Shellshocked: How Anzac Troops Coped With The Horror of WW1 | Anzac Day | War Stories

[Music] australia and new zealand entered the 20th century with great optimism still recovering from the severe financial crisis of the 1890s australia became a nation in 1901 when its colonies united into a federation new zealand declined to join the federation and became a dominion within the british empire in 1907 while there were class divides between rich and poor although not to the same extent as british society there was one activity that united all australians their own brand of football every week during winter thousands of men and women flocked to their local footy grounds to cheer on their team football players embodied the ideal australian man the iconic heroic bushmen immortalized in the writings of popular journalists henry lawson and banjo patterson in the years leading up to the first world war both australia and new zealand were still finding their identity as nations separate from the mother country for their large expanses of land and small population made them fearful of invasion and they looked to britain for guidance on all military matters new zealand was the first country to send troops to south africa to fight with britain during the boer war australia also sent 16 000 men to the conflict to pledge its allegiance to the ideals of the empire new zealand's economy was entwined with britain's fortunes as the mother country bought almost all its sheep products the trade that ensured new zealand's prosperity the vast majority of new zealand's population came from britain after the treaty of waitangi was signed in 1840 that established british authority over the maori population hundreds of thousands more settled in the australian colonies to the extent that in 1911 96 of the population was from british stock and 400 000 had come directly from the united kingdom in the previous decade even after their establishment as individual nations australia and new zealand remained very much part of the british empire there was no question that if war came they would fight with the mother country and war came in 1914 when britain declared war on germany on august the fourth australians and new zealanders gathered excitedly around newspaper officers to hear the latest news they sang the national anthem and patriotic songs there was no real understanding of what this war could mean to them and their families thousands of men enthusiastically offered themselves as soldiers and the best physical specimens were selected and shipped to the middle east for training for most of these men it was their first exposure to other cultures they arrived in egypt for military exercises and spent their leave in cairo and heliopolis soaking in the sights with wide-eyed wonder newspapers at home were full of accounts of their adventures but as more and more australians were set down in egypt a lack of leadership fostered bad behavior and a minority caused trouble in the streets leading to a riot in cairo a perception arose that the australians were an undisciplined rabble an impression that it took the gallipoli landings to dispel the original 20 000 strong force committed by the australian government was known as the australian imperial force or aif joined with the new zealand soldiers the joint force was dubbed at the australian and new zealand army corps anzac for short it also included british officers divisions of the indian army the salon planters rifle corps and a battalion of jewish volunteers it was members of this force that were deployed to the dardanelles to stage a land attack on the eastern flank of the war following a disastrous sea battle on april the 25th 1915 the anzac infantry were ordered to land on beaches of the gallipoli peninsula that were later named anzac cove a navigational era meant the troops disembarked at a particularly rocky and inaccessible area which made it easier for the turkish forces to defend the cliffs tragically the campaign which was to last eight long bloody months was an unmitigated disaster but the australian and new zealand soldiers who poured from the boats showed a metal and bravery that won great respect from both the british and their turkish opposition australia lost almost nine thousand men new zealand close to three thousand with twice as many wounded many of them critically suddenly a generation had encountered the horrors of war on a scale they could never have imagined but to keep up morale at home and encourage more men to enlist official propaganda trumpeted the campaign as a triumph of australian and new zealand heroism the anzacs had embarked on the war as appendages of the empire but gallipoli helped grow confidence and antipathy and abilities as their well-nourished athletic well-built men proved to be exceptional soldiers the values of the bush mateship stoicism and dry humor transferred to the persona of the digger but these qualities were to be sorely tested by what was to come anzacs who escaped death or serious injury at gallipoli were sent on to europe to fight on the western front a series of trenches that stretched 700 kilometers from belgium to switzerland this was trench warfare on a gargantuan scale as well as dysentery trench foot and an unrelenting barrage of artillery shells in 1916 the anzacs were exposed to one of the coldest winters on record then there was the unseen terror of gas warfare the sickly smell of mustard gas would drift over the lines killing some soldiers permanently maiming many more at the battle of from a australians disobeyed an order