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Protest outside Australia House, London, 1935

Image Protest outside Australia House, London, 1935

TLF ID R3220

This is a 11.9 cm x 8.6 cm black-and-white photograph of four people standing outside Australia House in London in 1935. They are holding signs protesting Australia’s treatment of British exservicemen. Some signs read 'AUSTRALIA Celebrate the Jubilee by giving Ruined British Exservice Settlers FULL JUSTICE', and 'DON’T BUY AUSTRALIAN GOODS Until British Exservice Settlers Receive FULL JUSTICE What about it "Honest Joe Lyons"?'

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Educational details

Educational value
  • This asset depicts people protesting against the treatment of British exservicemen who had migrated to Australia under various soldier settlement schemes and the Empire Settlement Act of 1922 - under this Act, the British Government provided assistance for selected categories of people, including children, young people and exservicemen, to emigrate to other parts of the British Empire such as Australia and Canada.
  • It reflects the hardships and poverty faced by British exservicemen who settled in rural areas of Australia under the Joint Commonwealth and States Scheme of 1921 - the soldier settler schemes after the First World War are often described as dismal failures because the Crown land made available to British exservicemen was often undeveloped and infertile, many of the properties were too small, and drought, erosion and economic depression drove many from the land; during the late 1920s, many former British migrants returned to the United Kingdom while most of those who remained in Australia could not afford to return.
  • It includes an appeal to 'Honest Joe Lyons' - Joseph Aloysius Lyons, a former premier of Tasmania who had passed legislation authorising advances to British settlers, was Australia’s Prime Minister from 1932 until his death in 1939; in 1935 Lyons visited England to attend the Silver Jubilee, celebrating the reign of King George V, and this visit would have included time at Australia House.
  • It shows part of the facade of Australia House in The Strand, London - Australia’s oldest diplomatic mission, it was built between 1913 and 1918 and has a magnificent interior featuring different types of Australian marble and wood.
  • It shows clothing typical of the era, when both men and women wore hats outdoors and animal fur was commonly used - one of the women’s coats is made from fur and another’s has a fur-trimmed collar.
Topics Protests Economic depressions International relations SARS Unemployment Subsidies

Other details

Contributors
  • Contributor
  • Name: National Library of Australia
  • Organization: National Library of Australia
  • Description: Content provider
  • URL: http://www.nla.gov.au
  • Name: Education Services Australia
  • Organization: Education Services Australia
  • Description: Data manager
  • Copyright Holder
  • Name: National Library of Australia
  • Organization: National Library of Australia
  • Publisher
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organization: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Description: Publisher
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.esa.edu.au
  • Resource metadata contributed by
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organisation: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Address: AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au
Access profile
  • Colour independence
  • Device independence
  • Hearing independence
Learning Resource Type
  • Image
Rights
  • © Education Services Australia Ltd and National Library of Australia, 2013, except where indicated under Acknowledgements