Regarding the shooting, here's the wikipedia entry:
"On March 12, 1868, on his second visit to Sydney while picnicking in the beachfront suburb of Clontarf, he was wounded in the back by a revolver fired by Henry James O'Farrell. The Prince was shot just to the right of his spine, and was tended for the next two weeks by six Florence Nightingale trained nurses led by Matron Lucy Osburn who were newly arrived in Australia (February 1868). On the evening of 23 March 1868, the most influential people of Sydney voted for a memorial building to be erected, “to raise a permanent and substantial monument in testimony of the heartfelt gratitude of the community at the recovery of HRH”. This led to a public conscription which paid for the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital's construction. Prince Alfred soon recovered from his injury and was able to resume command of his ship and return home in early April 1868. Henry James O'Farrell was arrested at the scene, quickly tried, convicted and hanged on 21 April 1868." This was despite Prince Alfred's attempts to intercede to save his would-be killer, and his questionable state of mind.
I believe O'Farrell was a Fenian. He is the first recorded man in Australia's history to attempt a political assassination. Immediately before the attempt he had been released from a mental asylum. "O'Farrell first claimed, falsely, to be under orders from the Fenian Brotherhood though he was violently anti-British and anti-Royalist, he denied being a Fenian." (wikipedia)
Here's a link to the story of the assassination attempt:
http://www.shoalhaven.net.au/~cathyd/history/prince.html
