The Miner's Licence was the colonial government's response to the Australian gold rushes and the need to provide infrastructure including policing. The Governor of New South Wales, Sir Charles Fitzroy invoked a sixteenth-century lawsuit, R v Earl of Northumberland (‘Case of Mines’) which was decided in 1568, to proclaim the Crown's right to all gold found in New South Wales. No man could dig for gold unless he had bought a licence. The charge for the licence was set at 30 shillings a month, an amount believed to be high enough to discourage unlucky diggers but not so high as to discourage rebellion.^[1] The Australian gold rushes started in 1851 when prospector Edward Hargraves proclaimed his discovery of gold near Bathurst, New South Wales, at a site Hargraves called Ophir. ... the flag of the Governor of New South Wales The Governor of New South Wales is the representative in the Australian state of New South Wales of Australias head of state, Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. ... Sir Charles Augustus FitzRoy KCH KCB (England, 10 June 1796 – February 16, 1858, London) was a British military officer and member of the aristocracy, who held governerships in several British colonies during the 19th century. ... Events March 23 - Peace of Longjumeau ends the Second War of Religion in France. ... The Crown is a term which is used to separate the government authority and property of the state in a kingdom from any personal influence and private assets held by the current Monarch. ... Capital Sydney Government Const. ...

Miner's did rebel, most notably at the Eureka Stockade, but there had been protests since its inception. As a result of the Eureka Stckade protest, the Miner's Right was introduced. The original Eureka Flag (Ballarat Fine Art Museum) The Eureka Stockade was a miners revolt in 1854 in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, against the officials supervising the gold-mining region of Ballarat due to many reasons, including heavily priced mining items, the expense of a Miners Licence, and unfair treatment. ...

References

1. ^ Blainey, Geoffrey (1963). The Rush That Never Ended. Melbourne University Press, pages 20-21.