Kokoda Campaign Case Study

In World War 1, all Australian soldier enlisted voluntarily. When the war first began, this was more than enough to support the war effort overseas. But, when the news of the casualties and conditions at war became known on the home front, the number of enlistments fell rapidly. Australia was under a lot of pressure from Britain to ensure that the promised number of men would be enlisted. Under a lot of stress, Prime Minister William Hughes came to the decision the hold a referendum to see if the people of Australia agreed or disagreed with conscription and compulsory service overseas.

World War One began in 1914 and it started with the assassination of the archduke of Austria-Hungary by a Serb. Austria-Hungary then declared war on Serbia, to which Serbia responded by turning to Russia for support. Eventually after many alliances there were two distinct sides, one on which was Britain. Britain, of course, being Australia's 'mother country' called on Australians for their support. There were drastic changes in Australian's attitudes over the period of WW1. Before the war, Australians were, in general, very supportive and enthusiastic about war. After WW1 began the reality of the severity of war dawned and although there was still support for the soldiers, their was a growing dissatisfaction with war especially as the death

As a result of WW1, Australia’s society became an unbiased environment for Women, because they were given the opportunity to do jobs that had been left empty by men who had gone to fight the Germans. Life for

Australia’s involvement in WW2 was significant because of their alliances with Great Britain and the USA. Australia was very close to Britain mainly because they founded Australia and Australia considered them their ‘mother country’. Young men also thought that war was a very brave and noble thing to do, it also gave them the opportunities to meet new people and protect those that they loved back at home. Threats from overseas were a huge reason

It is well recognised that World War 1 was a traumatic experience for the Australian nation. It claimed 60,000 young lives and another 156,000 men were wounded, gassed, or taken prisoner. But when the trauma abated, it became apparent that Australian society had been changed permanently and positively. Some of the gains realised by Australia as a result of her involvement in WWI included a newfound maturity as a nation, the respect and recognition of other nations, new opportunities for trade and industry, a greater recognition of women’s rights and a massive economic and population boost due to post war immigration programs. This web-site has been created to show you some of the benefits of World War One on Australia.

“At the start of World War 1, Australia was a nation of around four million people. This meant that there was a potential pool of around 820,000 men of ‘fighting age’ (between 19 and 38). With a total enlistment of 420,000 men in service for World War 1, the total population of Australia between 1914 and 1918 was 4.9 million.

World War 1 (1914-1918) was the first official war that Australians took part in, only thirteen years after federating as a country in 1901. During this time, thousands of lives were lost, families were torn apart, and friends were never seen again. April 25th became the national day to commemorate the ANZAC soldiers who had served overseas. Even now, 100 years later, people still remember those who sacrificed themselves for Australia, those who fought and fell in many battles to protect the country they lived in. The Gallipoli Campaign is the most famous battle of World War 1, the battle that every Australian household knows about. However, other battles such as the ones on the

Although both the World Wars had significant impacts on Australians, the statement that wartime controls in World War One had a greater impact on Australians than they did in World War Two is fairly inaccurate. There are a number of reasons as to why this was the case, as demonstrated through the government 's wartime controls. One of the wartime controls that was utilised by the government in both World Wars but had greater impact on Australians in World War Two was conscription. Another wartime control that had a higher degree of impact on Australians in World War Two than in World War One was the detainment and isolation of ‘enemy aliens’ when the government again took steps to protect their national security. With such a large number of servicemen deployed overseas, the role of women in Australia also changed drastically to meet the needs of the armed forces, the government and the economy and this influenced Australian life more in World War Two. Therefore, although both wars affected the lives of many Australians in mental, physical, social and economic aspects, the wartime controls of World War Two had a much greater impact on Australians than in World War One.

The Australian home front during WWI was drastically altered politically through the conscription vote that Billy Hughes, Prime Minister of Australia, believed necessary. 50,000 Australian men had signed up for the war before the year of 1914 had come to an end – which was a rate of over 10,000 per month – but the enlistment numbers dropped way down to 6,000 for the month of the Gallipoli landing in 1915. Once again, however, the numbers rose sharply on the home front after the news of the landing came back home, as many wished to avenge their fallen countrymen, and nobody could question the solemnity of the conflict. With five whole divisions overseas, Australia had to stay committed to their recruitment for the

The Great War was known as ‘the war to end all wars’ as it had such a dramatic and tragic impact on soldiers and civilians alike. Many aspects of the conscription debate, the home front, trench warfare and weaponry had a significant impact on Australia and its involvement in the war.

WWII had a large impact on the lives of Australian women. As the men were away from their homes and daily lives fighting overseas, women were employed in jobs, got paid at higher rates than usual, became the important figure in the house and were enrolled in women’s army roles.

The enthusiasm of many Australians led to the numerous volunteers participating in world war one in the defence of their British mother country against the Germans during world war one in Gallipoli, which lasted from 1914 to 1918.

In August 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, an immense wave of support flooded Britain from her ally, Australia. All Australian political parties, community leaders, newspapers and churches were on-board with this major movement to help the mother country. All believed it was a morally right and necessary commitment . World War I, 1914 – 1918 had a significant and long lasting impact on the Australian home front. ‘The civilian population ’ had to undergo many changes to cater for the war. At this time women’s push for a larger role in the war effort caused a significant and long lasting impact on the Australian home front, which has helped shape workplace gender equality today. Conscription also impacted the Australian home front, meaning, compulsory enlistment of people in military service. As well as the massive impact on Australia’s economy from the many trading cancellations through abandoned or cut off allies, which has helped build Australia’s economy to what it is today.

The experiences of Australian women in both World War 1 and World War 2 were similar but also different. WWI was fought from 1914 to 1918, and WW2 was fought from 1939 to 1945. These were the biggest military conflicts in the history of man. The main areas of change in Australian women around these times were employment, roles and positions in the war, and the attitudes towards women at these times. In WW1, the main occupation for Australian women was nursing. In World War 2, however, women were given the opportunity to do ‘a man’s job’ for the first time.

Nevertheless, the Australians pledged around 420,000 people to the Great war with around half of them becoming casualties. The Australians were a dominant force in WWI, specifically in the Western Front with over 290,000 people fighting in the Western Front at one point in their military involvement. This secondary source shows the grave at Polygon Wood, Polygon Wood was a military campaign in the Third Battle of Ypres. The British and Australian Campaign was of devastating effect with over 20,000 casualties and no ground was actually taken in the calamitous campaign. Thousands lost their lives and this source demonstrates the gravity of Australia’s actions and the sheer numbers and effort that Australia poured into a War that they would have no benefit from. Australians not only pledged time on the Western Front but many lost their lives, Australia not only contributed with the thousands of lives that they sacrificed for the greater good but also for saving lives of millions that they did not