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A broadside is a single sheet of paper printed on one side – typically used to share news, announcements, and advertisements by being pasted in public spaces. Broadsides were ephemeral in nature and never intended to be preserved for future generations, making surviving examples rare.

This broadside reports on the trial of John Francis following his assassination attempt on Queen Victoria on 30 May 1842. He was convicted of high treason and sentenced to death, a sentence later commuted to transportation for life. Francis arrived in Van Diemen’s Land aboard the Marquis of Hastings and eventually received his ticket of leave. He found some success as a builder in Launceston, where examples of his work can still be seen, before spending his final years in Melbourne.