Chapter 4 9/2014/9...European nations of Austria–Hungary, Britain, ... Entente in response to...

HUMANITIES 3

86

By early August 1914, the world’s major powers

had committed themselves to a war which the

British poet Siegfried Sassoon later described

as ‘hell’s last horror’. The people who lived

through this war called it the ‘Great War’ or the

‘war to end all wars’ because it had such a

dramatic and tragic impact on both soldiers

and civilians alike. For Australians, the Great

War brought the beginnings of demands for

independence from Britain, a pride in the

efforts and sacrifices of our soldiers and the

emergence of divisions within Australia over the

conscription issue.

Historical knowledge and understanding

• Analyse the events of World War I and how they

contributed to Australia’s social, political and

cultural development.

• Consider the impact of the war on individuals and

groups in society and evaluate their contributions

to the war effort.

• Compare the different perspectives of individuals

and groups towards conscription.

• Make links between historical and contemporary

issues such as the commemoration of the war and

the Anzac legend.

Historical reasoning and interpretation

• Frame research questions and locate relevant

resources.

• Identify and evaluate primary and secondary

sources.

• Recognise that in history there are multiple

perspectives and partial explanations.

• Use evidence to support arguments, and use

written and oral forms to communicate and

develop historical explanations.

AUSTRALIA

AND WORLD

WAR I

Chapter 4

A photograph of Anzac Cove from the signals unit position, 1915. How does this compare with the painting above? Why was each image created? AWM P02023.010

CHAPTER 4: AUSTRALIA AND WORLD WAR I

87

alliance: an agreement between

nations to work together

Anzacs: the Australian and New

Zealand Army Corps, comprising

mainly Australian and New

Zealand infantry troops

armistice: an agreement

between warring nations to stop

fighting

assassination: the murder of an

important political or religious

figure

casualties: those killed,

wounded or captured during

wartime

conscientious objector:

someone whose conscience

prevents them from participating

in military service

conscription: a system of

compulsory service in a nation’s

armed forces

‘crimson thread of kinship’: a

term used to describe Australia’s

strong links of loyalty to Britain

legend: a story or belief which

has special significance within a

particular group or culture

no man’s land: the area of land

between the trenches of two

opposing armies

propaganda: information used

to persuade people to accept a

particular viewpoint

referendum: a vote in which

people are asked to vote ‘yes’ or

‘no’ to a proposed law or change

to a law. It is compulsory to

hold a referendum before any

change can be made to the

Commonwealth Constitution, and

it requires the approval of a

majority of voters in a majority of

Australian states for change to

take place.

social class: a group with

common economic and/or cultural

status

stalemate: a situation in war

where there is no movement on

either side

trench foot: a painful and

dangerous condition resulting

from days spent standing in

freezing water and muddy

trenches. Gangrene could set in

and result in the amputation of a

man’s foot.

A painting by Frank Crozier, The Beach at Anzac, painted in 1919. It depicts the Allied troops establishing themselves at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli.Oil on canvas 123.4 × 184.6 cm AWM ARTV02161

April–December 1915:

Gallipoli campaign

1916–18:

Anzacs fight on the Western Front

1914 1915 1916 1917 1918

4 August 1914:

Europe at war

Late 1914:

Anzacs train in Egypt

April 1917:

United States enters war

November 1917:

Russia withdraws

from war Early 1918:

Germany’s

Spring

Offensive

fails

November 1918:

Armistice is signed

Timeline of World War I

HUMANITIES 3

88

4.1

Stra

it

of

Dov

er

Paris

LUXEMBOURG

F R A N C E

G E R M A N Y

SWITZERLAND

HOLLAND

GREAT

BRITAIN

0 100 200 km

B E L G I U M

Line o

f Fre

nch fo

rtresses

Lorraine

Alsace

Schlieffen Plan 1905

Plan 17

Areas lost to Germany in 1871

N

The world’s major powers were not surprisedwhen war broke out in 1914. They had spent yearspreparing for it, though some had hoped it wouldoccur later than it did. The major powers were theEuropean nations of Austria–Hungary, Britain,France, Germany, Italy and Russia. By 1907, theyhad formed themselves into rival and armedpower blocs. Britain had joined with Russia andFrance in an alliance known as the TripleEntente, while Germany was linked with Austria–Hungary and Italy in the Triple Alliance.

A map showing the major powers of the early twentieth century and the rival alliances they had formed by 1907

Nations formed the Triple Alliance and TripleEntente in response to growing rivalries withinEurope. Rivalries existed in the areas of trade,colonial possessions, the size and strength ofarmies and navies, and individual power. Themajor powers competed to gain access to raw mat-erials in areas outside Europe and to increasetrading opportunities. This brought them into com-petition for the control of territory and resources inAfrica and led to the development of weapons andships that they could use to protect their interests.

THE ALLIANCE SYSTEM

0 300 600 km

SPAIN

AFRICA

TURKEY

SERBIA

BOSNIA

ITALY

GREAT

BRITAIN

FRANCE

GERMANY

RUSSIAN

EMPIRE

AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN

EMPIRE

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

N O RT H

S E A

MEDITERRANEAN SEA

Triple EntenteTriple Alliance

BELGIUM

Source 4.1.1

N

DIFFERENT FORMS OF RIVALRY

One nation’s attempts to protect its interestsled others to fear its power. Britain feared Ger-many’s navy and the possibility of such a navycutting off Britain from the rest of the empire.Germany argued that its navy was essential toprotect its trade. The alliances reflected thethreat which the powers sensed from oneanother, and the desire to avenge past ‘wrongs’.France feared Germany’s army and soughtrevanche (revenge) for Germany taking the prov-inces of Alsace and Lorraine from France in1871. Russia and Austria–Hungary competedwith each other to extend their power in thearea of south-eastern Europe known as theBalkans.

The tensions among the major powers led themto prepare strategies to be used if war broke out.Germany developed a plan known as the‘Schlieffen Plan’, while France had a war planknown as ‘Plan 17’. Between 1905 and 1913, ten-sions among the great powers increased as a resultof crises in northern Africa and the Balkans. Thesecrises were resolved, although generally hostilityincreased among those involved.