from british commanders to leave the wounded where they fell rather than risk more lives rescuing them they went back for their mates one officer offering himself to the germans as a hostage while they searched piles of bodies for the living for three years anzacs fought and died on the fields of flanders and france the french villagers they protected have never forgotten them and even today hold remembrance services to honor the boys who died on foreign soil the great war finally ended on the 11th of november 1918 and britain and her allies were victorious but it was at a terrible cost of the four hundred thousand young men who left australia sixty thousand were never to return new zealand lost eighteen thousand men equally appalling were the numbers of wounded 150 000 australians and 40 000 new zealanders barely a family came through the war on scale australians were also bitterly divided over the issue of conscription which had taken on a sectarian edge following the call by catholic church leaders to oppose conscription because of britain's treatment of the irish the war's end heralded a new world order with the victor's intent on making the losers pay in 1919 the treaty of versailles unwittingly laid the foundation for another world conflict by humiliating and impoverishing germany but in the meantime australians and new zealanders struggled to adjust to post-war life and a generation of men found it impossible to describe the nightmare they had lived through with the help of official military historian charles bean the gallipoli legend came to represent the anzac identity before the war australia and new zealand were only tentative countries by acquitting themselves with gallantry the anzacs had made their nations proud as one journalist wrote of the gallipoli landing these raw colonial troops in desperate hours proved worthy to fight side by side with the heroes of malls eeps and nerf chappelle even today descendants of the anzacs pay homage to the fallen by visiting a battlefield museum in turkey that contains seven thousand artifacts from the campaign the total gallipoli dead was made up of 250 000 turks who died defending their homeland 21 000 britons 10 000 french 8 000 australians and 2 000 new zealanders the museum pays tribute to these men i think there's some special emotional bond that i see every anzac day that i see when australians visit when i talk to them even very hard people strong people get emotional often tethered here when they understand the sacrifice of the chineco wars they understand exactly how it was to be here 92 years ago and they understand that it was a different sort of war it was a gentleman's war sadly the lessons of the great war were not to be learned and before too long another generation of men would go to their graves in foreign soil some of the most evocative records of the first world war came from the lens of photographer frank hurley born in sydney in 1885 hurley was appointed the second official war photographer in 1917 following his return from an expedition to antarctica with ernest shackleton with the honorary rank of captain hurley traveled to europe where he spent three months capturing images on the western front including the third battle of eeps however his highly stylized imagery and tendency to restage events so they would appear more dramatic won him no favors with official war historian charles bean bean believed photographs should be purely documentary and allow future generations to see forever the plain simple truth he was frustrated that those in charge would not let him take his own photographs hurley used composite images and staged shots to give audiences at home a sense of scale and drama of the war from wild eye the souvenir king whose battlefield finds included a german helmet and shells to hellfire corner a ghostly wasteland of crumbling houses and burn trees hurley's photos showed both the banality and destruction of war to get war pictures of striking interest and sensation is like attempting the impossible hurley explained of his battlefield reconstructions with the cameras of the time large and cumbersome and the likelihood of being blown apart by a shell of venturing over the trenches very high hurley believed his was the only way to document war at the time his battlefield composites were shown in a london exhibition to honor australian soldiers their artistry providing a fitting tribute to the men who fell on the western front there was joy and relief when soldiers came home from the great war an optimism for a peaceful future australia matured politically opening a federal parliament house in the newly appointed capital city of canberra the duke of york later george vi performed the opening ceremony reinforcing the close ties between britain and australia but some returned servicemen found it difficult to adjust to ordinary life and were particularly susceptible to unemployment many still suffered shell shock and the effects of gas poisoning and other injuries on october the 29th 1929 america's stock market collapsed taking with it the economies of industrialized countries like australia and new zealand in the years that followed up to a third of the male workforce found themselves jobless forced to rely on charity to feed their families or to take to the road with a swag looking for food and work with so many families missing a brother son husband or father due to the carnage of the first world war remembrance services became an important time for reflection the day of the first gallipoli landings april the 25th was designated