At the outbreak of war in September 1939 Australia’s support for Britain and the empire was much
At the outbreak of war in September 1939 Australia’s support for Britain and the empire was much
World War II sent humanity into another global and political struggle, resulting in the largest war death toll in history. 1941 saw the constant rise of the supremacy of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi troops in both Europe and North Africa. Prior to the Siege of Tobruk, Germany had “began its own offensive into Cyrenaica,” and “attacked Greece and Yugoslavia, seizing them by the end of the month,” (Battistelli P.P. 2012). “Rommel’s troops were poised to capture all of Libya and press on to Egypt,” (Murray J.J. 2011) yet the collective Allied resistance, consisting mostly of Australian troops, was successful in the defence of the strategical port of Tobruk. The Siege of Tobruk displayed both the overconfidence of German troops and character of Australia’s ANZAC qualities, which combined with the strategical importance of the Libyan town of…
History Essay #2 Between the years 1940-1941 America divided over the idea of getting involved in a war taking place in England. People were either for or against helping England and according to Charles Lindbergh, nearly 80% of american citizens were against helping England. There were many debates over what America should do. Two examples that stand out are President Roosevelt’s “Arsenal of Democracy” speech and Charles Lindbergh’s radio address.…
Australia’s history wars were several debates over who was able to interpret Australia’s history, specifically that of colonial Australia and the views formed on the Aboriginal people. Focusing particularly on the concept of history in comparison with the ideas of patriotism (Macintyre 78). The issues that arise in these debates are focused on two concerns of historical interpretation: the first focuses on the white washing of Australian history, understanding that there have been significant hardships for the Aboriginal people but they should not be focused on in today’s society. That the conflicts and invasion of land was not a largely significant factor in Australia’s past (McKenna 10). While the second focuses on the black armband view,…
Germany falls in the Battle of Britain! After not being able to claim superiority in the sky over Britain, Germany falls back in retreat on October 31, 1940. There are many questions asked by different people like. What was the Battle of Britain? Who won the battle?…
After seven long years of endless fighting Germany finally announced an unconditional surrender on 8 May 1945 to the Allied forces. In contrast to its ambitious and confident advance to conquer Europe at the beginning of the war, Germany was devastated after consecutive military defeats prior to its surrender. How did Germany come to this state and who was responsible for bringing about such consequence? Germany’s numerous strategic miscalculations as well as assistance by the US and the Soviet Union were significant in leading to such result. However, Britain can be credited for making the most contribution to the war effort in the fight against Germany throughout the entire period between 1939 and 1945.…
The fall of Singapore had 3 impacts on the state of Australia’s immediate security: Firstly, the fall of Singapore created a lack of immediate military security in Australia, leaving it mostly defenseless from the Japanese Imperial Army that conquered Malaya and Singapore, as Australia was still reliant on Great Britain for defenses. Secondly, the Fall of Singapore facilitated the movement from reliance on Britain to reliance on America. Finally, the Fall of Singapore created a climate of fear within Australia that destroyed the Australian People’s psychological security. Before covering these topics in more detail, however, some background information must be supplied: The Fall of Singapore was the loss of control over the island of Singapore…
Australia was once an undiscovered island inhabited by Australian Indigenous natives. That was before white settlement in 1788. For middle school students at Kimberley College, the unit for this term has been about the hidden Indigenous history and reconciliation. We studied the book, Deadly Unna? and its connection and relevance to young men and women of Australia. We studied the mockumentary BabaKiueria to help us step into the shoes of an Indigenous Australian and help in the understanding of perspective.…
How things changed after World War II World War II started with a healthy list of rich powerful countries. At the end of the war only two so called super powers were left. The United States did not want any part of the war effort originally. The only program that was in place was the Lend-Lease Act which was put in place to provide relief to free countries to help bounce back from what the war was doing. This essay will cover why the United States joined the war and how the war was ended.…
This essay is designed to provide a synopsis of Australia and Canada in a historical light, focused on their dynamic societies and particular political ideologies. Taking into account their past, structure of gender and labour force, and politics, these topics will provide a timeline of growth and change in society, relationship to power, and sovereignty. Australia and Canada underwent heightened senses of nationhood and autonomy throughout the 20th century which was increased through their participation in World War 2. This is best illustrated through an analysis of their political climates, societal structure, and relationship with Britain before, during, and after the war as well their development and contributions. This paper will trace general trends, outlining a broader narrative of two nations coming to ‘be’, tracing progress and indications of how they transformed from Dominions to sovereign states; it does not aim to, however, draw on…
They [Australians] fear that we will withdraw once more into ourselves after this war.” Economically, the war had accelerated Australia’s industrialisation, “which, under the conditions existing prior to 1938, would probably not have been reached for another fifty years” but that post-war, it risked having no market for its industrial output. Australia’s fears were compounded by the fact that, despite Australia’s essential “Britishness,” Anglo-Australian relations lacked geopolitical harmony. British prioritisation, as…
Weighted down with heavy cares condemned to months long silence, now the hour come at last . It all started on September 3, 1939. The German Reich received the English declaration of war there was repeated a anew a British attempt to render impossible every beginning of a consolidation and thereby of Europe’s rise of dictators. By fighting whatever power on the Continent was strongest a any given time. That is how your England ruined Spain in many wars.…
A lot of events led to the beginning of World War 2, most of them are global issues. In more ways than one, World War 2 ended up a direct result of the chaos left behind by World War 1. World War 2 was a catastrophe that we could have stayed out of but our allied powers caused us to join in the war efforts. World War I was ended with The Treaty of Versailles, this was between Germany and the Allied Powers. Since Germany had lost the war, the treaty was more cruel toward Germany, and the people in it.…
The present religious landscape of Australia has significantly changed since 1945. The factors of this change include immigration, denominational switching, rise of the new age religions, secularism and Christianity as a major religious tradition. Australia has a wide variety of religions in its country, each with unique traditions of their own. The major religious tradition in Australia is Christianity, with the 2011 census showing 61% Christianity in Australia, and other religions making up 7.2% (Census, 2011).…
James Belich claims that the British were “reluctant imperialists” due to the fact that they did not need to colonise a country in order to trade with it. Britain had little interest in colonising a country for the sake of it - Belich explains that it took a long time for New Zealand to be considered for the empire; 1820, twenty years after Britons initially began settling in New Zealand. Belich states that as Britain could already trade with New Zealand, there was no benefit in colonising New Zealand as it was very expensive to colonise another country. This is backed up by Paul Moon, in his book “The Path to the Treaty of Waitangi” where he states: “any thought of applying full political rule over the entire indigenous population...was out of the question as far as the Treasury was concerned, simply on the basis of the unwarrantable and unnecessary cost such a policy would impose.” Belich also claims that along with expense being a deterrent for colonisation, Britain in the 1800s was looking to change their reputation as a country responsible for many fatal impacts on indigenous people.…
During the years 1933-37 Britain’s foreign policy was to appease potential enemies to sustain peace. This policy was particularly emphasised when Hitler became Chancellor in 1933 and began to reverse the Treaty of Versailles. It was also highlighted by Neville Chamberlain becoming Prime Minister in 1937, as he believed strongly in appeasement. This policy can be seen to be weak and ineffective because of the way that the British dealt with the Abyssinian Crisis in 1935 and Hitler’s early moves when he first came to power. However if the context is taken in to account, it may seem understandable that the British would want to avoid war at all costs because of their limited armed forces and strong anti-war feelings amongst the general public.…