Family’s 15-year fight for Indigenous soldier’s Victoria Cross
A 15-year effort to award Australia’s highest military honour to an Indigenous soldier for the first time is being “carefully considered” by Defence after a prolonged campaign by the WWI soldier’s great-nephew.
In the early hours of an August day in 1918, New South Welshman William Irwin Allen is said to have snuck off from his battalion after days of being pinned down by German machine guns and suffering heavy casualties.
The 40-year-old took out three machine guns and was mortally wounded trying to take out a fourth; he died of shrapnel wounds a few hours later.
Private Allen was awarded a Distinguished Conduct Medal. Another courageous soldier, Private George Cartwright – who made it home to the same region of country NSW – was awarded the Victoria Cross for taking out one machine gun on the same day; an effort that is said to have inspired his battalion to advance.
In Australia’s official history of WWI, Private Cartwright’s heroism is detailed, whereas Private Allen is referred to as “Pte. Irwin, an Australian half-caste, after attacking like Cartwright, was mortally wounded”.
Growing up, Private Allen’s great-nephew, Peter Milliken, was well aware of Private Cartwright’s Victoria Cross; it was a point of great pride around the New England region.
For the past 15 years, Mr Milliken has been lobbying defence ministers and the military bureaucracy to get his uncle’s medal upgraded.
“He’s been overlooked for over 100 years and I’ve been writing letters to these people for the last 15 years; same reply, same result, ‘the medal he got was the medal that he deserved’. Well really?” Mr Milliken said.
“They were pinned down for two days and they had 3000 casualties.”
Australia’s official history of WWI says Private Cartwright took it upon himself to stand up, shoot at one of the “troublesome” German machine gun crews pinning down the 33rd Battalion, explode a bomb near the enemy trench to mask his attack, and then rush in and capture nine Germans.
“The 33rd stood up and cheered him and then advancing by twos and threes entered the wood. Pte Irwin, an Australian half-caste, after attacking like Cartwright, was mortally wounded,” Charles Bean’s 1941 official history of the war says.
If his uncle’s actions are ever recognised with a Victoria Cross, Mr Milliken wants to collect it from King Charles.
“I think it’s going to be a big thing for Australia and it will open a lot of eyes, you know? A lot of people don’t realise Aboriginal people actually fought in this war,” Mr Milliken said.
The grandson of a “full-blood Aboriginal” and with an Irish soldier grandfather, Mr Milliken says his great-uncle would have moved across the battlefield with stealth.
“He snuck out in the middle of the night, bullets flying all around him. But as an Aboriginal man, he was taught a lot of things as a kid … to not be seen. Like a snake in the grass. You can’t see a snake in the grass.”
“I think William Allen’s story should have been told a long time ago and we might not have the division that we’ve got today.”
A fragment of that division reared its head on Anzac Day two weeks ago. Men in the crowds of the Sydney, Melbourne and Perth Dawn Services booed Indigenous elders giving Welcome to Country addresses.
In Sydney, Uncle Ray Minniecon was booed as he opened the Dawn Service at Martin Place. Wearing his military medals on the left breast of his suit, the Pastor regained his composure.
After the service, the 75-year-old told the ABC: “We have experienced this type of racism for over 230-odd years.
“It really is a whitefella problem, not a blackfella problem.”
As Aboriginal men with ties to military service, Mr Milliken has met Uncle Ray many times and sees the booing as highly disrespectful.
“I thought they were pretty rude, especially with Ray. Ray’s a hell of a nice fella … he’s just a decent person. I know him personally and I’ve sat with Ray and spoke to him about William Allen over the years,” Mr Milliken said.
Born William Irwin Allen, the 37-year-old shearer enlisted under the name William Allan Irwin so the recruiter would not know he was Indigenous.
Denied the same rights as white Australians at the time because of his ethnicity, Private Allen signed up to the Australian Imperial Force on January 3, 1916 at Narrabri, swearing allegiance to King George V.
Twice on Europe’s western front he was wounded and sent to England to recover.
Letters show after he was killed, NSW authorities could not contact his father to relay the news.
On his body when he died was a box of needles, one coin, two rings, one purse, one mark note, a damaged wrist watch and chain, two religious books, a YMCA wallet, photos, letters and cards.
He was buried in France the day he died.
One-hundred and four years later, Mr Milliken stood at the grave for the first time.
The trip to France, Private Allen’s actions and the push for a Victoria Cross are the subject of a documentary by filmmaker Dylan Nicholls.
“There’s probably at least 16 soldiers who took out three or less machine guns and got awarded the VC,” Mr Nicholls told NewsWire.
“There’s a number of them who took out one (machine gun) and got the VC as well. So he definitely deserved it, if you look at the history and what other VCs were awarded for.
“If it wasn’t for the family who just always knew this story, and passing it down to the next generation, you wonder whether he would have been forgotten.”
Both Mr Nicholls and Mr Milliken say Private Cartwright deserves Australia’s highest military honour.
