction of events and interpretation of their significance. Well told and enjoyable.
December 18, 2017
I found this a great read and insightful. Extremely well written and researched. You feel like you are along for the ride with Ned and his family through all the drama of their lives. One small thing - Ellen Kelly's children with George King are continually referred to in this book as the step-siblings of Ned. They are his half-siblings, not step-siblings - they share a mother. I was quite moved by how much loyalty the Kellys showed to one another and how much love there was in that family. This was evident regardless of what your stance may be on their status as either criminals or victims of circumstance.
March 12, 2017
This book made me cry - especially at the end. They had really hard lives
October 17, 2017
Extensively researched and engrossing read
March 18, 2017
This was so enjoyable. It's an engrossing read that shows you the whole story from all angles - Ned Kelly, his mother, his family, the policemen and their families. This is important history.
March 25, 2017
An outstanding book on the Kellys and Australian history. I heard the author and Germaine Greer speaking about this on ABC radio. It is absolutely fascinating
March 25, 2017
Reviewed by Jack Cameron Stanton (Better Reading,com)
Mrs Kelly: The astonishing life of Ned Kelly’s mother by Grantlee Kieza is a staggering accomplishment that can’t be missed by history buffs and story lovers alike. Recently, the right history books have enjoyed serious commercial success – the likes of Richard Fidler’s Ghost Empire, The Silk Road by Peter Frankopan, and even Sapiens by Yuhal Noah Harari spring to mind – and Grantlee’s latest is a welcome addition to the tribe.
Ellen Kelly comes to Australia from Ireland and almost immediately experiences the brunt of life’s cruelty, turning her to morally murky ways of keeping her family afloat (and out of prison) – although she quite often fails at the latter.
And Mrs Kelly’s misfortunes are indeed vast: she loses children to her violent criminal world, to sickness and injustice, and after her husband Red Kelly dies from drink and melancholy it’s up to her only son Ned (aged twelve) to become the man of the house. But it doesn’t last. At such a young age he soon joins the notorious bandit Harry Power to rob and pillage the bush tracks, drifting in and out of prison numerous times before his eighteenth birthday and engaging in bloody fistfights in the forgotten back rooms of dusky pubs, and all the while building his reputation – for all the wrong reasons. The rest, as they say, is history.
But Mrs Kelly is fatalistic about her son’s grievances. The world has offered her no sanctuary from its harshness: she sells contraband liquor to get by; has never made enough money to feed her starving family; and the criminality of her son seems, at best, a logical conclusion. Without any moralising or judgment, Grantlee guides us through the unforgiving Australian penal system, the vicious wrongdoing of Ned Kelly, and the terrible atmosphere of fear and violence that fostered such madness – and the best part is, I feel, how readable it all is.
It’s hard, having finished reading the book, to imagine Ned Kelly as the rose-tinted Australian antihero that he often appears to be in our minds, or bush poetry, or beer cans, especially after witnessing the extent of murder and carnage the good old bushranger was responsible for, which included petty bush heists, reckless police assassination, and armed bank robbery.
It’s during these moments of tension when it doesn’t matter whether you’re reading fact or fiction; it’s nail-biting all the same. The story has great energy and focus, never straying too far from the Kelly family but giving enough scope to understand the world they inhabit.
But it takes a special kind of writer to breathe life into history, and Grantlee Kieza has once again demonstrated his prowess as an historian and storyteller. Ellen Kelly lived an extraordinary life, confirming that old adage about truth being stranger than fiction, and Grantlee’s witty, economic writing captures every moment without the foggy uhms and ahhs often found in history books.
And if you’re anything like me then this is the kind of history you’ll love. For the longest time I couldn’t read history books simply because I lacked the patience and pedantry to absorb fact after fact, detail after detail. But thankfully Grantlee has done the hard yards for us and written precisely what we all desire: a story complete with a flair for drama, suspense, and twists.
his book is emotional, perceptive, and exhilarating all at once – using the Kelly family’s descent to criminality through the oppressive forces of colonial Australia’s injustices, heavy-handed police forces, and, of course, the outlaw escapades of her renegade son, Ned, to quite cleverly trace Australia’s origins and evolution toward modern society.
Within these pages is a portrait of a stoic, courageous, extraordinary woman who championed a world of misery by tackling it head on, totally unafraid. I’m seriously impressed by Grantlee’s storytelling power and guarantee you will be, too.