A map showing the main features of Germany’s Schlieffen Plan and France’s Plan 17

Source 4.1.2

THE GUNS

OF AUGUST 1914


89

On 28 June 1914, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand,heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was shotdead at Sarajevo in Bosnia. The assassin wasGavrilo Princip, a 23-year-old Serbian nationalist.

The crisis which developed from this eventinvolved all the major European powers. Theirfailure to resolve this ‘July crisis’ caused them togradually move towards war.

The Austro-Hungarian Government blamedSerbia for the assassination and sought topunish and weaken it. A weak Serbia would nolonger be able to act as a force against Austrianauthority over the many nationalities that livedwithin the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Austria–Hungary declared war on Serbia on 28 July1914. During the preceding four weeks, the Euro-pean nations demonstrated their power and theirfear of one another as they became increasinglyinvolved in the crisis (see the timeline, source4.1.3). By 4 August 1914, Europe was at war.

A timeline showing how the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand led to the outbreak of a European war

ASSASSINATION IN SARAJEVO

19141914

29 June

Austria–Hungaryasks Germany tohelp it deal with Serbia.

28 June

Archduke Franz Ferdinand is

assassinated at Sarajevo in Bosnia.

5 JulyGermany offers to support Austria–Hungary in any way required. This is known as the ‘blank cheque’.

23 JulyAustria–Hungary threatens war against Serbia if Serbia fails to agree to a long list of demands within 24 hours.

24 JulyRussia decides to helpSerbia in the hope of weakening Austro-Hungarian influence in the Balkans.

25 JulySerbia agrees to all but one of Austria–Hungary’s demands.

1 AugustGermany declares war on Russia. France, seeing an opportunity for revenge against Germany, mobilises to support Russia.

3 AugustGermany, hurrying toimplement its Schlieffen Plan and avoid war on two fronts, declares war on France.

4 AugustGermany invades neutralBelgium as part of the Schlieffen Plan. Britain, supporting its allies and honouring its promise to defend Belgian neutrality, declares war on Germany.

28 JulyAustria–Hungary declares war on Serbia.

30 JulyRussia mobilises and Germany threatens war if Russia does not rescind its mobilisation order.

Source 4.1.3

As Britain readied itself to declare war onGermany in August 1914, future AustralianPrime Minister Andrew Fisher promised that‘Australia will stand behind our Mother Countryto help and defend her to our last man and ourlast shilling’. Fisher’s comment reflected the atti-tudes of many Australians who assumed Britain’swar to be a just and noble cause in which Austral-ians could demonstrate their loyalty to the‘mother’ country. Like people of all nations, theybelieved that the war would be short, with thevictorious troops home by Christmas, recountingtales of their glorious exploits.

Understand1. List the members of Europe’s two rival power

blocs.2. What were the main forms of competition

between the great powers of the early twentieth century?

3. What was one reason for rivalry between France and Great Britain?

4. Why did France seek revenge against Germany?5. Why was there tension between Austria–

Hungary and Russia in the early 1900s? 6. What were the Schlieffen Plan and Plan 17?7. What is the significance of the date 28 June 1914?8. How did Austria–Hungary hope to use the

assassination to its advantage?9. Give three reasons to explain why Australia

became involved in World War I.

Use sources10. Use source 4.1.1 to work out which members of

the Triple Entente Germany would feel most threatened by and why.

11. Use sources 4.1.1 to 4.1.3 to create a mind map identifying the reasons why the European powers went to war in 1914. Write the long-term factors in one colour and the short-term factors in another. You may wish to use computer graphics software to create your mind map.

12. Use source 4.1.3 to answer the following questions:(a) Which event was described as the ‘blank

cheque’? Why do you think it was given this name?

(b) Which event do you think was the turning point which led to the crisis becoming a war? Why?

(c) Which of Europe’s great powers was not involved in the war by 1914?

Worksheets

4.1 Triple Alliance and Triple Entente

ICT

MADE EA

SY

www.jaconline.com.au/ict-meComputer graphics

HUMANITIES 3

90

4.2

The idea of Australia being a nation in its ownright was slow to develop and eventuate. Around96 per cent of Australians had British ancestryand Australia’s cultural identity was moulded by:• acceptance of the British legal system• education which focused on British achievements• an admiration for, and a desire to copy, British

sporting traditions.Australia committed itself enthusiastically to

supporting Britain in its war against Germanyand Germany’s allies in 1914. Some AboriginalAustralians, despite their poor treatment underBritish-inspired law and culture, also respondedenthusiastically to the call to military service.

Even with the initial rush of young men to enlist, the British and Australian governments produced recruitment posters to encourage as many Australians as possible to join up.

AWM ARTV00141

Source 4.2.1

Pro-British war fever was the dominant emotion inmost Australian cities following Britain’s declar-ation of war on Germany on 4 August 1914. News-papers, competing with one another to demonstratetheir loyalty, forecast countless heroic deedsagainst the hated enemy. Within days, there were40000 volunteers, double the number the govern-ment had offered to send to Britain. By December1914, 52000 men had volunteered to serve in thearmy, to be known as the Australian Imperial Force(the AIF). The government also reinforced its com-mitment to compulsory military training for allmales between the ages of 12 and 25.

Support for the ‘mother’ country was not theonly reason for Australian men rushing to enlist.Other reasons included:• fear that the opportunity for ‘adventure’ would

pass them by if they did not enlist quickly• the desire to avoid the disapproval of peers and

young women. Some women showed their disap-proval of men who were not in uniform by givingthem a white feather, a symbol of cowardice.

• the chance to earn higher wages (6 shillings a daycompared to 1 shilling a day for British soldiers)

• men feeling that it was their ‘duty’ to enlist• hatred of the ‘Hun’ (the word used to describe

the Germans).

A photograph of men queuing outside a recruiting office in Melbourne, March 1916 AWM A03406

ENTHUSIASM FOR WAR

Source 4.2.2

TO THE LAST MAN

AND THE LAST SHILLING


91

A minority of Australians opposed the war. Theseincluded conscientious objectors from religiousgroups such as the Society of Friends (Quakers)and pacifists against the taking of human life (seesource 4.11.3, page 113). Some trade unionistswere against the war because they believed itsburden would be carried by working class peoplein every country rather than by the middle andupper classes who had more influence in thedecision to go to war.