anzac day in 1916 to provide an annual focus point in 1934 almost a third of melbourne's population gathered to watch the duke of gloucester dedicate a shrine of remembrance to the memory of the soldiers killed in the first world war and a contingent of war veterans 25 000 strong men who fought at the dardanelles palestine and in france marched to a place of honor to pay homage to their dead comrades australia's losses in all fields of the war totals 61 000 men to the glory of god and in grateful memory of the men and women of this state who served in the great war and especially of those who fell i dedicate this shrine there was such strong public support for the shrine that 160 000 of the 250 000 pound cost of construction was raised from public contributions [Music] in the wider world life was starting to look rosier the depression eased as the 30s wore on and australians made the most of their leisure time union agitation had led to a national eight-hour day in the nineteen twenties and many workers benefited from this legislation as the economy improved wages increased and people found they had money to invest in a better lifestyle even the working class finally had money to use for once rather than just necessities australia's favorite pastime sport flourished in the nineteen thirties sports lovers made heroes of horses like farlap and cricketers like don bradman it was a point of national pride that despite a population of fewer than seven million people australia punched well above its weight on the international sporting stage new zealanders felt the same way about their compatriots achievements distance runner jack lovelock won gold both the british empire games and the berlin olympics celebrated american writer damon runyon dubbed heavyweight boxing champion tom heaney the hard rock from down under [Music] antiquity and sporting prowess reinforced the perception that men from the southern continents were particularly well built and athletic and that a stronger opponent would not intimidate them australia's clement weather and outdoor culture better generation of fit healthy men even more suited than their fathers to the rigors of warfare in 1935 the world saw australia's young manhood on display when an international scout jamboree was held in melbourne boys from all over the world gathered to celebrate lord baden powell's scouting movement and here they are gathered together with wonderful pageants to show to one another and all wanting to see each other and realize the magnitude of the brotherhood of scouts to which they belong [Music] both australia and new zealand maintained their close relationship with britain in the years following the first world war it was the first war in which maori soldiers had fought in the new zealand army and they trained in england with other australasian troops on their way to the western front the english in particular fated australians as colonial exotics during the war and interest grew in the colonies throughout the interwar period in 1938 the british empire games were held in sydney to coincide with the 150th anniversary of british settlement it was a time for australians and new zealanders to cheer on their star athletes at the same time as acknowledging their origin and the ties that bound them to britain celebrations also included a reminder to the world of the military might that made up the empire celebrations of australia's 150th birthday under the union jack continue and their rejoicings take on a diversity of forms in centennial park the governor general taking the salute a mass parade of soldiers sailors marines aeroplanes and tanks as clouds of war gathered towards the end of the decade australian prime minister joe lyons traveled by boat to england to attend the imperial conference it was an important statement to the world that australia would stand by the mother country no matter what prevailed in coming years world war one saw airplanes used as weapons of war on a large scale for the first time fighter planes engaged in aerial combat became a familiar sight over the fields of france and belgium formed in 1912 the australian flying corps sent aircraft and pilots to the middle east and europe where they saw action in egypt palestine and the western front more than two and a half thousand troops served in the corps which was renamed the royal australian air force in 1921 aviation took off in the 1920s and 30s and many of the intrepid pilots who sustained the industry were former war heroes who inspired others to take to the skies among them was a young new zealander gene batten who became a pilot after encouragement from war veteran charles kingsford smith queensland born bert hinckler was another adventurer who honed his flying skills in combat he joined the royal naval air service as an observer gunner returning home with the distinguished service medal he's best known for making the first solo flight from england to australia in 1928 and the first solo flight across the atlantic in 1931 tragically hinckler was killed in a flying accident just two years later the smith brothers also served during the war ross in the flying corps and keith in the royal air force ross received the military cross twice in the distinguished flying cross three times the fearless brothers teamed up with jim bennett and wally shears in 1919 to make the first flight from england to australia it was a perilous journey that took 28 days and covered 11 340 miles but on their arrival in australia the brothers were knighted and received a ten thousand pound reward