What effect did Buchrangers have on Australia?

Question

For example Ned Kelly and other bushrangers

Answer 1

Australia started out as a place for the British to send their criminals 'the convicts'. As a result Australians seem to resent authority figures (egg politicians) and like to support battlers. There is also a feeling of pride in bush rangers as they went around the authorities. Often they were brave and young men. Unfortunately people forget about the bad stuff they do. I think it is similar maybe to how the English feel about Robin Hood. There is a syndrome that seems fairly unique to Australia. It is called Tall Poppy Syndrome and what it means is that people love to support fellow Australians (mainly in sport or actors/musicians) when they are new and working hard to get to the top in their chosen field but when they get there people have an attitude of 'they think they are so good someone cut them down to size'. It is a shame as the people themselves probably haven't changed. I think it still comes back to that convict based resentment of people that have lots of money, and are upper class, etc as a lot of us are still thinking we are hard done by convicts. Does that help??? Having said that it is not something we dwell on very often (the whole bush ranger thing) but is generally discussed in schools and debated with students as to whether bush rangers should be treated as heroes.

Answer 2

Most of the bushrangers, like the highwaymen of England, were murderous thugs who ended their days at the end of a rope or with a bullet in them. A few, like Ben Hall, were better than most and some even survived and lived to die of old age. Frank Gardiner was one such, I think. Ned Kelly might have had a hard life and might have been wronged by the State but that did not excuse his murder of the policemen for which he was hanged.

The bushrangers started with the gold rushes when there was a lot of money on the roads that was worth taking. Bushranging persisted, however, until the end of the century long after the gold rushes were over. It is part of Australia's history, most new countries have periods of lawlessness. Ned Kelly is regarded with some respect but he was still a murderer and a thief.

Answer 3

We still have Bush rangers except they don't ride horses any more.