In late 1914, AIF recruits combined with NewZealanders to form the Australian and NewZealand Army Corps, who came to be known asthe Anzacs. They trained in Egypt under thecommand of General Birdwood, an officer of theBritish army, before being sent for their firstencounter with the enemy in the Gallipoli cam-paign in April 1915.

A recruitment poster that portrayed Lieutenant Jacka, a hero of the 1915 Gallipoli campaign AWM ARTV0026

OPPOSITION TO WAR

Source 4.2.3

Understand1. What factors encouraged Australia as a nation to

support the British war effort?2. What factors motivated individuals to enlist?3. What do the letters of the word ‘Anzac’ stand for? 4. Which groups opposed Australians’ involvement

in the war and what were their reasons?

Use sources5. Use source 4.2.1 to answer the following

questions.(a) Who is the audience for this source and what

is its purpose?(b) What techniques are used to achieve this?

6. Study source 4.2.2.(a) Why do you think this photograph was taken?(b) Create three thought bubbles to indicate

what some of the men in the photograph might have been thinking about the war at this time.

(c) How would you have used the photograph if you were trying to (i) encourage men to enlist or (ii) encourage men to protest about the war?

7. Consider source 4.2.3.(a) In what different activities are the men

involved? Which activity is made to look the most important? How did the artist achieve this?

(b) To which group of people is this poster directed? What message is the artist trying to convey to them? What words and images help to do this?

(c) What information in the poster gives a clue to its date?

(d) Incorporate all your answers into a paragraph (eight to ten lines) describing the main features of the poster.

Worksheets

4.2 Coo-ee marches in the news

The huge number of volunteers meant that

the army had plenty of men to choose from.

It set high physical standards, and many

men who would normally have been consid-

ered fit and healthy failed to meet those

standards and were turned away. In 1914,

the minimum height for acceptance into the

AIF was 168 centimetres. This was reduced

to 163 centimetres by the end of 1914 and to

152 centimetres by 1917.

HISTORY

HUMANITIES 3

92

4.3

By late 1914, all armies had begun to build trenchesto protect their soldiers from the enemy and fromthe winter cold. Eventually, a line of trenches,known as the Western Front, stretched almost con-tinuously from south-west Belgium across north-eastern France to the Swiss border. No side could

make progress without breaking through itsenemy’s trench system. Attempts to do so resultedin a huge number of deaths and casualties as menwent ‘over the top’ to face their enemies’ machinegun and rifle fire. What had begun as a war ofmovement had developed into a stalemate.

STALEMATE

IN THE TRENCHES

Source 4.3.1 Modern artist’s interpretation of a typical trench


93

Understand

1. What was the purpose of trenches?2. Where was the Western Front?3. Why were there a high number of casualties in

trench warfare?4. Why did a war of movement develop into a

stalemate?

Use sources

5. Use source 4.3.1 to answer the following questions.(a) What helped protect soldiers from the impact

of enemy attack?(b) What health provisions existed?(c) What hardships and dangers did soldiers

experience?(d) What provisions were made for the soldiers’

comfort?(e) Complete this sentence: ‘The thing I would have

hated most about this life was . . . because . . .’

Trenches were generally designed in a zigzag pattern; this helped to protect the trench against enemy attack.

Fire steps and scaling ladders were needed to enable the troops to go ‘over the top’ of the trenches. Going ‘over the top’ refers to leaving the trenches and heading out into no man’s land to attack the enemy trenches.

Machine guns were one of the most deadly weapons. They were able to fire 400–500 bullets every minute.

Trench toilets were called latrines. They were usually pits 1.5 metres deep, dug at the end of a short gangway. Each company had two sanitary personnel whose job was to keep the latrines in good condition.

Sandbags filled with earth were used to shore up the edges of the trenches; they also helped to absorb bullets and shell fragments.

Duckboards were wooden planks placed across the bottom of trenches and other areas of muddy ground. Duckboards helped protect the men from contracting trench foot and from sinking deep into the mud.

The use of mustard gas and other chemical weapons meant that all soldiers needed to have gas masks near at hand. Mustard gas was almost odourless and took 12 hours to take effect. It was so powerful that only small amounts, added to high-explosive shells, were effective.

Each soldier was issued with a kit containing nearly 30 kilograms of equipment. This included a rifle, two grenades, ammunition, a steel helmet, wire cutters, a field dressing, a spade, a heavy coat, two sandbags, a ground sheet, a water bottle, a haversack, a mess tin, a towel, a shaving kit, socks and preserved food rations.

Barbed wire helped to protect the trenches but also made it very difficult to attack the opposing trench. At night, soldiers went out to cut sections of wire to make it easier to move out in morning raids. Minor cuts and grazes caused by the barbed wire often became infected in the unsanitary conditions of the trenches.

The British army employed 300 000 field workers to cook and supply the food for troops. However, there was often not enough food for the workers to cook. The bulk of the diet in the trenches was bully beef (canned corned beef), bread and biscuits.

Long, cold, wet winters and hot, dry summers made life in the trenches horrendous. Snow, rain and freezing temperatures drastically slowed combat during the winter months. Lack of fresh water, scorching sun, and the stench of dead bodies and rubbish made the hotter months unbearable.

HUMANITIES 3

94

4.4

B L AC K S E A

TURKEY

Constantinople

TURKEY

BULGARIA

0 50 100 km

GallipoliPeninsula

DardanellesStrait

Proposed route ofBritish–French fleet

Ground taken in April

Ground taken in August

Turkish fort

Turkish mines

Allied attacks

SuvlaBay

AnzacCove

CapeHelles(April)

(Mar

ch)

GALLIP

OLI

The war was not over by Christmas 1914. By 1915,the British Government had begun searching fora way to break the stalemate on the WesternFront. Winston Churchill, head of the BritishNavy, believed that Britain should use its war-ships to weaken Germany by attacking anddefeating Turkey, Germany’s new ally. The planwas for the battleships to move through the stripof water known as the Dardanelles, attackTurkey’s capital, Constantinople, force Turkey outof the war and open up a supply route for Britain’sally, Russia. The plan offered the additionaladvantage of opening up a new front from whichto attack Germany’s other main ally, Austria–Hungary. This was to be a naval campaign, withinfantry used only to destroy the Turks’ land-based guns that threatened the British fleet.

