Over 120 years ago in the remote Roper River region of the Northern Territory, an Alawa man displayed extraordinary bravery that caught a king’s attention. Ayaiga had been arrested for stealing from a cattle station and was being escorted to Leichhardt’s Bar Police Station by Constable William Francis Johns, a heavyweight boxing champion of the Australian Police. When Johns was knocked unconscious attempting to cross a flooded creek, Ayaiga heroically saved him from drowning despite being manacled by the neck. He became the only Indigenous Australian awarded the Albert Medal for Gallantry in Saving Life.
| ISBN | 9781922507785 |
|---|---|
| Format | Hardback |
| Number of Pages | 48 |
| Published | 14/02/2026 |
| Publisher | NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA |
| Dimensions | 21 × 25 cm |




