William Redfern (1774 – 17 July 1833) was an English-raised surgeon in early colonial Australia who was transported to New South Wales as a convict for his role in the mutiny on the Nore. He is widely regarded as the "father of Australian medicine". Early life Redfern was born in County Antrim and raised in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England. He was surgeon's apprentice to his older brother Thomas and passed the examination of the London Company of Surgeons in 1797. He was commissioned as a surgeon's mate aboard the 64-gun . Mutiny Redfern was aboard Standard in 1797 when the crew rose against the officers in the Nore mutiny. For his actions Redfern was sentenced to death, however, the court "recommended mercy on account of his professional situation" and his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. According to a letter written by Lachlan Macquarie, Redfern requested transportation to New South Wales. After spending four years in English jails he was transported in 1801. Career on Norfolk Island Redfern was granted a conditional pardon following his arrival in Sydney and was transferred to Norfolk Island as assistant surgeon to that newly established colony. On 19 June 1803 he received a full pardon from the colony's governor, Philip Gidley King, but remained on Norfolk Island in his previous role. He remained on the island as assistant surgeon from May 1802 to 1808, when he returned to Sydney. Career in New South Wales As early as 1804 Redfern began advocating for the use of a new smallpox vaccine. After an examination of his level of medical knowledge by the Surgeon-General of New South Wales, Thomas Jamison, it was certified that Redfern was "qualified to exercise the profession of a surgeon, etc". In 1808 he returned to Sydney and was appointed by Governor Joseph Foveaux to the role of assistant surgeon for the new Sydney Hospital. Foveaux planned to confirm Redfern's appointment and stated that his "skill and ability in his profession are unquestionable, and his conduct has been such as to deserve particular approbation". Redfern's status was further enhanced following the arrival of Governor Lachlan Macquarie in 1810. Macquarie was keen to rehabilitate emancipated convicts, noting that "emancipation, when united with rectitude and long-tried good conduct, should lead a man back to that rank in society which he had forfeited". Few among the emancipated convicts were suitable for this elevation, with Macquarie observing that