The naval assault was a failure from the beginning,as British and French ships suffered severedamage from mines and shellfire. British militaryauthorities decided to attempt a land invasion. Thistoo was a disaster. The Turks had weeks of advancewarning as a result of the naval bombardment andthe French announcement of military plans. By thetime British and Anzac troops landed on thebeaches of the Gallipoli Peninsula in April 1915,the Turks, under German General Liman vonSanders, had been working for weeks to organisereinforcements and strengthen defences. Anzactroops left their landing craft to face an unrelentingbarrage of Turkish machine gun fire.

British miscalculations about the landing placefurther undermined the chances for success. On25 April 1915, 16 000 Anzac troops landed twokilometres north of the intended position at GabaTepe. Turkish forces were located at the top of thesteep cliffs that fringed the tiny landing beach,later known as Anzac Cove. With artillery at bothends of the beach, the Turkish forces were ideallylocated to gun down the invaders and trap thembetween the sea and the virtually unscaleablecliffs. By nightfall of the first day, the soldiers hadadvanced about 900 metres at a cost of about2000 casualties.

THE BRITISH PLAN

THE GALLIPOLI CAMPAIGN

GALLIPOLI: THE ‘BAPTISM

OF FIRE’

Ground taken in April

Ground taken in August

Turkish fort

Turkish mines

Allied attacks

A photograph showing troops landing at Anzac Cove during the Gallipoli campaign

Over the next week, another 27 000 soldierslanded at Anzac Cove, where they tried to main-tain control of the beach and construct trenches— all under the constant barrage of Turkish firefrom distances as close as 30 metres. On 19 May1915, 42 000 Turks advanced in an attempt tobreak through Anzac lines. They were unsuc-cessful, and both sides paid a huge toll in the

Maps showing the locationand progress of the Gallipolicampaign

Source 4.4.2

Source 4.4.1

N


95

number of dead and wounded. Both sides (Turksand Anzacs) agreed to stop fighting for a fewhours so they could bury their dead and collectthe wounded from no man’s land.

An extract from the recollections of James Donaldson

A photograph taken at Gallipoli on 24 May 1915 showing burial parties burying Australian and Turkish dead during the armistice AWM H00240

The British decided to try a new tactic. Anzactroops were to attack the Turkish strongholds atLone Pine and the Nek in the hope of dis-tracting attention from 25 000 British troopswho were to land at Suvla Bay. The Anzacs tookLone Pine but at a huge cost to both sides. Overfour days of bitter fighting, from 6–10 August,the Anzacs suffered 2300 casualties and theTurks suffered 6000.

The attack at the Nek was even worse. In theearly hours of 7 August 1915, hundreds of light-

Source 4.4.3

The dead were that thick, thousands right along there, and the place smelled terrible. There were big rats . . . squeaking and fighting over the corpses. Both sides were getting riddled with disease . . . The armistice was signed, and the Ninth was elected to go out, right along the line carrying a little white flag . . . So we went out . . . and as I went, a Turk came out, we were about ten feet or so from each other, and he followed along with me . . . The chaps came out of the trenches, and pulled what was left of our dead over to our side, and the Turks did the same. We just hooked a pick into their belts and dragged what was left of them away. And that lasted all day and by that time we were all well and truly sick . . . So then the bugle sounded (to end the armistice) and I had to run up a stiff hill, and just before I jumped in (to the trench) I gave a wave back, and the Turks waved back too . . . A few minutes after that, two red flares were fired . . . The war was on again.

Recollections of James Donaldson, quoted in T. Matthews,Crosses: Australian Soldiers in the First War 1914–18,

Boolarong Publications, Brisbane, 1987.

Source 4.4.4

horsemen went ‘over the top’ of their trenches infour suicidal charges against the Turkish trenchesonly 45 metres away. During the next 45 minutes,234 light-horsemen died and 138 were wounded.While this was happening, the British had landedsafely and could be seen settling in at Suvla Bay.

The Gallipoli campaign was a spectaculardefeat. By late August 1915, British militarystrategists realised that they had little chance ofdefeating Turkish troops on the Gallipoli Penin-sula. A new commander, General Sir CharlesMunro, advised evacuation rather than continuewith what he predicted would be a 30–40 percent casualty rate. Allied troops began with-drawing from Anzac Cove and Suvla Bay in earlyDecember 1915. By 19 December, the evacuationwas complete, with only two casualties. By thistime, there were 26 000 casualties among theAnzac troops, including about 10 000 deaths.

Understand

1. What were the main advantages of Churchill’s plan?

2. What problems occurred when the plan was put into action?

3. Why were the assaults on Lone Pine and the Nek memorable for the Anzacs?

4. What made the evacuation the only ‘successful’ aspect of the Gallipoli campaign?

5. Create a timeline of the main events at Gallipoli between April and December 1915.

Use sources

6. Copy the outline of the map in source 4.4.1 and use it as the centrepiece of a mind map explaining the goals and key features of the Gallipoli campaign.

7. Describe the scene shown in source 4.4.2. What does it indicate about the hardships faced at Anzac Cove?

8. What do you learn from sources 4.4.3 and 4.4.4 about:(a) the reality of war (compared to people’s

expectations of it at the time war broke out)?(b) how the experience of collecting the dead

and wounded affected the attitudes of the Australian and Turkish soldiers towards one another?

Dig deeper

9. To find out more about Australians’ experiences at Gallipoli, visit the website for this book and click on the Gallipoli weblinks for this chapter (see ‘Weblinks’, page xvi). First create a bubble map of five sub-topics that you can investigate to understand the main topic in more depth.

