Australia is at War

851 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Effects of world war 1 on britain

‘Australia is at War’ is a primary source from the year 1939 and is a speech by renowned Prime Minister Robert Gordon Menzies (1894 – 1978). This speech was delivered at the beginning of World War II declaring Australia’s participation and assistance to its “Mother Land”, Great Britain. World War II was developed and initiated by the infamous Adolf Hitler, a notorious German leader and the head of the Nazis. German’s invasion of Poland initiated Great Britain’s move towards force rather than their original approach of negotiations and peace, as stated in Prime Minister Menzies’ speech, “they [Great Britain] have kept the door of negotiations open; they have given no cause for provocation.” So the purpose of this source, Menzies speech, which was broadcasted on national radio, was to inform Australia of the drastic measures that were to be taken against Germany in the defence for their Mother Land. As Australia had only pronounced federation a mere thirty-eight years earlier, Great Britain was still referred to as the “Mother Land”, as it was still greatly depended upon it, concluding that when Great Britain had declared war upon Germany, as a result, Australia too was also at war. From Australia’s contribution to Great Britain began the rise of varies army reinforcement groups such as AIF (the Australian Imperial Force), RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force), RAN (Royal Australian Navy) and many more.

Prime Minister Menzies announced this speech to the whole of Australia on a radio broadcast to enlighten the nation of the beginning of World War II, Australia’s involvement and the circumstances surrounding this catastrophe that affected the whole of the world. Robert Menzies was born on 20th of December 1894 in Victoria, Australia a...

... middle of paper ...

...peech ‘Australia is at War’ spoken by Prime Minister Robert Menzies at the outbreak of World War II in 1939 is a trustworthy and accurate primary source. The national announcement broadcasted by Menzies himself was addressing Australia of their forces uniting and aiding Great Britain in their war against Hitler and Germany. Justifiable historians and authors such as Joan Beaumont, Allen Martin and Christopher Waters’ work corroborates with the contents and purpose of Robert Menzies speech to display its accurateness and reliability.

Works Cited

Beaumont, Joan. Australia's War 1939-45. Sydney: Southwood Press, 1996.

Martin, Allen William. Robert Menzies: A Life. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1993.

Waters, Christopher. "The Menzies Government and the Grand Alliance During 1939." Australian Journal of Polotocs and History 56.4 (2012): 560-573.

Show More
Related

  • Aboriginal Involvement In Ww1 Essay

    820 Words  | 2 Pages

    On September 3, 1939 Prime Minister, Robert Gordon Menzies, declared the commencement of Australia's involvement in the Second World War on every national and commercial radio station. From 1942 until early 1944, Australian forces, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders played a key role in the Pacific War forming the majority of Allied strength throughout the South West Pacific. Aboriginal and Torres Strait islanders affected Australia’s World War Two efforts in their extended volunteering and willingness to fight and die in the war. Aboriginal people were a crucial part of defending the Australian home front, in which they had limited or no rights. Many experienced equal treatment to white Australians for the first time in their

    Read More

  • John Curtin's Speech Analysis

    889 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Curtin, Prime Minister of Australia from 1941 – 1945, significantly supported the movement towards an Australian-American relationship. In his speech the Task Ahead, he states “Without any inhibitions of any kind, I make it quite clear that Australia looks to America, free of any pangs as to our traditional links or kinship with the United Kingdom.” This speech was supported by newspapers around the country, possibly showing bias, but it is unlikely that Curtin's statement had a major influence on the US military strategy. A close alliance between the two countries was inevitable, as they both shared the same goal - to defeat the Japanese (John.curtin.edu.au, n.d.; Australian Geographic, 2012) and control the Pacific. However, the effect of this statement on the Australian people can be seen in the newspapers from the time period. H.R Knickerbocker, states “It is the bounden duty of the U.S. to strain every nerve and every effort to ship to Australia today and tomorrow, every available fighter bomber and masses of army marines and navy” (Fall of Singapore: What it Means to Us, 1942, from nla.gov.au). This statement is a clear example of Australia’s new found reliance on the United States, showing how Australia has become dependent on the U.S providing it with resources and

    Read More

  • Kokoda Campaign Analysis

    735 Words  | 2 Pages

    3 September 1939 when Australia joined the war playing a significant role in World War 2, winning a lot of their campaigns. Almost million Australians, both men and women helped win WW2 all over the world. The war started for Australia when Great Britain declared war on Germany. This lead to Australia fighting in Germany and Italy in Europe, the Mediterranean and North Africa, Japan in south-east Asia and other parts of the Pacific. Australia was involved in one of the most important battles in WWII, Kokoda track campaign in 1942. There are several reasons why this battle was so significant. Firstly, Kokoda track campaign stopped the invasion of Australia. Secondly, the Kokoda track campaign lead to the victory of WWII with the defeat of Japan. Lastly, the conditions that all the troops at the Kokoda campaign had to go through was atrocious and against the ally troop’s odds. This battle leads to the development of the nation. This is why Kokoda was the most important battle fought by the Australian’s in WWII.

    Read More

  • The Threat Of Communism In Australia Essay

    859 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prime Minister Robert Menzies was a believer in the need for ‘great and powerful friends’ and the idea of ‘forward defence’. Before the 1949 federal election, Menzies campaigned on the representation of the Labor Party as out of touch with Australia’s postwar ambitions. He was aided by Chifley’s willpower to cover union wage stresses and control increase. Predominantly injuring for Labor was a Communist-led coal strike in New South Wales, and the government’s practice of troops to

    Read More

  • The Role of Women in Australian Society During World War II

    985 Words  | 2 Pages

    In summary, Australian society experienced a phenomenal change during the World War II era upon consideration of women’s roles. The contribution to World War II made by women was significant. They took part in every opportunity that arose, which shows the desperation of change that women wanted. The government’s support for women to work outside their traditional gender expectations, the chance for women to achieve more knowledge with regards to military, the creation of the Women’s Land Army and voluntary work all play a major role in changing the social status and working lives of women. World War II expanded the roles of women in Australian society in ways that were thought to be ridiculous. In short, the role of women in Australian society changed phenomenally during the World War II era.

