Gavin Pearce (Braddon, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes the decision to award Ordinary Seaman Edward 'Teddy' Sheean our highest military honour, the Victoria Cross for Australia;

(2) recognises the heroic acts of Ordinary Seaman Edward 'Teddy' Sheean on 1 December 1942 will see him be the first Australian Navy sailor to receive the Victoria Cross; and

(3) acknowledges that an investiture ceremony that befits the magnitude of the award and its significance to Australia will be held at an appropriate time noting current COVID-19 restrictions.

Edward 'Teddy' Sheean was born on 28 December 1923 at Lower Barrington in north-west Tasmania. He was the 14th child to James and Mary Jane Sheean. After working as a farm labourer he enlisted in the Royal Australian Naval Reserve in Hobart on 21 August 1941. Soon after, young Teddy found himself on board the newly commissioned Bathurst class corvette HMAS Armidale. Teddy was the youngest and the most junior sailor on board, and he was employed as a cook's hand and gun loader. The Armidale was deployed carrying out escort duties along the eastern Australian coastline and in New Guinean waters.

On 29 November 1942, HMAS Armidale sailed for Japanese occupied Timor, in company with HMAS Castlemaine and HMAS Kuru. Her mission? To withdraw the 2/2 Independent Rifle Company as well as landing Dutch troops in the area of operations. On 1 December 1942 the Armidale and the Kuru came under sustained attack from enemy aircraft. Despite requests for air support, no support was forthcoming. Soon after 1400 hours the Armidale became separated and her 149 crew were now under direct attack from no fewer than 30 enemy aircraft. She and her crew were receiving effective fire and in an extremely dire position. The corvette manoeuvred frantically as she reacted to contact. At 1515 hours a torpedo struck her dead port side; another struck the engineering spaces; and, finally, a bomb struck aft. As she listed heavily to the port side, Lieutenant Commander David Richards gave the order to abandon ship. The survivors leapt into the sea and were subsequently strafed, or gunned down, by enemy aircraft with machine gun fire.

Our young 18-year-old Tasmanian, Teddy Sheean, was caught in the thick of it. He knew what that meant, he knew where he was and he knew the dire situation he and his mates were in. He had witnessed what was going on from his position at the port side life raft station, where he assisted another sailor, a bloke by the name of Ted Pellet, to cut a life raft free. Pellet would go on to testify as to what he saw and what happened next.

It is at this time, at the port side life raft, with his crewmates being shot at in the water and with a clear escape route in front of him in the raft, that this young sailor's remarkable act of courage and bravery begins. Teddy is at the life raft, with an escape route in front of him. He turns towards the aft deck—which, by the way, is at an approximate 50-degree angle due to the port side sinking fast. Teddy knows at this time that leaving the safety and sanctity of the life raft station will mean almost certain death. But he then climbs up the deck to the aft Oerlikon gun. Teddy Sheean straps himself to the gun, loaded, and begins to engage enemy aircraft which are strafing and killing his mates in the water. In doing so Teddy is wounded, but not before downing two enemy aircraft as well as providing harassing and covering fire for his shipmates in the water. Within minutes the Armidale sinks below the waves, dragging Teddy down with her to his death. Eyewitnesses report tracer fire coming from Teddy's gun as the ship disappears beneath the waves. Just 49 Australian sailors survive that attack.

In subsequent weeks, the Armidale's captain submitted his official report. However, given the circumstances surrounding the compilation of the report, some errors and omissions of critical facts have since been recognised. Teddy Sheean would also be recognised, and to that end Ordinary Seaman Edward 'Teddy' Sheean was awarded a Mention in Despatches for his actions on board the Armidale on 1 December 1942. On 1 May 1999 a Collins class submarine was commissioned the HMAS Sheean, in Teddy's honour. It is the only ship in the Royal Australian Navy to bear the name of a sailor.

Almost 80 years after that tragic military battle, and following much scrutiny and investigation on behalf of the government, appropriate recognition will now be afforded to this brave and courageous young sailor. Following the Prime Minister's recommendation and subsequent approval by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Ordinary Seaman Edward 'Teddy' Sheean is to be posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for Australia. In doing so, Ordinary Seaman Edward 'Teddy' Sheean becomes the first member of the Royal Australian Navy to be awarded Australia's highest award for valour. Teddy is the 101st Australian, and the 15th Tasmanian, to receive the Victoria Cross. A proud and grateful state, Tasmania has the honour of being home to more Victoria Cross recipients per capita than any other state or territory in the nation. The award of the Victoria Cross for Australia is our pre-eminent award for valour. The Victoria Cross is the declaration for recording recognition of persons who, in the presence of the enemy, perform acts of the most conspicuous gallantry or daring, or pre-eminent acts of valour or self-sacrifice.

Today this parliament recognises the supreme act of valour and sacrifice from Ordinary Seaman Edward 'Teddy' Sheean. In doing so, I would furthermore urge all Australians to consider the 100 Australian sailors who were killed during that action in this tragic event. I would urge them, also, to consider the bravery and the suffering of those 49 survivors on board the Armidale that day, and, indeed, the torment that they would have endured for the remainder of their lives. Today I urge Australians to reflect on courage, devotion to duty and the sacrifice that all men and women of our Defence Force make in defending our nation.

It is also important to consider that some things in history may be forgotten, but one thing that will always remain in the minds of Australians is the sacrifice made by our sailors, our soldiers and our airmen. Importantly, today, as a proud and grateful nation we collectively bow our heads and think back to that tragic day in December 1942. We remember the devastating loss of life due to war. Today we as a parliament stand united; we as a nation bow our heads. We give thanks for our freedom and our security. We remember that young 18-year-old from a farm in Tassie, that young bloke from the lower decks. We stand together, one and all, and we say: we'll never forget Teddy Sheean.

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