Henry Ross (1829 – 5 December 1854) was a Canadian-Australian gold miner who died in the

Eureka Rebellion The Eureka Rebellion was a series of events involving gold miners who revolted against the British administration of the colony of Victoria, Australia during the Victorian gold rush. It culminated in the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which ...

at the

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. Within months of Vi ...

gold fields in the British

Colony of Victoria In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

, now the state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. Ross is particularly remembered for his part in the creation of the rebel miners' flag, since named the

Eureka Flag The Eureka Flag was flown at the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which took place on 3 December 1854 at Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. It was the culmination of the 1851–1854 Eureka Rebellion on the Victorian goldfields, where miners prote ...

. Ross was born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, in the British colony of

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North Americ ...

which had amalgamated into the colonial

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

by the time he departed. He became a gold miner in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

during the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New ...

and probably arrived at

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

on the ''Magnolia'' in November 1852, along with Charles Doudiet and three other Canadians. Ross was known on the goldfields as the 'bridegroom' of the miners' flag. The flag, called the Southern Cross flag (for the celestial asterism of the same name), was created as a symbol by miners revolting against the colonial authorities in 1854. There is no evidence of who exactly designed the flag but Ross took the design to three women - Anastasia Withers, Anne Duke and Anastasia Hayes, to ask them to sew it and have it ready in time for the meeting taking place at Bakery Hill at 2.00pm on Wednesday the 29 November 1854. On 30 November 1854, Ross unfurled the flag At Bakery Hill and led the march from Bakery Hill to

Eureka Stockade The Eureka Rebellion was a series of events involving gold miners who revolted against the British administration of the colony of Victoria, Australia during the Victorian gold rush. It culminated in the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, whic ...

; behind him followed about 1,000 diggers, some armed with rifles, many only armed with picks and shovels. Ross, initially referred to as lieutenant but later as captain, was given the command of a division of the rebel miners by a meeting of the seven captains of the rebellion who met at Eureka that afternoon to organise the defence of Eureka. Later that afternoon, Ross raised the flag on the temporary flagpole that had been erected at Bakery Hill. Sword in hand, his division gathered at the foot of the flagstaff.

Peter Lalor Peter Fintan Lalor (; 5 February 1827 – 9 February 1889) was an Irish-Australian rebel and, later, politician who rose to fame for his leading role in the Eureka Rebellion, an event identified with the "birth of democracy" in Australia. ...

jumped onto a stump and asked those around him to take an oath to the Southern Cross. He pointed his right hand towards the Southern Cross and delivered the diggers oath: The miners shouted 'Amen' and then marched back to the Eureka Stockade and hoisted the flag on a makeshift flagpole at the centre of their camp. When the first shots rang out at daybreak on Sunday the 3 December 1854, Henry Ross took up his position at the foot of the flagpole. He was mortally wounded during the early phase of the battle and lay dying at the foot of the Southern Cross when trooper King scaled the flagpole and tore the flag down. By some accounts Ross was shot 10 or 15 minutes after he surrendered. Fellow Canadian, Doudiet who painted earlier Eureka events, recorded that he was among those who carried the stockade leader to the nearby Star Hotel and remained with him until he died "in great pain" at 2 am on 5 December 1854. Duncan Clark, from the same miner's regiment as Ross, had been out scouting and returned in time to assist Ross to the hotel. Some 260 mourners followed the funeral procession of Ross to the Ballarat Cemetery. He was eulogised as "one of the best loved men of those who fell". Ross' father and grandfather had both been soldiers and his mother was apparently ashamed of his part in the rebellion and only ever mentioned that he "just died". Ross was buried at the bottom of a mass grave at the

Ballarat Old Cemetery Ballaarat Old Cemetery is a cemetery located in the rural city of Ballarat, Victoria in Australia. The cemetery dates back to 1856, although records show burials took place in the area from the late 1840s.Eureka Flag The Eureka Flag was flown at the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which took place on 3 December 1854 at Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. It was the culmination of the 1851–1854 Eureka Rebellion on the Victorian goldfields, where miners prote ...

References

Henry Ross
- Defending Victoria Website {{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Henry 1829 births 1854 deaths Canadian emigrants to Australia People from Old Toronto