On February 13, 1943, mounted police intervened in the ‘Battle of Melbourne’, a street brawl between U.S. Marines and soldiers of the AIF Ninth Division in the city on leave. At the height of the brawl 2000 soldiers and civilians were involved in the melee, while thousands of spectators looked on.
First published in The Age on February 15, 1943
BIG MELEE IN CITY
Free-for-all in Flinders Street
One of the biggest street brawls Melbourne has ever known occurred in Flinders Street on Saturday shortly after 6 p.m. Soldiers, sailors, airmen and civilians were involved, and tram and other road traffic was held up for about an hour until the disturbance was quelled.
American soldiers and sailors stationed in Melbourne during World War II.Credit:Argus Collection
The melee was originated by two personal fights. One was between a soldier and an airman at the corner of Elizabeth and Flinders streets, and the other between a soldier and a sailor near the corner of Swanston Street. As other service men and civilians joined in, the two disturbances spread and merged into one free-for-all fracas at Degraves Street opposite the central entrance to Flinders Street Station.
Following a telephone message to police headquarters from the station master at Flinders Street wireless patrol cars and mounted police were promptly dispatched to the scene. Meanwhile the uniformed police and service provost corps were endeavouring to cope with the situation, which was fast getting out of hand. When the patrol and mounted police arrived it is estimated that a crowd of more than 2000 men were involved in the fracas.
U.S. Marines host members of the Australian Defence Force in March 1943 in a bid to defuse tensions after the brawl.
Meanwhile Flinders Street trams were banking up on the east side of Swanston Street and on the west side of Elizabeth Street. The crowd grew rapidly in numbers as passengers from trains arriving at Flinders Street crowded the footpath as spectators. At one period there were probably 3000 people congested in the short stretch between Swanston and Elizabeth streets.
Acting with commendable tact the police weaved amongst the excited combatants in an endeavour to break the crowd into segments as a preliminary to dispersing it, which was fortunately effected before anybody was seriously injured. Two constables’ helmets were knocked off their heads and trampled on. Another constable had his tunic slashed with a knife.
At the height of the melee participants removed their boots and used them as weapons, and a section of the mob bombarded the police with pears, peaches, plums and other fruits looted from a vendor’s stall. A rush to overturn prison van in which arrested civilians and service men had been placed was frustrated by the mounted police.
Later at the City Watchhouse two soldiers, an airman and two civilians were charged with offences arising out of the disturbance, and many service men were taken into custody by their provost corps.
In a bid to improve relations between the two forces, the Marines hosted a conciliatory ‘beer party’ for the two forces at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March. It was successful in overcoming tensions.
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