A Distant Prospect – ISBN 9780987435101

Roderick Raye

Forty Thousand Horsemen (1940) — Roderick Raye is arguably the key character in A Distant Prospect, and to quite a few readers, the most beloved. Having established himself as a violinist in the Viennese music scene before the outbreak of the Great War, Phoebe Raye’s father had returned to Ballarat and subsequently enlisted in the […]

Roderick John Raye Trooper 13th Lighthorse

April 21, 2015 in Phoebe Raye / Roderick Raye / War by francis

Albury steam locomotive 1930 — Colonial rivalry saw different rail guages in Victoria and New South Wales, making Albury’s impressive station “All change!” for passengers and goods, when the lines met on 14 June 1863. Albury’s 455-metre platform accommodates two full-length trains. In 1847-48 all three colonies had adopted England’s 4’8 1/2″ standard rail guage, […]

Albury “All change!”, Australian rail guage and Roderick’s “Bally Rat”

June 15, 2014 in Ballarat / Phoebe Raye / Railways / Roderick Raye by francis

With a tree planted for each soldier from Ballarat who enlisted in the Great War, the Avenue of Honour was planted from 1917 to 1919 and stretches 22 km along the Western Highway, consisting of 3,771 trees. The completed Avenue was opened by the Prince of Wales in 1920, and […]

Ballarat’s Avenue of Honour and Phoebe’s father

May 25, 2014 in Ballarat / Phoebe Raye / Roderick Raye / War by francis

Waler horse — Discovering a secret stash of illustrated letters provides Phoebe Raye with a dramatic narrative of trench life from her father, Roderick, including comical tales of his beloved war horse on the Western Front. Phoebe leant over to look at the letter Pim was reading. Again it was illustrated with a […]

Gregory Allegri, the hardy Australian war horse

April 28, 2014 in Gregory Allegri / Phoebe Raye / Roderick Raye / War by francis