HUMANITIES 3

96

4.5

Within a short time of their arrival at Gallipoli,soldiers armed with entrenching tools and sand-bags had begun to hastily construct the trenchesand dugouts that would provide them with someprotection. The task was difficult because the menmainly had to lie on their stomachs, using theentrenching tool without its handle. Standing up todig normally would have made them easy targetsfor the Turks. Over the following weeks, dugoutsappeared all over the hillsides above Anzac Cove.These were the places where the Anzacs ate, slept,wrote letters home, darned holes in their socks,smoked cigarettes and waited until they werecalled to active duty (see source 4.11.2, page 113).

Conditions at Gallipoli tested everyone’s endur-ance. By mid-year, the weather had become hotand there were plagues of disease-carrying fliesand fleas. Supply ships brought in water fromEgypt, but there was never enough. By October,soldiers were beginning to experience the bittercold, mud and ice that were characteristic of aTurkish winter.

An extract from the writings of Ion Idriess, describing the difficulties of eating during summer at Gallipoli

Troops who had arrived in peak physicalcondition soon suffered dysentery, diarrhoea,gastroenteritis and infestations of lice. It wasvirtually impossible to keep clean. Toilets wereopen pits. Corpses lay rotting in no man’s landbetween the opposing trenches because it wasunsafe to try to retrieve them for burial.Wounded men lay for hours awaiting medicalattention. During some weeks in the Gallipolicampaign, as many as 20 per cent of the menwere sick from diseases relating to poor hygiene.

The Turks were never far away — as close as30 metres in some places. Hand grenades, sniper

LIVING CONDITIONS

Source 4.5.1

I wrapped my overcoat over the tin and gouged out the flies, then spread the biscuit, held my hand over it and drew the biscuit out of the coat. But a lot of flies flew into my mouth and beat about inside. I nearly howled with rage.

Quoted in B. Gammage, The Broken Years,ANU, Canberra, 1974.

fire, mortar bombs and shell blasts were constantthreats to the Anzacs. The casualty rate was gen-erally 23 per cent. It was difficult to escape eitherphysically or psychologically from the war. How-ever, soldiers were willing to risk the dangers ofenemy fire in their quest for some light relief andthe opportunity to feel cool and clean. They relaxedby swimming and playing cricket on the beach.

An extract from the writings of Australian journalist and historian C. E. W. Bean on 23 June 1915

The Gallipoli campaign and the Anzac legendwhich emerged from it have had a significantimpact on ideas about Australia’s national iden-tity. Although a military defeat, the bravery andsacrifices associated with the eight-monthstruggle have had a profound effect on how Aus-tralians view this period. For many people, boththen and now, the participation of Australian sol-diers in the Gallipoli campaign was the realsymbol of Australia’s coming of age as a nation.

The experiences on the Gallipoli Peninsulaformed the framework for a view of the character-istics which identified the ‘true Australian’. Peoplefelt that the Gallipoli experience had marked theways Australian soldiers could be distinguishedfrom the troops of other national groups,especially the British. The Anzac legend alsoreinforced the nineteenth century image of theunique attributes of the Australian ‘bushman’.Australians could be recognised by their commonsense, their willingness to endure hardship, theirbravery and resourcefulness, their spirit of inde-pendence and their reluctance to accept theauthority of others unquestioningly. This anti-authoritarianism reflected the apparent lack ofclass distinction among Australians. In contrast

Source 4.5.2

One shell today hit a man in the water and took off his arm — at least it was hanging by a thread and he came out of the water holding it. It didn’t stop the bathing.

From C. E. W. Bean, The Story of Anzac: Official History ofAustralia in the War of 1914–18, Australian War Memorial.

THE BIRTH OF THE ANZAC LEGEND

GALLIPOLI AND THE BIRTH OF

THE ANZAC LEGEND


97

with the British, many Australiansoldiers became officers on thebasis of ability rather than on thebasis of social class. People wereproud of these differences. Britishwar correspondent Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett helped to promote thislegend (see source 4.5.3).

An extract from Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett’s article

Australians at home responded enthusiasticallyto this praise. Enlistment figures for June 1915(12 505) were nearly double the figures for April.In July, they soared to 36 575 — nearly a 300 percent increase on the month before. Pride in theAnzacs also showed itself in propaganda posters(see, for example, source 4.5.4).

Source 4.5.3

The Australians, who were about to go into action for the first time in trying circumstances, were cheerful, quiet and confident. There was no sign of nerves nor of excitement . . . the boats had almost reached the beach when a party of Turks, entrenched ashore, opened a terrible fusillade with rifles and a Maxim [machine gun] . . .

The Australians rose to the occasion. Not waiting for orders or for the boats to reach the beach, they sprang into the sea and, forming a sort of rough line, rushed at the enemy trenches.

Their magazines were not charged, so they just went in with cold steel. It was over in a minute. The Turks in the first trench were either bayoneted or they ran away and their Maxim was captured.

Then the Australians found themselves facing an almost perpendicular cliff of loose sandstone . . . Somewhere, half-way up, the enemy had a second trench, strongly held . . . Here was a tough proposition to tackle in the darkness, but those colonials, practical above all else, went about it in a practical way . . . They stopped for a few minutes . . . got rid of their packs, and charged their magazines.

Then this race of athletes proceeded to scale the cliffs without responding to the enemy’s fire. They lost some men, but did not worry. In less than a quarter of an hour the Turks were out of their second position, either bayoneted or fleeing . . .

The courage displayed by the wounded Australians will never be forgotten . . . Though many were shot to bits, without hope of recovery, their cheers resounded throughout the night . . . They were happy because they knew they had been tried for the first time and not found wanting . . .

There has been no finer feat in this war than this sudden landing in the dark and storming the heights . . .

Argus, 8 May 1915.

A 1915 recruitment posterAWM ARTV05167

Understand1. What hardships

of daily life did the Anzacs endure at Gallipoli?

2. Why is the Gallipoli campaign seen as important to Australia’s national identity?

3. What qualities does the Anzac legend identify as being typically Australian?

4. What aspects of the Anzac legend do you think Australian soldiers would have wanted to believe in most? Give reasons for your answer.

Use sources5. Use sources 4.5.1 and 4.5.2 and your own

knowledge to construct a paragraph of 10–15 lines describing soldiers’ experiences of life on the Gallipoli Peninsula.