which was split four ways sadly ross was killed soon after when testing the vicar's viking amphibian the brothers plan to fly around the world as aerial adventurers pushed the boundaries of the world australia and new zealand's military planners were building up the nation's air fighting capacity the new zealand permanent air force became an arm of the new zealand defense force in 1923 although military officials were slow to see the value of aerial defense it was not until mid 1930s that the air force acquired significant numbers of military aircraft and was renamed the royal new zealand air force like other dominions australia received a hundred surplus military planes from britain at the end of the war which served as the basis for its post-war air force like new zealand the fleet was upgraded in the 30s and included fighters and bombers such as the hawker demon and the western waipiti the flight of these bombers over sydney is a demonstration of the preparedness and efficiency of this branch of the forces of the british empire this is the empire's might every link in the chain is strong and true [Music] an aviator adventurer and barnstormer charles kingsford smith had more impact on the australian imagination than any other pilot kingsford smith took up flying during the war where he was awarded the military cross for his combat with the royal flying corps after the war he worked as a barnstormer and an airline pilot before embarking on a career as a record breaker in 1928 smithy as he was affectionately known co-pilot charles um and navigator and engineer james warner and harry line left san francisco's oakland airport on route to australia the first stage of the flight was a 2400 mile journey to hawaii which took 27 hours and 25 minutes the next leg was a 100 mile flight to fiji which they flew in 34 hours and 30 minutes the final stage to brisbane was 1 900 miles which took them 20 hours a crowd of 25 000 people was waiting to greet them at eagle farm airport when they arrived on the 9th of june on the first flight to cross the pacific in the southern cross smithy also made the first non-stop flight across the australian continent and the first flight across the tasman sea to new zealand he flew around the world in 1929 and made the first west to east crossing in 1934 together with captain pg taylor completing a 7 000 mile trip from australia to oakland california it is the first crossing of the pacific from west to east and sir charles in his lockheed altair the lady southern cross has made it in less than 55 hours this great flyer and great plane certainly deserve congratulations but in 1935 on a flight from england to australia in the lockheed altair the lady southern cross the same aircraft in which he'd successfully crossed the pacific the year before smithy and co-pilot tommy prethebridge disappeared between india and singapore an undercarriage leg and wheel were washed ashore a few months later all that remained of the aircraft smithy was just 38 years of age when he died but his achievements made him one of the world's great pioneering pilots [Music] at victoria barracks sydney army cadet officers rehearsed for their passing out parade culmination with germany japan and italy building up their military forces during the 1930s australia followed britain's lead and began to bolster her defenses however the depression had forced the federal government to cap military spending so the country's armed services were vastly undemanded the army was made up of 3 000 regular troops and 80 000 reservists who trained with the citizen military forces on a part-time basis all in all it was an old-fashioned setup desperately in need of updating the navy was not much better with only two heavy cruisers four light cruisers two swoops five old destroyers and some smaller warships it was not going to be enough to repel a potential invader or give great assistance to australia's allies training at the sydney small arms school are young diggers of the australian army they want to become sergeant majors there's no accounting for tastes after a gas mask drilling real tear gas those training with the newest types of rifle grenade and trench mortar the most effective weapon against the machine gun [Music] new zealand's military resources were even more limited nevertheless the two countries cooperated on naval exercises designed to display a united front the pacific ocean has seen no warfare for 30 years new zealand and australia mean to keep itself newsreel footage of coastal defense maneuvers fired salvos in the propaganda war and helped australians and new zealanders feel more secure as it became more likely that they would be going to war in march 1939 military volunteers paraded through sydney as part of a mass recruitment drive field batteries tanks anti-aircraft guns all demonstrate the unity of this our empire the march was made to attract recruits and here they are young blood of britain overseas gives proof to those who need it that this empire in its strength will maintain peace some australians joined the arp or air raid precautions unit where they learned drills and prepared for air attack fortunately they never had the opportunity to put their knowledge into practice however in january 1939 the state of victoria did come under attack from bushfire following some of its hottest days on record and a particularly dry summer five huge fires ignited across the state and burned an area of more than 2 million hectares 71 people died and thousands of buildings were destroyed the federal government deployed as