“I’m someone who’s not here to say that George didn’t deserve it. If he got awarded the VC, in my eyes, he deserved it. That’s anyone that’s been awarded the VC,” Mr Nicholls said.
“It’s just interesting when you read that little excerpt from that chapter it talks about how George got up and took one machine gun; how it was this heroic brave thing to do and it had a really positive impact on the line and they all start to move forward.
“And then the sentence after it says a ‘half-caste Australian acted similarly’. This Indigenous Australian actually took out three machine guns, he didn’t attack similarly.
“It wasn’t the same act of bravery. This bloke took out three and then went to take out a fourth and was fatally wounded. So I sort of felt like that diminished his act of bravery.”
As forcibly removed, ostracised non-citizens back home, Indigenous soldiers found refuge in the trenches.
“It was the first time they were treated equal and had equal wages,” the Yuwaalaraay man from northwest NSW said.
“They all went over there and did their bit and sacrificed their lives. It was such a good example of what Australia can be, this unified country.”
A petition launched by the filmmaker three weeks ago to get the award upgraded has reached 4000 signatures.
As part of the documentary, Mr Milliken and Mr Nicholls visited the area where Private Allen was mortally wounded.
Standing at the crossroads where he attacked the Germans, a military historian said the Private likely knew he would die.
“There would have been no expectation that he was going to survive this. The only reason he did it was because he didn’t want to see any more of his mates being killed,” Mr Nicholls said.
“You could imagine if you took out one machine gun you’d think ‘Good job. I’ve done my part today’. He goes to take out a second, and then goes to take out a third, and goes to take out the fourth and he’s fatally wounded.
“When you look at the criteria for the Victoria Cross and how it’s all about this conspicuous gallantry, this self-sacrifice, this act of valour, it’s what William did to a tee.”
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Graeme Mickelberg, an infantryman like Private Allen, has read all the VC citations for the four day battle across August and September 1918, and says Private Allen should have been among them.
“I looked at all of them and essentially I was struck by the fact that Irwin’s actions met and in some cases exceeded those of others who were awarded the Victoria Cross,” he said.
Following 42 years in the army, Mr Mickelberg now works with people trying to have their Australian military service recognised.
That work includes helping a group of soldiers who served in Malaysia in their dealings with the Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal and the current Veterans’ Affairs Minister.
“I’m horribly offended by the way that Peter Milliken and his family have been treated. I mean this is all about … you mustn’t lose sight of the fact that you’re dealing with a bureaucracy,” Mr Mickelberg said.
“Bureaucracies are, fundamental to it, is they hate to ever admit that there might have been a mistake.
“One thing I can’t abide is hypocrisy. We have our politicians in particular, not all of them … will turn up on Anzac Day and look sombre and make all the right noises about veterans and then promptly forget about them for the next 364 days of the year.
“I just think that we can’t allow that to occur.”
The Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal is legally constrained to only review cases from WWII onwards. But there is precedent for ministers to review and change awards decisions.
The family of Edward “Teddy” Sheehan pushed for 30 years to have the 18-year-old WWII Ordinary Seaman awarded a Victoria Cross. In 2020, Prime Minister Scott Morrison recommended to the Queen that Ordinary Seaman Sheehan be given the award after multiple reviews and a political and bureaucratic back-and-forth.
As happened with Ordinary Seaman Sheehan, Mr Mickelberg wants the Prime Minister to pull together an expert panel to review Private Allen’s award.
“I just think that there’s certainly a case to be made,” Mr Mickelberg says of Mr Milliken’s efforts.
“Is it easy to do this? Not at all. But having said that, it was done for Teddy Sheenan.”
Mr Mickelberg reached out to Mr Milliken after watching Mr Nicholls’ film.
“I was incredibly saddened by the view of the family when he’d come back from France.” he said.
“The great-nephew brought a bag of dirt back with him from the grave and they sprinkled it around the gravesites of his brothers.
“And I thought, ‘We’ve got to do something for these people’.”
Following an extended version of the film Yaluu being released on April 26, and questions posed by NewsWire, a spokesperson for Defence Minister Richard Marles’ office said Private Allen’s award was “under careful consideration” by the Department of Defence.
“We honour the courage, endurance and mateship of all who have served, including First Nations Australians, whose contributions span every conflict and commitment involving Australian Defence contingents since Federation,” the spokesperson said.
In 2025, Defence did a “merit assessment” of Private Allen’s actions and ruled his efforts aligned with the modern day Star of Gallantry, which is equivalent to the Imperial Distinguished Conduct Medal that he received.
The independent Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal can only review WWI medals if directed by the government.
The Directorate of Honours and Awards sits within the Department of Defence. An assistant director from the department wrote to Mr Milliken in September 2025.
“It is no longer possible to be sure, without indisputable evidence, exactly what happened in the action in which Private Irwin was involved,” the public servant writes.
“Defence are confident that on the available evidence, and without any additional authoritative documentary evidence, that the awarding of the Distinguished Conduct Medal was the appropriate award for the actions of Private Irwin and will not be recommending the awarding of the Victoria Cross for Australia,” he wrote in September 2025.