6. What ‘typically Australian’ characteristics are suggested by Ashmead-Bartlett in source 4.5.3? Summarise these in the form of a mind map with the words ‘Ashmead-Bartlett’s typical Aussie’ in the centre.

7. Answer the following questions about source 4.5.4.(a) To whom is the soldier calling?(b) What is his message? Which words describe

the action he wants his audience to take?(c) What emotions does the poster appeal to and

how does the artist achieve this? (d) What aspects of the poster emphasise links

with Australia?

Communicate8. In groups, discuss the idea that the Gallipoli

campaign was a symbol of Australia’s coming of age as a nation.

9. Discuss the weaknesses associated with judging people according to their nation’s identity.

Worksheets

4.3 Key features of the Anzac legend

Source 4.5.4

HUMANITIES 3

98

4.6

By the time World War I ended in 1918, cinemawas just beginning to develop into the majorsource of entertainment that it has since become.The war itself has provided the backdrop for hun-dreds of films exploring themes of conflict, her-oism, loyalty, adventure, comradeship, romanceand self-sacrifice. Film has become a means ofshaping popular images of the war and helpingthose who did not live through that period of his-tory to understand some of its human dimensions.Film has also served to depict the real horror ofthe war in a form that is easier for people to livewith. War films provide a version of the past thatmay or may not accord with reality. The majorityof films set during World War I have viewed thewar as a grand spectacle against which romanceshave been formed and thwarted; friendships andloyalties have been tested; and heroic qualitieshave emerged. Occasionally, war films haveexplored anti-war themes.

The film Gallipoli was made by the Australiandirector Peter Weir in 1981. Weir wrote the storyon which the movie was based and the playwrightDavid Williamson wrote the script (and played asmall role in the film). As the title suggests, thefilm deals with Australia’s involvement in the1915 Gallipoli campaign during World War I. Ittells the story of two young men — Archy Ham-ilton (Mark Lee) and Frank Dunne (Mel Gibson)— who enlist for military service in 1915. Throughrecounting the experiences of these young men,the film focuses our attention on key aspects ofthe Anzac legend and on the nature of war anddecision making on the Gallipoli Peninsula.

The information, sources and questions in thissection provide guidelines for viewing Gallipoli,for discussing its themes and for considering itsvalue as a historical source. You should be able togain a better understanding of the experiences ofAustralians during World War I and be able tomake some judgements about the accuracy of thefilm compared to your factual knowledge of theGallipoli campaign and the Anzac legend.

THE CINEMA AND THE WAR

GALLIPOLI ANDAUSTRALIA’S WAR

A poster from the early 1980s advertising the film Gallipoli

A photograph of Australian soldiers in Egypt in 1915. The soldiers trained in desert conditions and many were consigned to either the Imperial Camel Corps, formed in 1916 to fight pro-Turkish forces, or the Camel Transport Corps, formed to move supplies by camel over the desert.

Source 4.6.1

Source 4.6.2

GALLIPOLI: FILM AS

A SOURCE OF HISTORY


99

A description of the consecutive charges of the light horse regiments at the Nek on 7 August 1915

Source 4.6.3

The most tragic feint attack, at once the most gallant and the most hopeless, was made by the 8th and 10th Light Horse Regiments against the Turkish trenches at The Nek. The Nek was a ridge 50 yards wide at the Anzac line, narrowing to about 30 at the Turkish front. The opposing trenches on it were about 20 yards apart, and at least five Turkish machine guns covered the intervening ground. Four lines of the light horse, each of about 150 men, were to seize the enemy front line and the maze of trenches and saps behind it, on Baby 700. They would be preceded by a naval and artillery bombardment, and were to attack at two minute intervals. The light horsemen were eager and confident, for this was their first great battle, and they expected to break from the interminable trenches into the open. Sick men hid or escaped from their doctors to be in the charge . . .

At four in the afternoon of 6 August the artillery began a gentle bombardment. It intensified early on the 7th, but at four twenty three a.m., seven minutes before time, it ceased. The light horsemen stood still in the silence. In the enemy trenches soldiers cautiously emerged from shelter, lined their front two deep, fired short bursts to clear their machine guns, levelled their rifles, and waited. At four thirty precisely the first line of the 8th Light Horse leapt from their trenches. As their helmets appeared above the parapet, an awful fire broke upon them. Many were shot, but a line started forward. It crumpled and vanished within five yards. One or two men on the flanks dashed to the enemy’s parapet before being killed, the rest lay in the open.

The second line saw the fate of their friends. Over their heads the Turk fire thundered undiminished, drowning out any verbal order . . . Beside them lay dead and wounded of the first line, hit before they cleared the trench. But they waited two minutes as ordered, then sprang forward. They were shot down. The 10th Light Horse filed into the vacant places in the trench. They could hardly have doubted their fate. They knew they would die, and they determined to die bravely, by running swiftly at the enemy. ‘Boys, you have ten minutes to live,’ their commanding officer told them, ‘and I am going to lead you.’ Men shook hands with their mates, took position, and when the order came, charged into the open. The bullets of their expectant foe caught them as before, and tumbled them into the dust beside their comrades. Moves were made to halt the fourth line, but too late, and these men, too, climbed out to be killed.

It was now a little after five fifteen a.m. Two hundred and thirty-four dead light horsemen lay in an area little larger than a tennis court. . . . One hundred and thirty-eight others were wounded . . .

‘It was heroic,’ wrote one who watched them, ‘it was marvellous . . . yet it was murder.’

Bill Gammage, The Broken Years,ANU, Canberra, 1974, pp. 73–5.

Use sources1. Watch Gallipoli and note what it tells us about:

(a) the attitudes and values of the two main characters (i) at the beginning of the film

(ii) during their time in Egypt(iii) in the trenches on the Gallipoli Peninsula

(b) comparisons between the Australians and the British

(c) the meaning of ‘mateship’ and examples of this quality

(d) positive and negative images of the Australians’ behaviour and attitudes

(e) the use of music to evoke particular emotions and create a certain atmosphere.

