Sheean VC statue unveiled on Remembrance Day
A message from Latrobe Council
On Remembrance Day in Latrobe, Tasmania, Chief of Navy Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AO RAN, alongside Tasmanian Deputy Premier Guy Barnett MHA, Latrobe Council’s Mayor Peter Freshney, and Sheean’s nephew, Garry Ivory, unveiled a life-sized statue of Edward “Teddy” Sheean VC as part of the commemoration service.
Teddy Sheean died in 1942, at the age of 18, defending his mates as they abandoned their sinking ship while under attack from Japanese aircraft. He was posthumously awarded Australia’s highest military honour in 2020 after a decades-long campaign by his family, making him the first and, so far only, Royal Australian Navy Victoria Cross of Australia recipient.
Deputy Premier Barnett said that now that it is immortalised forever more in Latrobe, Teddy’s statue is a defining part of his legacy.
‘It allows future generations of Tasmanians to gaze upon the face of heroism,’ Deputy Premier Barnett said.
‘Today is immense – Edward ‘Teddy’ Sheean VC is a national hero, he’s my hero, and I couldn’t be prouder.’
As a part of the statue project, two plaques were also commissioned. One details the efforts of many, since the 1950s, to have Sheean’s heroism appropriately recognised. The other, tells of the process in awarding the Victoria Cross for Australia – the ultimate goal of those who struggled for Sheean’s deserved recognition.
The service concluded with the Chief of Navy presenting another honour, the Renaming Directive of the Training Ship (TS) Mersey to TS Sheean, to its commanding officer. This honour also included the revealing of a new badge and life-ring designed to connect TS Sheean and Ordinary Seaman Teddy Sheean VC, ensuring the sacrifice of Sheean VC continues to be honoured into the future.
Edward Sheean of Merseylea, Tasmania, enlisted in the Royal Australian Navy on 21 April 1941.
On 1 December 1942, in the Arafura Sea enroute to Timor, his corvette HMAS Armidale was attacked 3 times by Japanese bombers, fighters and a float plane. Armidale was hit twice by torpedoes and the order was given to “abandon ship”. Sheean was helping to launch a lifeboat but seeing the aircraft return to machine gun survivors in the water, moved to the ship’s aft Oerlikon gun. On the way, he was wounded by artillery.
He strapped himself into the Oerlikon gun, an action guaranteeing that he would not survive, and started firing at the attacking aircraft. He is attributed to bringing down one and damaging two other aircraft. He continued firing even while the ship sank, pulling him under and drowning him.
For this act of heroism, Sheean was Mentioned in Despatches 'for bravery and devotion to duty when HMAS Armidale was lost’. Over many years and after two hearings (2013 and 2019), this was finally upgraded to the Victoria Cross for Australia in 2020.
Funded by the Tasmanian Government and Latrobe Council, the statue was created by international sculptors Gillie and Marc.
The statue’s design was led by the Latrobe Council, and included consultation with Sheean’s nephew Garry Ivory, the Executive of the Latrobe RSL&A Sub Branch and military uniform expert John Berryman.
The design of the statue merges two images of Sheean that captured his youthfulness and in a stance that the community would have recalled seeing him in during his short period of service.
Latrobe Council’s next process, emerging from this Memorial, is to progress the development of a HMAS ARMIDALE Memorial Park. The objective of this is to commemorate all on the Armidale at the time on its sinking – the survivors and those who perished.
This is a mammoth task that Council looks forward to for ongoing community and government support.
Images:
Mayor Peter Freshney, Chief of Navy Mark Hammond AO RAN, Mr Garry Ivory, Deputy Premier Guy Barnett MHA, Mr Jeffrey Garwood (President Latrobe RSL&A Sub Branch), Jim Shea (eldest nephew of Sheean VC)
Edward Sheean VC , (Australian War Memorial, No. 044154)
The Bathurst Class corvette HMAS Armidale in Port Moresby harbour after successfully convoying troopships and supply vessels from Australia. (Australian War Memorial, No. 026612)