    Read More

  • Why Australia Joined World War I In 1914

    604 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1914, Australia joined the First World War. Although it was seen as a European war, the Australia government decided that Australia should support its 'Mother Country', Britain. The prime-minister at the time, Joseph Cook, stated Australia's position : "Whatever happens, Australia is a part of the Empire, right to the full. When the Empire is at war, Australia is at war." Many Australians objected to the country's involvement in the war, but the majority of the population agreed with the government's decision. Australia joined the war for many reasons, but two main reasons were :

    Read More

  • The Significance of the Gallipoli Campaign in Australian History

    882 Words  | 2 Pages

    middle of paper ... ... The willingness of the Australian people to volunteer and help out in the war effort was outstanding. Australians also showed great pride and allegiance to England. One of the problems with people being so ready and willing to volunteer is they didn’t fully understand the realities of war.

    Read More

  • Australian Enlistment to World War I

    1429 Words  | 3 Pages

    The First World War or World War 1 was a conflict between Britain and Germany, which spread over Europe predominantly beginning on the 28th of July 1914 until the 11th of November 1918. AS soon as the war began, Prime Minister Andrew Fisher's government pledged full support for Britain in an effort to defend Britain or the “Mother Country”. As enlistment came up for Australian men, thousands people across the country rushed to enlist for what they thought would be an opportunity to adventure Europe with the war supposedly ending before Christmas. With the propaganda at the government’s advantage, they could easily manipulate the Australian’s public view on what life, as a soldier would be like. As the pain of loss began to strike the citizens of Australia, views on what war was like changed and reality began to hit. This meant enlistment around Australia was significantly reduced especially after Gallipoli where there were the most casualties, which hit Australia hard. As time grew on

    Read More

  • Causes of Australian Women during World War 2

    1652 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the year of 1939, Australia had joined the war effort. In this year Poland had been invaded by Hitler resulting in Britain declaring war on Germany. This declaration initially meant that Australia would be called to support Britain. Many Australian men enlisted in the armed forces leaving predominately women on the home front. This movement initially affected the Australian home front where the labour force had predominately consisted of men. In order for the Australian economy and war effort to function it was clearly evident that all members of Australian society would need to chip in.

    Read More

  • Australia And War

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Australian participation in WW2 was similar to that of WW1 in many ways. After the British declared war on Germany on September 3rd 1939, an Australian declaration of war was automatic. Aussie troops were soon sent to different parts of the world to help the British and other allied countries. It was not until late 1941 that they were recalled in order to defend the homefront. Darwin had been suddenly attacked by Japanese planes and small enemy submarines had snuck into Sydney Harbour. Darwin was repeatedly bombed by Japanese planes until July 1941, when along with American troops, the Aussies managed to drive them out of the Solomon Islands and northeastern New Guinea and eliminate a strong Japanese base at Rabaul. Without General MacArthur's troops, the enemy may very well have invaded Australia. This illustrates the importance of alliances.

    Read More

  • The Black Rat Essay

    638 Words  | 2 Pages

    Good morning members of the Mt Gravatt show society. Did you know that World War Two is known as the most destructive war in history? It killed over 60 million people and had a lot more far-reaching impacts than any other wars. Published in 1988 in Inside Black Australia, an anthology of Aboriginal poetry, “The Black Rat” by a famous author and researcher, Iris Clayton, was a poem inspired by her father, Cecil, who fought in the war. The poem describes the depressing life of an Aboriginal soldier who helped off the German army at Tobruk at the time. The message in the poem is that the Aboriginal soldiers did not receive the benefits that European soldiers received, like farming lands after the war ended. This tells how unjust the European society was in Australia’s history.

    Read More

  • The Unintended Consequences of Gallipoli

    547 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Gallipoli became the common tie forged in adversity that bound the colonies and people of Australia into a nation.” (www.army.gov.au)

    Read More

  • Robert Menzies Impact On Australian Culture

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    Robert Menzies was the Australian Prime Minister from 1939 through to 1941, before being re-elected and serving as Prime Minister again from 1949-1966. As Australia’s longest-serving Prime Minister; having served for over 18 years; his impact on Australian culture at the time, and until this day is far reaching. A series of speeches; which were Menzies’ most memorable; which was ironically delivered outside of his time as a Prime Minister and on a radio show; centred on “The Forgotten People”’; the Australian middle-class of his day and how they had been forgotten by the political establishment of the day.

    Read More

  • Australian War Time Propaganda

    977 Words  | 2 Pages

    War time propaganda and censorship has been widely recognised as a means of ‘managing public opinion and boosting morale’ (dl.nfsa.gov.au, n.d.). This control of information was handled by the Department of Information, which was set up at the start of WWII to control the production and censoring of information. Primarily, the government controlled information that was being presenting to the Australian public through the radio and print media, with a view to maintaining high morale and projecting a positive image of the allied action.

    Read More

  • ‘We Shall Fight on the Beaches’- A Rhetorical Analysis

    1568 Words  | 4 Pages

    In order to fully comprehend the reasons for Churchill’s speech and the vast response of relief from the population, one must understand the events leading up to its giving. On June 4

    Read More

More about Australia is at War

Open Document