many citizen military force reservists as it could to fight the fires but they weren't brought under control until it rained two days later it was almost an omen for the devastation of war that was shortly to come on september the third great britain declared war on germany after hitler refused to withdraw from poland the same day prime minister robert menzies told australians it was his melancholy duty to inform them that because of britain's declaration australia was also at war new zealand was equally prompt with prime minister michael savage saying that where britain goes we go the first boatload of australian troops left for overseas service in march 1940 farewell to the homeland thousands more australians of the second australian imperial force wave goodbye to the land that bore them as they set sail for the world of trouble from the depths of their vast continent they have rallied to embark upon a new life many have never seen the sea before but all have the spirit of adventure they face the future with the confidence of their fathers the federal government introduced conscription for home defense service but only took volunteers for the second australian imperial force after the first rush of enlistments the army struggled to find enough soldiers and was only able to form one division in the first few months of the war it wasn't until the fall of france in may 1940 that australian men signed up in big numbers enabling the formation of a further three infantry divisions three were sent to the middle east and one to europe australia's merchant navy also joined the fray the merchant navy allied fleets included ships from britain holland norway the us australia and new zealand they played a vital role in ferrying cargo from port to port and evacuating refugees from pacific islands under threat from the japanese the australian troops put under the command of lieutenant general thomas blamey for the duration of the war in the early years the biggest problems were lack of equipment and lack of trained instructors the focus was on conventional warfare and it wasn't until 1942 that the australian army adopted a doctrine for jungle warfare across the tasman new zealand military forces formed the second new zealand division which was sent to egypt in 1940 but when they embarked on their voyage even the soldiers didn't know where they were headed more of the second new zealand echelon have left for service overseas another lot of happy warriors [Music] we don't know where they'll go we wouldn't tell anyone if we did that when we start that offensive that everyone is waiting for new zealand will be there yes the army is ready to spring and here are some new zealanders in britain who will spring with the rest the second echelon was on its way to egypt when italy entered the war on the side of the axis powers so the ship was diverted to britain there the new zealand troops trained for several months as part of a counter-attack force raised to defend southeast england against a potential german attack when it became apparent germany would not invade the new zealand troops were sent to egypt in march 1941 to join the rest of their countrymen these pictures are sufficient to show once again the spirit and deficiency of new zealand meanwhile hmas sydney of the royal australian navy was seen quite a bit of action with the british mediterranean fleet she sailed back to sydney harbour in 1941 to a rapturous welcome under her captain captain collins she survived over 60 bombing attacks and shelling and we recall this honorable battle scar it's been repaired but the sailor kept a souvenir this is a bit of a funnel that was hit by one of the shell from the kaliani here i have a fragment of the shell just miss me as world war ii heated up in the second half of 1940 it was britain who bore the brunt of an invigorated german attack for 76 consecutive nights german bombers dropped their deadly payloads over london killing tens of thousands of civilians and reducing more than a million houses to rubble only a strong air defense saved the people of england and the airmen who fought in the battle of britain included a number of australian and new zealand pilots 24 australians lost their lives during the conflict new zealander keith park was one of the most famous pilots to take part in the battle lord terror chief of the royal air force said of the ace fighter if any one man won the battle of britain he did i do not believe it is realized how much that one man with his leadership his calm judgment and his skill did to save not only his country but the world even the germans called him the defender of london australia's top air ace in the battle was flight lieutenant pat hughes hughes trained with the royal australian air force before transferring to the raf under a special short service commission scheme he was awarded the distinguished flying cross for his kills which numbered 14 at the time of his death in september 1940 the bomber he had shot down broke apart and smashed into his spitfire hughes jumped out but his parachute failed to open and he died on impact he left behind an english wife he had married only a month earlier like so many other australians in the previous war hughes was buried in england although there was now a memorial dedicated to him and his short life in the snowy mountains town of kumar a convoy of huge liners escorted by the warships of britain france australia and new zealand that was a sight for kings as it came to anchor in lake tisma by the sewers canal but it brought to egypt thousands upon thousands