The Catalpa Rescue

The gripping story of the most dramatic and successful prison break in Australian history

Preview

Failed to add items

Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.

Add to basket failed.

Please try again later

Add to wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Remove from wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Adding to library failed

Please try again

Follow podcast failed

Unfollow podcast failed

Try Premium Plus free

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.

Unlimited access to our all-you-can-listen catalogue of 15K+ audiobooks and podcasts

Access exclusive sales and deals.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

The Catalpa Rescue

By: Peter FitzSimons

Narrated by: Michael Carman

Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £23.99

About this listen

The incredible true story of one of the most extraordinary and inspirational prison breaks in Australian history.

New York, 1874. Members of the Clan-na-Gael - agitators for Irish freedom from the English yoke - hatch a daring plan to free six Irish political prisoners from the most remote prison in the British Empire, Fremantle Prison in Western Australia. Under the guise of a whale hunt, Captain Anthony sets sail on the Catalpa to rescue the men from the stone walls of this hell on Earth known to the inmates as a 'living tomb'. What follows is one of history's most stirring sagas that splices Irish, American, British and Australian history together in its climactic moment.

For Ireland, who had suffered English occupation for 700 years, a successful escape was an inspirational call to arms. For America, it was a chance to slap back at Britain for their support of the South in the Civil War; for England, a humiliation. And for a young Australia, still not sure if it was Great Britain in the South Seas or worthy of being an independent country in its own right, it was proof that Great Britain was not unbeatable.

Told with FitzSimons' trademark combination of arresting history and storytelling verve, The Catalpa Rescue is a tale of courage and cunning, the fight for independence and the triumph of good men, against all odds.

Peter FitzSimonsMichael CarmanHachette Australia

Australia, New Zealand & Oceania

Europe

Oceania

Social Sciences

Australian History

Australia, New Zealand & Oceania Europe Oceania Social Sciences Australian History

Most relevant

Wow. I'm in tears having just heard the end of this meticulously researched, beautifully written, brilliant read.

An epic adventure to right one of the many terrible wrongs put upon Irish people by the English government, this book begins with an emotive explanation of the English government's horrendous treatment of the Irish during the Potato Famine and goes on to tell the tale of a group of Irishmen that dared to stand up to English rule. Told with clarity and sympathy, The Catalpa Rescue is both a ripping yarn of a page-turner about an audacious heist and a detailed examination of the Fenian fight for Irish independence during the second half of the 19th Century.