A local Hero - Edward “Teddy” Sheean
Teddy was born at Barrington, in North Western Tasmania on the 28 December 1923. He grew up in Latrobe and attended the St. Patrick’s Catholic School until he started working with his father as a carpenter and woodcutter.
With the Second World War raging in Europe and The Middle East, and the possibility of war with Japan, Teddy enlisted with the Royal Australian Navy as an Ordinary Seaman, on the 21 April 1941. He was 17 years and 4 months of age.
While attached to HMAS Derwent he served aboard the auxiliary minesweeper HMAS Coombar. On his 18th birthday he joined HMAS Cerberus at Western Port, Victoria, to undertake further training and he was later posted to HMAS Penguin on the 11 May 1942. Whilst at HMAS Penguin he was posted to the new Bathurst Class corvette HMAS Armidale as part of the commissioning crew.
On the 22 August 1942 the Armidale departed from Sydney for the last time. After escort duties along Australia’s northern coastline, the Armidale was sent to support Australian operations in Timor.
About 3.15 pm on the 1 December 1942 the Japanese attacked the ship fiercely from the air. Apart from her normal crew of 83, HMAS Armidale had on board three Australian Army personnel, two Dutch Army officers and 61 Indonesian troops. About two-thirds of the Indonesians were in the forward mess deck and were killed as a result of the hit. The Armidale was severely damaged and the captain ordered, “abandon ship”. The enemy was machine-gunning survivors in the water, and although Teddy Sheean was wounded he manned the 20mm Oerlikon gun and began firing at the attacking aircraft. He shot down one plane and damaged two others. Teddy remained at the gun and continued firing as the ship went down. Even when the ship was almost totally submerged, tracer bullets from the Oerlikon gun were shooting from under the water. Teddy gave up his chance to escape and died on the 1 December 1942, trying to save his mates.
Forty-seven of the one hundred and forty nine men aboard lost their lives. For his act of selfless bravery he was posthumously Mentioned in Despatches, second only to a posthumous Victoria Cross. Many of those who made it into the water and ultimately survived owe their lives to Teddy and his act of heroism.
In 1987 by the Royal Australian Navy Corvettes Association erected a plaque in memory of Sheean in Corvettes’ Corner at Shropshire Park, Ulverstone, Tasmania.
In May 1999 The Royal Australian Navy honoured Teddy Sheean by naming its fifth Collins class submarine after him. The first warship in the history of the Australian and British navies to be named after an Ordinary Seaman.
His memory is not only commemorated in the naming of the submarine, but also in its crest. HMAS Sheean’s crest features an Oerlikon (mounted gun) in a base of embattled azure blue. The blue represents the navy and the sea, while the green represents the farming fields and Mount Roland near Teddy’s hometown of Latrobe. The division in the fields is known in heraldic terms as “embattled” and in this context signifies that he died in battle. The Oerlikon represents the weapon, which Teddy manned to the last.
Atop the crests is a naval crown formed of sails and sterns of ships known as a Coronal Navalis, which was originally awarded to Roman heroes of sea battles. Between the motto and crest is the boomerang, axe and clubbing stick, which recognizes the traditional weapons of Australia’s indigenous heritage.
The submarine’s motto “fight on” reflects the stand taken by Ordinary Seaman.
Latrobe has also paid tribute to Teddy Sheean. With a memorial that depicts Teddy’s life as well as his final hours on the HMAS Armidale and it is also the starting point of “Sheean Walk”. The memorial was officially opened on the 12 December 1992. Sheean Walkway starts in the main street of Latrobe, at "Teddy Sheean Memorial", and then follows the old railway line to the River Road junction, at Bell's Parade. Sheean Walk has a number of plaques detailing the various conflicts of World War II and pays homage to those involved in the Malaya, Borneo, Vietnam and Korean conflicts.
Information on this story comes from: A local hero leaflet, Teddy Sheean and the loss of HMAS Armidale, Port of Devonport Corporation News Magazine Winter 2001
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It's nice to know that Latrobe had some very brave people and that history is just as good as the past.
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Mr. Robin EDWARD SHEEAN
Im TEDDY SHEEANS nephew. I am so very proud to have been involved in the early process of having him recognised , yet at a great cost me! Re: my relationship with my father!
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Mrs. Donna Wright
I came across the comments made by Robin Edward Sheean. I guess I am Teddies great niece as Robin is my estranged father. Robin, if you find this I am living in Victoria and my surname is Wright.
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