Mrs Kelly: The astonishing life of Ned Kelly’s mother by Grantlee Kieza is a staggering accomplishment that can’t be missed by history buffs and story lovers alike. Recently, the right history books have enjoyed serious commercial success – the likes of Richard Fidler’s Ghost Empire, The Silk Road by Peter Frankopan, and even Sapiens by Yuhal Noah Harari spring to mind – and Grantlee’s latest is a welcome addition to the tribe.
Ellen Kelly comes to Australia from Ireland and almost immediately experiences the brunt of life’s cruelty, turning her to morally murky ways of keeping her family afloat (and out of prison) – although she quite often fails at the latter.
And Mrs Kelly’s misfortunes are indeed vast: she loses children to her violent criminal world, to sickness and injustice, and after her husband Red Kelly dies from drink and melancholy it’s up to her only son Ned (aged twelve) to become the man of the house. But it doesn’t last. At such a young age he soon joins the notorious bandit Harry Power to rob and pillage the bush tracks, drifting in and out of prison numerous times before his eighteenth birthday and engaging in bloody fistfights in the forgotten back rooms of dusky pubs, and all the while building his reputation – for all the wrong reasons. The rest, as they say, is history.
But Mrs Kelly is fatalistic about her son’s grievances. The world has offered her no sanctuary from its harshness: she sells contraband liquor to get by; has never made enough money to feed her starving family; and the criminality of her son seems, at best, a logical conclusion. Without any moralising or judgment, Grantlee guides us through the unforgiving Australian penal system, the vicious wrongdoing of Ned Kelly, and the terrible atmosphere of fear and violence that fostered such madness – and the best part is, I feel, how readable it all is.
It’s hard, having finished reading the book, to imagine Ned Kelly as the rose-tinted Australian antihero that he often appears to be in our minds, or bush poetry, or beer cans, especially after witnessing the extent of murder and carnage the good old bushranger was responsible for, which included petty bush heists, reckless police assassination, and armed bank robbery.
It’s during these moments of tension when it doesn’t matter whether you’re reading fact or fiction; it’s nail-biting all the same. The story has great energy and focus, never straying too far from the Kelly family but giving enough scope to understand the world they inhabit.
But it takes a special kind of writer to breathe life into history, and Grantlee Kieza has once again demonstrated his prowess as an historian and storyteller. Ellen Kelly lived an extraordinary life, confirming that old adage about truth being stranger than fiction, and Grantlee’s witty, economic writing captures every moment without the foggy uhms and ahhs often found in history books.
And if you’re anything like me then this is the kind of history you’ll love. For the longest time I couldn’t read history books simply because I lacked the patience and pedantry to absorb fact after fact, detail after detail. But thankfully Grantlee has done the hard yards for us and written precisely what we all desire: a story complete with a flair for drama, suspense, and twists.
his book is emotional, perceptive, and exhilarating all at once – using the Kelly family’s descent to criminality through the oppressive forces of colonial Australia’s injustices, heavy-handed police forces, and, of course, the outlaw escapades of her renegade son, Ned, to quite cleverly trace Australia’s origins and evolution toward modern society.
Within these pages is a portrait of a stoic, courageous, extraordinary woman who championed a world of misery by tackling it head on, totally unafraid. I’m seriously impressed by Grantlee’s storytelling power and guarantee you will be, too.
September 13, 2017
Not just Mrs Kelly. This book looks at all of the Kelly family, especially Ned and their interactions. Fascinating piece of history and thousands of references at the end to show where the information came from. Would make a great movie.
December 30, 2017
Because many of my ancestors lived in the Beechworth, Wangaratta and Moyhu areas and I also have Kelly ancestors from Tipperary (not far from where John Red Kelly's family lived but I haven't found a connection) I've long been interested in the Kelly family history. As well as outlining very informative historical facts, Mrs. Kelly is well researched and written and gives a balanced and unbiased account of her history and her family's trials and tribulations.
May 3, 2017
A fascinating look at the Kelly gang and their ma. I learned so much about them and the police sent to capture them. The message is that while some of the police were bullies some like Kennedy were good honest cops just doing their duty.
October 25, 2017
i have really enjoyed this book. the detail surrounding life in Ireland and Victoria is amazing. giving us a real taste of the harshness and distances involved in living in the 1800's. Very well researched.
May 16, 2017
Loved this true Australian story. Well written and packed with detail
January 30, 2019
Read ‘True History of the Kelly Gang’ ( Peter Carey ) and ‘Our Sunshine’ ( Robert Drewe ) for rollicking interpretations of the Kelly myth.