2. After you have seen the film, discuss your responses according to the above guidelines, either as a class or in small groups.

3. What aspects of the Anzac legend are reinforced in the film Gallipoli?

4. What impression of the film was the poster artist trying to create in source 4.6.1?

5. What were some Australians’ experiences in Egypt, such as those soldiers shown in source 4.6.2? How are similar experiences conveyed in the film?

6. What aspects of source 4.6.3 coincide with Peter Weir’s re-creation of this event. What aspects differ? What viewpoint is Weir trying to get across to the audience through the changes he makes?

7. What are the similarities and differences between the opening and closing sequences of Gallipoli? What do you think Peter Weir wanted to achieve by this?

8. How is war portrayed in the film? What evidence is there for a pro-war/anti-war stance? What side does the film-maker primarily support? Explain.

9. On whose view of the Anzac experience does the film focus? What views are ignored or addressed only superficially? What reasons might there be for this? How could this affect the accuracy of the film?

10. In a PowerPoint, describe the strengths and weaknesses of the film as a source of information about the experiences at Gallipoli.

Communicate11. Compose some questions you would ask Peter

Weir, to gain a better understanding of the film’s historical accuracy.

12. Write a two-page review of the film Gallipoli. Your report should briefly outline the story, discuss the main themes that the film explores, and include your opinion of the strengths and weaknesses of the film as a historical source.

ICT

MADE EA

SY

www.jaconline.com.au/ict-mePowerPoint

HUMANITIES 3

100

4.7

The AIF served in Egypt, Palestine, the GallipoliPeninsula and the Western Front. After theGallipoli campaign, the Australian infantry div-isions went on to fight some of the worst battlesof the war, in France and in Flanders (Belgium).Between 1916 and late 1918, 295 000 Australiansoldiers served in this area of the Western Front.The Battle of the Somme in France in 1916 andthe Battle of Passchendaele in Flanders in 1917are the two battles which most represent theneedless slaughter of young Australian men onthe World War I battlefields.

A map showing the location of the area known as the Western Front

The Battle of the Somme (July to November1916) was another doomed attempt at breakingthe stalemate on the Western Front. The Britishplan, coordinated by General Sir Douglas Haig,was to launch a major attack on German lines inthe Somme River valley. The assault would beginwith an intense artillery bombardment of Germandefences. Then, 1.2 million soldiers wouldadvance in wave formations along a 72-kilometrefront. The aim was to cut the Germans off frombehind and make them so demoralised that theywould surrender.

GERMANY

LUXEMBOURG

0 100 200 km

BELGIUM

SWITZERLAND

NETHERLANDS

FRANCE

ITALY

BRITAIN

We s t e r n F r o n t

Central Powers attack

Allied attack

N

Source 4.7.1

THE SOMME

A photograph showing the British artillery bombardment of German defences on the Somme in July 1916 IWM Q5817

The Germans had weeks of forewarningthrough overheard field telephone messages, themovements of British reconnaissance aircraft andthe observations of their own pilots. When theattack began on 1 July 1916, German defenceswere well prepared. British mines went off tooearly and alerted the Germans that the attackwas due to start. British artillery fire failed todestroy the barbed wire protecting the Germantrenches. The soldiers advanced into a non-stopbarrage of German machine gun fire. Theybecame easy targets as their attempts to passthrough the German barbed wire only made thembecome more entangled in it. The allied troops didnot have the machine gun power needed torespond effectively. On the first day, over 20 000allied troops were killed and 40 000 wounded.

The attack failed to achieve a large-scale break-through, and tactics focused instead on raids onspecific enemy targets. The Australian First Div-ision had the task of capturing the German-heldtown of Pozières. This was achieved in a few hourson 23 July 1916, but it took seven weeks of horrificfighting against ongoing German artillery fire toconsolidate the gain. By this time, three moreAustralian divisions had become involved.

In July 1916, there were 90 000 AIF soldiersserving on the Western Front. The Australiansoldiers’ reputation for reckless independenceoften resulted in their being chosen to lead theattacks. By the end of August 1916, there were23 000 Australian casualties from the Sommebattlefields — nearly as many as for the entireeight months at Gallipoli. All this was for a gainof about 1.5 kilometres. By the end of the Somme

Source 4.7.2

AUSTRALIANS AT THE SOMME

AND IN FLANDERS’ FIELDS


101

campaign, the AIF had lost more than 32 000soldiers, with an overall gain in land of about10.5 kilometres. Neither the average Australiansoldier nor the average British soldier had muchfaith in British military leadership after this.

In April 1917, the Australian Second Division atBullecourt (France) captured two lines of Germantrenches and later succeeded in establishing a newallied position nearby — despite the failure of thepromised tank support from the British.

A report of the attack on Pozières

From mid to late 1917, two Anzac divisions tookpart in fighting in and around Ieper (Ypres) inBelgium. This was the third battle of Ieper, alsoknown as the Battle of Passchendaele. The battlewas part of a British attempt to break throughthe German lines towards the North Sea ports,where the German U-boats were berthed. Therewere 7000 Australian casualties during theinitial attack in June.

In July 1917, the British resumed artilleryshelling of German defences. The Germans hadthe advantage of higher ground and a wide viewof their attackers’ movements. Over the next14 weeks, allied troops made 10 attempts to break

Source 4.7.3

The assault at Pozières, continued the London officer, was one of the most difficult essayed since the offensive began. The Germans set their heart on retaining the village. Sir Douglas Haig’s order was that Pozières must be taken. When the word was given to charge, the Australians swept across the approaches to the German lines. There was no shouting or battle-crying. Each Tom, Dick and Harry with teeth set firmly, went forth to slay in silence. When the German machine guns opened fire, the bullets whizzed in all directions . . .

Some crack German regiments were employed, but the Anzacs went for their men, and put in terrible bayonet work. After a fierce contest the Australians and New Zealanders obtained the upper hand . . . It was the most horrible night any soldiers ever experienced. By daybreak on Monday we had a firm footing in the village. ‘The fighting at Pozières,’ continued the London officer, ‘has proved that the Anzacs would face a wall of iron and go through it.’

The Sydney Morning Herald, 28 July 1916.

