Ceremony hands over Teddy’s VC
AN exclusive ceremony in the United Kingdom has heralded the imminent arrival home of Teddy Sheean’s Victoria Cross.
The Royal Navy handed over the medal to Australian High Commissioner George Brandis in a private ceremony in Portsmouth on Friday.
A sustained campaign has resulted in the Tasmanian war hero being awarded the highest military honour for his bravery during World War II.
The medal is now set to be sent to Australia for a planned public ceremony.
It is now in the care of Australia’s Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Michael Noonan.
State Veterans Affairs Minister Guy Barnett said the Victoria Cross was a worthy recognition of an extraordinary Tasmanian. “I am very pleased another milestone has been reached to bring it home,’’ he said.
“The ceremony occurred on board the flight deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth II, the Royal Navy’s brand new aircraft carrier and largest vessel in the British fleet.”
Mr Barnett said the Victoria Cross had been awarded to 101 Australians, including 15 Tasmanians, since being instituted by Queen Victoria in 1856.
“The medal, suspension bar and link are cast in bronze, believed to be obtained from the cascabels of two Chinese cannons captured from the Russians during the Crimean War,’’ he said.
Sheean was 18 when he died on board the HMAS Armidale, refusing the opportunity to board a lifeboat while the ship was sinking, returning to an Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun and firing at Japanese enemy aircraft and defending shipmates from enemy attack.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced last month that a report issued by a tribunal review had found Sheean to be an eligible VC recipient.
The review followed pressure from the public and Mr Morrison’s own party after the government rejected a tribunal recommendation in May to award the war hero the VC.