of australian and new zealand soldiers most australian and new zealand troops were sent to the middle east first branch of the services to see action was the royal australian navy which sank several italian ships in the mediterranean in mid-1940 in the months between december 1940 and february 1941 the australian army took part in operation compass its first major military operation in the western desert australian soldiers distinguished themselves in the various battles and more than 115 000 italians were taken prisoner but it was during the siege of to brook that the australians really made their mark from april to october 1941 more than fourteen thousand australians and twelve thousand british and indian troops successfully defended the libyan port of tabruk against german field marshal rommel's africa corps after a german propaganda broadcast sneeringly referred to them as the poor desert rats of tabruk the aussies took the nickname as a badge of honor even creating an unofficial medal with a rat insignia made from the remains of a german bomber they'd shot down with captured german guns more than 3 000 australians were killed or wounded during the siege and nearly a thousand were captured under orders from the australian government they were evacuated by sea in october and redeployed to syria where they took part in the battles of el alamein new zealand soldiers were also active at el alamein launching a night attack to capture revise that ridge an important part of the defense line new zealand's second division was among the allied force that pushed rommel into tunisia and eventually forced the surrender of the africa corps but the cost was high with nearly three thousand new zealanders killed in action in the middle east seven thousand wounded and four thousand captured the desert itself has become a battleground for the empire's dominion troops on maneuvers thousands of lorries in convoy bring up supplies and ammunition [Music] lack of equipment was a constant problem for the allied forces and brook's success was credited as much to the spirit of the soldiers as their guns and ammunition unfortunately this spirit wasn't enough to save the sixth division from a military miscalculation that saw them landed in greece and then crete to fight an unwinnable campaign thirty nine percent of the australian forces sent to greece in april 1941 were killed wounded or captured the campaign was a debacle that was fiercely criticized especially when it became known that australian commander general blamey had reservations about the plans but did not inform the australian government as he mistakenly believed prime minister menzies supported them the story of australia's gallantry in the fighting in the middle east will take a proud place among the legends of heroism forever but many many of the sons of australia will never again sail into her harbors many more have come back to their homes with honorable wounds to heal the strategic misfire of the greece campaign made australians less inclined to wholeheartedly support the british even anglophile prime minister robert menzies believed the war could not be won without america on a trip to britain to confer with his political counterparts he said he would travel to the united states to urge their cooperation when i go to america as i'm proposing to go i shall take the opportunity of saying something to them about what i've seen here and what i've thought here and also take the opportunity of saying to them frankly and in the friendliest manner in the world that american health if it is to shorten this war effectively must be helped on the great scale however menzies never made his trip to america as he arrived home to discover parliament had lost confidence in him and he was replaced with labor prime minister john curtin in october 1941 [Music] curtin was focused on mustering resources to defend australia and when japan entered the war two months later the threat became even more pronounced the fall of singapore exposed australia to great danger and for the first time an australian leader stepped away from britain's shadow and announced his own defense policy we refused to accept the dictum that the pacific struggle must be treated as a subordinate segment of the general conflict curtin told the world the australian government regards the pacific struggle as primarily one in which the united states and australia must have the fullest say in the direction of the democracy's fighting plan without any inhibitions of any kind i make it clear that australia looks to america free of any pangs as to our traditional links or kinship with the united kingdom brought into the war by the bombing of pearl harbor the americans lost no time sending soldiers to every corner of the globe that was under threat from the axis powers we have our men all through the pacific in burma india and in china recently they struck a tokyo they are have littered in greenland in iceland they are landing in ireland and in england and they will land in france the headquarters of the southwest pacific area was set up in australia under the command of american general douglas macarthur for the first time in its history australia was under direct military threat on the morning of february the 19th 1942 darwin awoke to the sound of bombing and gunshots when the japanese launched a surprise air raid on the port city the main targets were the 46 ships crammed into darwin harbor the aim was to severely damage the military infrastructure built by the allies to fight the war in the pacific with few air