Outlaws of the Leopolds by Ion L Idriess

Book Description

Secondhand. Good condition. Wear to book covers, corners and edges. Previous owner has inscribed inside page. Book is now enclosed in protective non-adhesive cover. Missing dust jacket.

North West Australia - in the Wunaamin Miliwundi Ranges, formerly known as the King Leopold Ranges between 1879 and 2020, is the setting for the story of Aboriginal leader Jandamarra and his fight against white invasion of his country.

Jandamarra, also known as 'Pigeon', had been a black tracker of great prowess in the Kimberleys before suddenly turning against the whites. The tribes in his territory were classed as outstanding Aboriginal types. The gang he raised after killing a mounted constable in 1894 was formidable not only in numbers but in cunning and resourcefulness... (his) brilliant strategy, his coldly calculated opportunism, his use of interlocking cave-systems in the Leopolds for getaways, his courage and, above all, his remarkable ability to control his tribe, presented threats beyond the capacity of local patrols to handle.

Idriess suggests that if Jandamarra had just a little more time in the early stages of his campaign to organise his forces, he might have driven white men out of the Kimberleys altogether. (Trove)

Idriess spells Jandamarra as Sandamara.