Read ‘Ned Kelly: a short life’ ( Ian Jones ) for a comprehensive & well written examination of Ned Kelly that is also unfortunately a relentless barrack for the bushranger.
Read this relatively well written and scrupulously balanced book to understand that Kelly, who had many admirable qualities and understandable grievances, also blithely destroyed the lives of innocent and forgotten people. This book is at its best when the families of the slain police officers are given a voice.
Read ‘Ned Kelly: a short life’ ( Ian Jones ) for a comprehensive & well written examination of Ned Kelly that is also unfortunately a relentless barrack for the bushranger.
Read this relatively well written and scrupulously balanced book to understand that Kelly, who had many admirable qualities and understandable grievances, also blithely destroyed the lives of innocent and forgotten people. This book is at its best when the families of the slain police officers are given a voice.
January 5, 2018
Thoroughly enjoyable book about Ellen Kelly & her extended family and how rough her life was trying to build a life for her & her children in the high country during the late 1800s. The backstories of various characters such as the 3 policemen who perished at Ned’s hands as well as the hangman, the magistrate and some of Ned’s gang. I suspect a bit was partly fictionalised however it doesn’t detract from the flow of the story which is about a time in Australian history turned into the stuff of legend.
December 9, 2017
Well written page turner - and fascinating history
November 4, 2017
Very well done. A rollicking tale and very moving.
March 19, 2018
I enjoyed this book very much. The short, sharp journalistic writing style helped me to absorb the huge amount of historical detail. The ironic humour in places allowed me to see the “grey areas” surrounding the Kelly legends.
November 11, 2017
Well written, fast paced and top research. Highly recommended
February 5, 2019
This audio book was an amazing story. Starting way before 1880 and all related characters in the story were included and followed up. A must for all Australians.
January 2, 2018
Along with Keith McMenomy's Illustrated History and Ian Jones work this is the best of the Kelly books. Unbiased and hard hitting it lets the reader make ups their minds as to who was a hero and who was a villain
October 14, 2018
A great read about the life of Ned Kelly's Mother; Ellen Kelly.
As usual, 90% of it was actually just about Ned, and could have been condensed down to about 200 pages if it were just about Ellen Kelly.
What I did find interesting was the very unsympathetic Kelly stance the writer took - challenging a lot of the history presented by Ian Jones (A short life), even attempting to save Fitzgerald from an unfair portrayal. It challenged a lot of my previous views and gave me a lot to think about.
Ellen had an incredibly tough life - raising up to 12 children in little bush shacks, outliving most of them. She was subject to partners who were either hopeless or cruel, and was sentenced to 3 years in prison with a newborn baby for an alleged crime Police say should have only received 3 months.
Well researched and definitely worth the read.
As usual, 90% of it was actually just about Ned, and could have been condensed down to about 200 pages if it were just about Ellen Kelly.
What I did find interesting was the very unsympathetic Kelly stance the writer took - challenging a lot of the history presented by Ian Jones (A short life), even attempting to save Fitzgerald from an unfair portrayal. It challenged a lot of my previous views and gave me a lot to think about.
Ellen had an incredibly tough life - raising up to 12 children in little bush shacks, outliving most of them. She was subject to partners who were either hopeless or cruel, and was sentenced to 3 years in prison with a newborn baby for an alleged crime Police say should have only received 3 months.
Well researched and definitely worth the read.
May 26, 2018
This is an excellent historical saga about the mother of a famous Aussie icon. Love him or hate him Ned Kelly is up there with the most famous Australians and this book looks at his life through the eyes of his mother who had a terribly hard life because of his crimes. Five stars
January 29, 2018
Superb! I grew up around Wangaratta and many of the stories hit home. What lives these people had
May 3, 2017
I think this was a really well paced book, really condensed and you do feel so immersed in the period. The research that went into it is evident and the author has clearly gone a lot of trouble to match what is historical record via newspapers and court transcripts etc with his own imaginings so that the story can be rounded out and filled in. I very much enjoyed hearing more of Ellen's story (and Red's and the extended Kelly family and friends) BUT his opinions on the Kelly's, cloaked in a throw away line or descriptive phrase do come out and they can be jolting. The author leaves you in no doubt which side of the fence he stands regarding the Kelly family and in particular Ned. Also, some of the imaginings of the author in regards to how Ellen Kelly must have been thinking and feeling particularly after Red died made me cringe eg 'a long time since she has felt a rough prickly beard against her breast.'
