Australia's Wild West: Notorious bushrangers who terrorised the Outback

Ned Kelly was born in Beveridge, Victoria, likely in June 1855, though the exact date was never officially registered.

His father, John Kelly, who had been transported from Ireland for theft, died in 1866 after years of hardship.

Ned was the eldest son, who had left school early, and had come into conflict with colonial authorities.

Police had targeted his family for repeated inspections and court cases, which had helped create an atmosphere of hostility.

As a teenager, Ned had been arrested for receiving a stolen horse and had served time in prison, which had likely increased his resentment.

By 1878, tensions had risen after Constable Alexander Fitzpatrick, who had visited the Kelly homestead, had accused Ned’s mother, Ellen, of assault and Ned of attempted murder.

To avoid arrest, Ned and his brother Dan fled into the bush. They were soon joined by Joe Byrne and Steve Hart, who formed what became known as the Kelly Gang.

In response, the Victorian government placed a combined reward of £8,000 on the capture of the entire gang, a record sum at the time, and sent police patrols to locate them. 

At Stringybark Creek in October 1878, the gang confronted a police party that was camping in the bush.

During the encounter, they shot and killed Sergeant Michael Kennedy and Constables Thomas Lonigan and Michael Scanlan.

As a result, public fear of the gang increased sharply. In the following months, the Kelly Gang conducted bank robberies at Euroa and Jerilderie.

During the Jerilderie raid in particular, Ned wrote an 8,000-word letter that tried to justify his actions in which he claimed the colonial legal system had treated him unfairly and accused the police of corruption and harsh treatment.

In it, he wrote, "It will pay government to give those people who are suffering innocence justice and liberty." 

By mid-1880, police had learned the gang planned to derail a train at Glenrowan.

To prevent this, officers surrounded the town and engaged in a lengthy gunfight where each gang member wore homemade suits of iron armour, made from plough mouldboards and which weighed about 40 kilograms.

The suits provided some protection to the wearers' chests and heads from bullets.

However, Joe Byrne was shot and killed during the siege while Kelly, the last man standing, advanced on the police before being shot in the legs and captured.

He was tried in Melbourne and sentenced to death. On 11 November 1880, he was hanged at Old Melbourne Gaol. 

Martin Cash was born in County Wexford in 1808 and arrived in New South Wales as a convict in 1828.

He had fired a shot at a man whom he suspected of pursuing his partner, which resulted in his transportation.

After he had received a ticket of leave, he had violated its conditions and had been sent to Port Arthur where conditions were harsh, and escape attempts often ended in recapture or death. 

Regardless, in 1842, Cash escaped with two fellow convicts, George Jones and Lawrence Kavenagh.

The group, which was later nicknamed "Cash and Company," began to rob homesteads and travellers across Tasmania’s interior.

They largely focused on wealthy settlers and attempted to build a reputation as non-violent thieves.

For example, Cash later claimed he never robbed the poor or harmed women, which partly contributed to the glorified image that later surrounded him.

Contemporary accounts estimated they carried out more than twenty robberies during this period. 

The gang’s activity ended after a failed robbery in Hobart at which point police arrested Cash and sentenced him to death.

However, due to his cooperation and public interest in his case, the sentence was commuted to life transportation to Norfolk Island.

Over time, he earned privileges and was eventually released in 1854, after which he spent most of his later life working in Hobart and dictated an autobiography, The Adventures of Martin Cash, that helped preserve his story.

Consequently, he became one of the few bushrangers to live into old age, dying in 1877. 

Frederick Ward, later known as Captain Thunderbolt, operated across northern New South Wales between 1863 and 1870.

He had been born in Windsor in 1835 and was first arrested in 1856 for horse theft.

After serving time on Cockatoo Island, he received a ticket of leave. However, after he had breached its terms, he was re-arrested and returned to prison. 

In 1863, Ward escaped when he swam from Cockatoo Island with a fellow inmate and fled to the bush, aided by his partner Mary Ann Bugg, who warned him of police activity and helped him recover from illness.

Bugg, who was both of Aboriginal and European descent, played an important part in his survival and ability to move safely through the bush.

Though some sources suggest they separated around 1867, her earlier support helped him resume bushranging after his escape.

With her assistance, he launched a campaign of robberies across the Liverpool Plains, New England, and Hunter Valley districts, where h typically targeted mail coaches and inns, and he relied on mobility and local knowledge to evade capture. 

In contrast to other bushrangers, Ward avoided large-scale violence. He preferred intimidation and surprise, which allowed him to operate for several years.

His crimes drew public attention, and some settlers came to admire his defiance of the authorities.

By 1870, police pressure had increased and, on 25 May, Constable Alexander Walker confronted and killed Ward near Uralla.

His body was buried in the local cemetery, where a headstone still records the location of his grave. 

Bushranging reached its peak in the Lachlan region during the 1860s. The discovery of gold near Forbes drew wealth and travellers to the region and exposed the lightly guarded gold escorts that travelled between the diggings.

Frank Gardiner, who had been born in Ross-shire, Scotland, as Francis Christie and who had been raised in New South Wales from a young age, took advantage of the opportunity.

After he had drifted into cattle theft, he had assembled a gang of criminals and had planned a major robbery near Eugowra Rocks. 

In June 1862, Gardiner’s gang ambushed a gold escort, which was guarded by armed troopers, and seized an estimated £14,000 worth of gold and cash.

The scale of the robbery shocked colonial officials and prompted a large search. As a result, police resources were sent across the region in pursuit of the gang.

Gardiner had fled to Queensland but had been captured and sentenced to 32 years in prison.

After he had served ten years, he was released on the condition that he leave the Australian colonies.

He travelled to Hong Kong and later settled near San Francisco. 

Among the members of Gardiner’s gang, Ben Hall became particularly notorious.

Born near Maitland in 1837, Hall had once managed a successful grazing property. After a string of personal setbacks, including his wife leaving him and ongoing police harassment, he joined the bushranging movement.

From 1863 to 1865, Hall led a well-organised gang that raided towns, robbed coaches, and intercepted mail routes. 

To coordinate their attacks, Hall and his men relied on a network of informants and settlers who helped them.

His gang included other notorious figures such as John Gilbert and John Dunn, both of whom became targets of police crackdowns.

They operated with discipline and often evaded police detachments. On 5 May 1865, police ambushed Hall outside Forbes and shot him dead as he attempted to escape.

Soon after, other gang members were killed or captured, ending one of the most active periods of bushranging in colonial New South Wales. 

By the 1880s, improved communication had reduced opportunities for escape, advances in firearms had increased police effectiveness, and a larger police presence had made continued bushranging far more difficult.

Colonial governments introduced laws such as the Felons Apprehension Act 1865 in New South Wales, which allowed police to shoot declared outlaws on sight and made it illegal to help them.

Over time, their violent acts had gradually become romanticised in literature, songs, and popular memory.

Ballads like The Wild Colonial Boy and novels such as Rolf Boldrewood’s Robbery Under Arms helped cement their place in national folklore.