Book Review: Breaking the Bank
The Tale of Australia’s Greatest Bank Robbery by Carol Baxter
Breaking the Bank (Allen & Unwin, 2008) by Carol Baxter is a fascinating recount of Australia’s largest bank robbery.
On Sunday 14th September 1828, a group of wily thieves in Sydney tunnelled through the sewer underneath the Bank of Australia and broke into the vault. In what remains one of the largest bank robberies in Australian history, they stole £14 000 in notes and coins, more than A$20 million in modern currency.
A Daring Robbery at the Bank of Australia
The robbery was a strike against the affluent authorities. The convicts and settlers generally deposited what money they had at the Bank of New South Wales, while the Bank of Australia had for its clientele the elite of Sydney – the aristocracy, high ranking officers and wealthy businessmen.
In a society where the gap between those with power and influence and those without was so clearly defined, robbing the bank of the rich gave the thieves a significant advantage as they tried to avoid capture and punishment. The general population deliberately misdirected attempts to capture the criminals, choosing instead to protect their own and laughing at the frustration of the police and the bank directors.
As the attempts to recoup the Bank’s loss became more desperate, increasingly large rewards were offered for information leading to the arrest of the perpetrators of the crime. The valuable reward eventually caused Sydney’s largely convict or ex-convict population to scheme against and betray each other in an attempt to profit from the situation.
More than a Tale of Bank Robbers and Criminals
Breaking the Bank offers much more than the simple retelling of the robbery at the Bank of Australia and the consequences for the men involved. It paints a picture of life in Sydney in the early 1800’s, illustrating the complex social network that had formed.
While convicts and ex-convicts were always at the bottom of the social hierarchy, those with significant trade skills were afforded a certain tolerance and given a level of autonomy not allowed to the general convict population. These privileges remained dependant on the benevolence of those with power.
As many Australians have only a general knowledge of the conditions for convicts in the early years of the colony, Baxter’s detail rich narrative is sure to offer many insights into early Australian colonial life for readers interested in Australian history.
While Sydney is a focal point, other penal settlements are described, particularly Newcastle, Port Macquarie, Norfolk Island and Moreton Bay. The system of punishments, abuse of power by authority figures and harsh living conditions faced by convicts in these areas are described in detail.
Breaking the Bank is liberally scattered with references to prominent Australian historical personalities such as Governor Lachlan Macquarie, Commandant James Morriset, pasturalist John Macarthur and architect Francis Greenway.
A Fascinating Historical Narrative
Breaking the Bank offers both a fascinating well-told story with vibrant, well-portrayed characters and a fact-based depiction of life in Sydney in the first half of the 19th century.
An extensive bibliography and detailed index are provided in addition to annotated timelines for significant characters such as William Blackstone, James Dingle, Thomas Woodward and Edward Shortland. An extensive list of references to the Bank of Australia robbery from police and newspaper reports of the time is also provided.
Carol Baxter
Carol Baxter is a Fellow of the Society of Australian Genealogists and one of Australia’s leading genealogical researchers. Her fact-based attention to detail and research skills are readily apparent in Breaking the Bank. She is the author of the critically acclaimed An Irresistible Temptation: The true story of Jane New and a colonial scandal (Allen & Unwin, 2006).
Breaking the Bank is published by Allen & Unwin and is available for a RRP of A$35.
