William Cuffay - Arrest and Transportation

Arrest and Transportation

Betrayed by a government spy, Cuffay was arrested and accused of "conspiring to levy war" against Queen Victoria. Despite being defended by eminent barrister John Walter Huddleston, he was convicted of preparing acts of arson, intended as a signal for the planned armed uprising. Sentenced to 21 years penal transportation, Cuffay spent the rest of his life in Tasmania.

Though he was pardoned three years after his conviction, Cuffay elected to stay in Tasmania, working as a tailor and involving himself in local politics. He died in poverty in the Hobart Invalid Depot in July 1870.

His courtroom speech was an exhibit at the Museum of London in 2011.

Cuffay was the subject of a 2010 BBC Radio 4 programme entitled Britain's Black Revolutionary written and presented by the former trades union leader Bill Morris.

Cuffay was also the subject of a 2011 ABC Hindsight radio documentary, entitled Isle of Denial: William Cuffay in Van Diemen's Land which was shortlisted in the NSW Premiers Award in 2012.

Cuffay's transportation to Australia did not end his political activity. He continued to organise and agitate for democratic rights in Tasmania for another 20 years until his death in 1870, at the age of 82. Cuffay's Chartist legacy is today enshrined in parliaments in Britain and Australia. His lifelong political activism remains an inspiration to those who believe in workers rights, human rights and democracy. Although Cuffay died a pauper, seven Australian newspapers in three states - Tasmania, NSW and Victoria - published obituaries. One observed that his grave had been "marked", should a memorial to him be built at some future time. The memorial never transpired, and Cuffay was forgotten in Australia and Britain. But now there's a move to build one - or perhaps even a statue!