Editing Republicanism in Australia (section)

===Before federation===
In his journal ''The Currency Lad'', first published in Sydney in 1832, pastoralist and politician [[Horatio Wills]] was the first person to openly espouse Australian republicanism. Born to a [[convicts in Australia|convict]] father, Wills was devoted to the [[emancipist]] cause and promoted the interests of "[[currency (lads and lasses)|currency lads and lasses]]" (Australian-born Europeans).<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Currency Lad (Sydney, NSW : 1832-1833) |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/title/1468 |access-date=27 September 2022 |website=Trove |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Eureka Flag.svg|thumb|left|A modern version of the [[Eureka Flag]]. The flag is a popular option for the [[Australian flag debate|new flag of an Australian Republic]].]]
Some leaders and participants of the revolt at the [[Eureka Stockade]] in 1854 held republican views and the incident has been used to encourage republicanism in subsequent years, with the [[Eureka Flag]] appearing in connection with some republican groups.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.norepublic.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=92&Itemid=24 |title=Eureka – Australia's Historical Distraction |publisher=[[Australians for Constitutional Monarchy]]-date=13 June 2010}}</ref> The Australian Republican Association (ARA) was founded in response to the Eureka Stockade, advocating the abolition of governors and their titles, the revision of the penal code, payment of members of parliament, the nationalisation of land and an independent federal Australian republic outside of the [[British Empire]]. [[David Flint]], the national convener of [[Australians for Constitutional Monarchy]], notes that a movement emerged in favour of a [[White Australia policy|White Australia]] policy; however British authorities in [[Whitehall]] were opposed to segregational laws. He suggests that to circumvent Westminster, those in favour of the discriminatory policies backed the proposed secession from the Empire as a republic.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.norepublic.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=773&Itemid=4 |title=Flint, David; ''A White Republic''; December&nbsp;9, 2006 |publisher=Norepublic.com.au |date=10 December 2006 |access-date=13 June 2010}}</ref>

One attendee of the ARA meetings was the Australian-born poet [[Henry Lawson]], who wrote his first poem, entitled ''A Song of the Republic'', in ''The Republican'' journal.<ref name=lawson>{{cite book|title=The Captive Republic : A History of Republicanism in Australia 1788–1996 (Studies in Australian History)|url=https://archive.org/details/captiverepublich0000mcke|url-access=registration|author=Mark McKenna|year=1996}}</ref>
{{blockquote|Banish from under your bonny skies<br />Those old-world errors and wrongs and lies| [[Henry Lawson]]| ''A Song of the Republic''<ref name=lawson />}}