defenses and only a handful of fighter aircraft at their disposal the allies could do little to repel the attack around 250 people were killed 23 aircraft were lost 10 ships destroyed and another 25 were damaged it was only the first of a series of raids that would continue to plague the northern city until november 1943 leading to the deaths of more than 900 people australian civilians in the southern states were kept in the dark about the scale of damage inflicted by the japanese in case morel was damaged it wasn't until after the war that the true story came out although australians were unaware of how savage the attack on darwin had been they knew they were lucky to have the americans on their side only the united states had the manpower and resources to match the axis advance australia did not have a fighting force big enough to defend its country and the fall of singapore made it obvious that britain would not be coming to its aid while post-war research revealed that japan never intended to invade australia its strategy involved occupying key pacific islands to isolate australia from its allies this is sydney harbour the scene of a raid not by bombers but by japanese submarines which crept in during the night for a surprise attack but the surprise didn't come up the powerful defenses were on the alert on the 31st of may 1942 three japanese [ __ ] subs crept into sydney harbour in an attempt to sink american heavy cruiser the uss chicago and caused panic among australians we have an eyewitness account from a sydney journalist george godfrey the sub was met by a hail of light and heavy caliber shells from the guns she appeared to be hit heavily and disappeared almost immediately it appeared that australia was under threat from every direction but general mcarthur refused to be cowed the americans struck up a good relationship with prime minister curtin and used all the resources at his disposal to halt the japanese advance general marshall appointed americans lieutenant general george brett as commander of the allied air forces and vice admiral herbert leary as the naval commander but he saw the value of having an australian in charge of the allied land forces and gave the job to general thomas blamey the japanese attacks on their soil left australians feeling vulnerable and apprehensive more and more troops were seconded to the pacific front to take up the fight and repulse the enemy but the war they encountered was more horrific than anything they could have ever imagined many of the soldiers war experience came from the hot deserted sands of the middle east the wet humid jungles of the pacific islands were an alien terrain requiring completely new tactics [Music] allied troops dropped in by parachute are stormed ashore on landing craft one of the most iconic campaigns of the australian war experience took place on papua new guinea's kokoda track between july and november 1942 the ill-equipped australian force made up mostly of reservists battled heat mosquitoes and rugged terrain as much as their japanese opponents more than 4 000 soldiers fell sick during the campaign with only 625 men killed in action and one thousand six hundred wounded it was a vicious and intense fight that continued for months even though it was becoming obvious that japan was weakening its soldiers were determined to fight to the death prolonging the bloody warfare eventually the japanese withdrew and kokoda developed almost mythical status in australian memory for many the men of kokoda personified the anzac legend they refused to let dire conditions overwhelm them and pressed on to the end with good humor courage and inner strength many sick and injured had to be carried by stretcher along the perilous mountain track and today hundreds of people walk the kokoda track every year to commemorate the bravery of their forefathers another vital campaign was the battle of mill bay in new guinea on the 25th of august 1942 2800 japanese marines attacked an australian base expecting to be victorious because of earlier successes but instead of the hundreds of troops they expected to be stationed there the japanese were confronted with nine thousand american and australian infantrymen and two raf squadrons more than 750 japanese marines were killed and hundreds more fled to the jungle where they later died it was the first allied land victory over the japanese and a huge confidence boost for the australian and american armies thanks to the australian-led action there was now proof that the japanese were not invincible the allied troops were making progress in the war against japan but it was a slow and tortuous progress the local people of the islands were drawn into the conflict with many people in the solomon islands east timor and new guinea losing their lives in support of the allied war effort for the final years of the war australian forces went on the offensive to tackle determined japanese fighters from bases stationed on the papuan islands the pacific war dragged on until the atomic bombs dropped on hiroshima and nagasaki led to japan's surrender on september the second 1945 finally the war was over and australia and new zealand overseas forces could come home and rebuild their lives sadly more than forty thousand men and women weren't coming home to australia while nearly twelve thousand new zealanders had lost their lives during the conflict a member of the citizen military forces an engineer and teacher by profession captain john tate duncan was typical of the officers commissioned in the newly formed sixth division of