Robert O’Hara Burke, born in 1821, and William John Wills, born 1834, were part of the expedition of the first Europeans to cross Australia south to north. This expedition was one of the most expensive in Australian history. Burke led the expedition, beginning in Melbourne on 20 August 1860 with 19 men. This number reduced as temporary camps were established for the return trip.
When leaving Cooper Creek in Queensland, Burke and Wills were accompanied by only two others – John King and Charles Gray. This smaller group reached the Gulf of Carpentaria in February 1861. Their return trip took longer than expected, contributing to communication issues and delays between the groups. These issues resulted in support teams just missing each other – errors which turned out to be fatal.
Struggling to survive on limited supplies, Burke and Wills died from accelerated malnutrition within a few days of each other in June 1861 due to eating nardoo. Nardoo is a plant which can break down thiamine and was regularly eaten by the local Traditional Owners, who carefully prepared the plant for it to be edible. However, Burke and Wills ate the plants raw, contributing to their deaths.
John King survived the expedition, with Gray also passing from malnutrition. On 15 September 1861 during a rescue mission King was found living with the local First Nations people.
Burke and Wills’ bodies were found and buried at the sites of their deaths in Queensland. They were re-buried in a vault at a later date. The pair were given Australia’s first state funeral on 21 January 1863, around 18 months after their deaths.
At this time, their monument was the largest stone monument in Victoria. The smaller headstone in front of the monument was established fifty years later.
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