Despite some passages of this book that were a little too much of the author's judgements, he's done a fine job and I very much enjoyed reading this book.
The ending in particular was excellent...when I read the last passage I felt as if I were saying goodbye to a world and people I had grown (mostly) very fond of. As a Mother, I cried for Ellen Kelly and her children, it was dreadfully unfair how hard their life was despite the author's thoughts that perhaps her sons brought it all on themselves.
Despite some passages of this book that were a little too much of the author's judgements, he's done a fine job and I very much enjoyed reading this book.
The ending in particular was excellent...when I read the last passage I felt as if I were saying goodbye to a world and people I had grown (mostly) very fond of. As a Mother, I cried for Ellen Kelly and her children, it was dreadfully unfair how hard their life was despite the author's thoughts that perhaps her sons brought it all on themselves.
January 28, 2019
Outstanding. I Really enjoyed this well written, well researched look at an extraordinary woman and her wild family
January 16, 2020
The style of writing is quite engaging. By half way into the book, my views about the actions of the police in bringing about the Kelly Outbreak underwent a seismic shift. My sympathy for Ned Kelly has changed since I wads a boy over half a century ago. As a boy, I tended to go with my Dad's opinion that the Kelly's were "born criminals"; now it seems that their background and upbringing were factors but the way the Colonial society functioned aided in allowing such an Outbreak to occur. The harsh criminal code was designed to crush those who broke the Law.
The economic and social situation of the Era, say the Gold Rush of the 1850's to Federation in 1901 was such that discontent would be endemic. Add in the other ingredients of a developing nation, religion, poor police practices and a Justice system shewed towards the Landed Gentry (the old "squartocracy") and class tensions and anger were always going to be an issue.
Well worth reading.
The economic and social situation of the Era, say the Gold Rush of the 1850's to Federation in 1901 was such that discontent would be endemic. Add in the other ingredients of a developing nation, religion, poor police practices and a Justice system shewed towards the Landed Gentry (the old "squartocracy") and class tensions and anger were always going to be an issue.
Well worth reading.
June 21, 2019
On November 11 1880, Edward 'Ned' Kelly was hanged for murder at the Melbourne Goal. A reporter at the time claimed that Mrs Kelly’s final words to her boy was, ‘Mind that you die like a Kelly, son.’
I’ve just finished Grantlee Kieza’s book, 'Mrs Kelly' and the picture he draws of Ned Kelly, his mother and the Kelly clan is a fascinating read. The Kellys were enemies of the law and Ned developed an obsessive hatred for the police.
Ellen Quinn ‘Little Nell’ was born in Ireland. She had twelve children in Australia and seven of them died in her lifetime. Her first husband ‘Red’ Kelly dies an alcoholic, her next lover Bill Frost abandons her while pregnant and her second husband, George King – a Californian horse thief – beats her before leaving her in the lurch. King wasn’t much older than Ned but on her marriage certificate Ellen put her age as 36 instead of 42.
I really enjoyed this book. Kieza seeks to create a compelling ongoing narrative from his extensive research. Admittedly he has to use poetic licence to do so – but it works.
I’ve just finished Grantlee Kieza’s book, 'Mrs Kelly' and the picture he draws of Ned Kelly, his mother and the Kelly clan is a fascinating read. The Kellys were enemies of the law and Ned developed an obsessive hatred for the police.
Ellen Quinn ‘Little Nell’ was born in Ireland. She had twelve children in Australia and seven of them died in her lifetime. Her first husband ‘Red’ Kelly dies an alcoholic, her next lover Bill Frost abandons her while pregnant and her second husband, George King – a Californian horse thief – beats her before leaving her in the lurch. King wasn’t much older than Ned but on her marriage certificate Ellen put her age as 36 instead of 42.
I really enjoyed this book. Kieza seeks to create a compelling ongoing narrative from his extensive research. Admittedly he has to use poetic licence to do so – but it works.
July 6, 2020
Most Australians learned about the infamous bushranger, Ned Kelly, at school. This book shares his mother’s story, Ellen Kelly. What a remarkable, sad, heart wrenching and challenging 91 years of life. I don’t know how she survived so long. The strength and the sheer Irish courage had a lot to do with it. She was survived by only 5 of her 12 children, the heart-ache is right there. This is raw and insightful read of the whole Kelly family. I highly recommend it 4.5/5.
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