the second aif when war broke out duncan was set to pacopaniel for training away from nell his wife of 18 months and their newly built house in camberwell neither of them had any idea it would be six long years before he came home to live a normal life again duncan was in the first wave of soldiers who traveled on the troop ship danira to egypt training took place in palestine but there was still time to see the sights like most of his fellow soldiers it was duncan's first overseas trip and he made the most of it visiting the pyramids and other antiquities duncan captured glimpses of army life on his box brownie camera to send home to nell although the census snipped out the occasional landmark unfortunately the camera was lost when his batman forgot to move his tent out of the area where italian prisoners of war were being interned that was the end of his war photos but duncan served out the war spending the final years in new guinea and reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel he returned home in 1945 and to the end of his life his closest friends were his army buddies on the 10th of june 1946 a victory day march in melbourne saw hundreds of people flooding the streets to celebrate the end of the war and the beginning of a new era wartime commander general thomas blamey headed the procession which paid tribute to the fighting men and women of australia some of whom were still on their way home another capital brisbane put on a full-scale victory march at which the duke of gloucester took the salute [Music] australians at home had endured rationing censorship civilian defense drills and separation from loved ones the war's end was a signal that life was about to begin again as in london the women's services got a special chair together with the carloads of wounded veterans of many campaigns allied forces were there too free french from new caledonia greek troops and their picturesque national dress and a detachment of dutch marines [Music] the war opened australia to the world more than ever before with hundreds of australian women moving to the united states with american forces husbands they'd met during the war australian soldiers came home with british french and japanese brides even some italian prisoners of war interned in australia married locals and remained in the country australia and new zealand opened their doors to many of europe's displaced persons resulting in a flood of migration birth rates soared as people settled back into family life there was a feeling that the future was rosy and australia and new zealand governments embarked on big infrastructure projects to house new arrivals and modernize their countries both nations had endured many troubles during the war years but the war had also given them a sense of confidence and identity the anzac forces had fought in some of the most decisive battles of the war and overcome a foe that had felt almost unstoppable however the way the war had ended left a cloud over the world the bombs of hiroshima and nagasaki ushered in the atomic age and an ever-present fear of nuclear confrontation between the united states and the soviet union with britain's empire crumbling australia and new zealand looked to the united states to be their key defense ally and that entailed some serious sacrifices the toughest of these sacrifices was the vietnam war a bloody and ultimately pointless conflict despite not being under threat from communists in southeast asia australia and new zealand sent troops to vietnam to demonstrate their loyalty to the american alliance the war became a damaging and divisive issue at home unlike world war ii where the sense of threat was palpable and australia was fighting an obvious aggressor in vietnam the allies were the aggressors using questionable methods to fight a tiny but indomitable opponent [Music] instead of being greeted as heroes vietnam veterans were shunned by a public confused about the aims and outcomes of a war of expedience it took a generation for the wounds to heal and vietnam soldiers to be embraced as fully fledged [Music] anzacs [Music] wow the anzac legend lives on with new generations just as keen to keep the memory alive [Music] and it was from the wharf at north beach at 5 10 p.m on the 20th of december but the last anzac the commander of the rio party colonel patton the sydney sider left gallipoli in mid-november 1915 it was decided to evacuate the peninsula and over many nights thousands of soldiers came down to north beach to board the boats to take them away from anzac forever the commemorations continue let us remember that we're here to commemorate those who out of a sense of service and duty have staked their own frail mortality for the benefit of others we recognize the nobility of their sacrifice and commit ourselves to preserve their legacy as the light here grows and another anzac day comes upon us we turn to those in the shadows we thank you we will never forget you the faces of the people who have traveled to turkey to remember the fallen shows us that the anzac legacy will never die wow

Channel: War Stories

Views: 55,570

Keywords: Anzac Day, Anzac spirit, Australian soldiers, Gallipoli, New Zealand history, World War I, combat tactics, commemoration, conflict history, military heroes, military legacy, military remembrance, military sacrifice, strategic warfare, war tribulations, war tributes, warfare endurance, wartime courage, wartime narratives, wartime reflections

Id: PiwZbvUmaMg

Length: 51min 49sec (3109 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 25 2021