IN FLANDERS’ FIELDS

through to Passchendaele. Men and equipmentbecame bogged down in flooded fields. GeneralHaig insisted that the attack proceed. When hischief of staff visited the battlefield, he reportedlyalmost wept and said, ‘Good God, did we reallysend men to fight in that?’ The allied forcessuffered 300 000 casualties. Thirty-eight thousandwere Australian.

Two developments in 1917 helped change thecourse of the war. In April, the United Statesentered the war on the side of Britain and itsallies. In November, Russia (ruled by a newBolshevik government) pulled out of the war.Despite now having to fight on only one front, war-weary and poorly supplied German troops failed intheir attempted Spring Offensive in early 1918. Bythe end of 1918, the German people had embarkedon a revolutionary overthrow of their government.In November 1918, Germany’s new governmentsigned the armistice which finally ended thefighting.

Understand1. Outline the goal and plan of the Somme

offensive. List the reasons for its failure.2. Why did the third battle of Ieper fail?3. Write a paragraph explaining the role of Australian

troops in battles on the Somme and around Ieper.

Use sources4. What weapon is shown in source 4.7.2? What role

did it play in the Battle of the Somme?5. What does source 4.7.3 reveal about the Anzacs’

attitudes to fighting at Pozières? How does this account reinforce the Anzac legend?

6. What does source 4.7.4 show of the hardships experienced at the Battle of Passchendaele? What was the impact on the landscape?

Worksheets

4.4 Australians and the World War I battlefields

A photograph of Australiansoldiers on the battlefieldsof Ieper in 1917

AWM E01220

Source 4.7.4

HUMANITIES 3

102

4.8

Australia did not need women to replace men inthe paid workforce as desperately as did countrieslike Germany and Britain. Thus, Australianwomen’s main wartime work was in the tra-ditional female roles of nursing and volunteerservice and in the food, clothing and textile indus-tries. The government refused them roles thatmany would have liked as members of auxiliaryunits attached to the armed forces.

Voluntary work provided the main means forwomen to contribute to the war effort. Two daysafter the announcement of war, Lady Helen Munro-Ferguson, wife of the Governor-General, called forthe establishment of the ‘Australian Branch of theBritish Red Cross Society’. She then became itspresident. The organisation’s patriotic focus andlinks with the social elite attracted many middle-class women and significant donations from groupssuch as the Australian Jockey Club. Womenattended working bees where, over the period of thewar, they produced thousands of items of clothingfor the soldiers abroad. The Red Cross also sentfood parcels to Australian prisoners of war andprovided assistance to families by establishing aWounded and Missing Inquiry Bureau.

The other key organisation for volunteer workwas the Australian Comforts Fund (ACF). TheACF was established in 1916 to provide ‘comfortboxes’ which contained the ‘luxury’ food, clothingor other items that went beyond the basics sup-plied by the AIF. These included cakes, puddings,cigarettes, newspapers and messages of support.Another of the ACF’s goals was to help preventtrench foot by ensuring that soldiers had an ade-quate supply of dry socks. Every few weeks, 10 000pairs of hand-knitted socks were sent to the menoverseas — each pair representing about 10 hoursof labour. By the end of the war, Australian womenhad knitted 1 354 328 pairs of socks for the ACF.

Women’s voluntary work also supported theshipping costs of these organisations. Womenobtained funds by making and selling cakes,running button days, fetes and street stalls, andby organising and participating in door-knockappeals. Voluntary work provided opportunitiesfor some middle-class women to develop skills inorganisation, management and financing.

VOLUNTARY WORK

A photograph of voluntary workers preparing parcels to send to the AIF AWM J00346

Hundreds of women joined the AustralianWomen’s Service Corps (AWSC) when it wasformed in late 1916. They wanted a more activewar role, performing non-combatant tasks at thebattle front as ambulance drivers, cooks or hos-pital orderlies. They wanted to take on work thatwould release the ‘able-bodied men who are nowperforming these duties’ for active militaryservice. The AWSC also conducted basic militarytraining for its members. The Defence Depart-ment refused to take these women seriously.

Army nurses

The Defence Department would not appointfemale doctors, arguing that women could notcope with the war’s demands on them in such arole. The Australian Army Nursing Service pro-vided the only opportunity for Australian womento engage in service overseas during World War I.Nearly 2000 trained nurses served in all theatresof war. Sister Elizabeth Kenny (1880–1952), laterfamous for her work with children suffering frompoliomyelitis, served on Australian hospital shipsduring World War I.

Nurses cleaned and dressed the horrific woundscreated by new weapons of warfare and assisted inoperations. They endured shellfire near the battlefront, and dealt with the psychological strains thatwarfare placed on both them and their patients.

Source 4.8.1

THE PAID WORKFORCE

WOMEN’S

WAR WORK


103

These women were poorly paid — a reflection ofthe belief that caring for others was a ‘natural’ rolefor women. Their working hours were long andphysically and emotionally exhausting.

A photograph of nurses outside their living quarters at the Second Australian Casualty Clearing Station, France, c.1917

AWM P00156.065

An extract from the diary of Elsie Tranter, an Australian nurse serving in France in 1918

Source 4.8.2

Source 4.8.3

22.3.18: . . . Barrage commenced at 1.5 a.m. Shells were whistling and screaming. We were watching the shrapnel bursting in the air. At 3 a.m. there was a terrific explosion and everything was lighted up . . . By 7 a.m. the wounded were pouring in, some in ambulances, some walking, helping one another along.

All day long we worked under very trying conditions. We had four operating tables in constant use and poor fellows lying on stretchers on the theatre floor, waiting till we could attend to them.

One poor chap with half his jaw blown away walked in supported by two wounded comrades.

I gave twenty anaesthetics finishing at 2.30 this morning. Then orders came for us to evacuate . . . The wounded were sent by road transport to various Stationary and Base hospitals. We were only allowed such luggage as we could carry so we put on our warmest clothing and filled our coat pockets to overflowing. That waiting time after the wounded had been sent on always will leave two pictures in my memory. The first of the sitting room we had thought so pretty and cosy only a few days before now dismantled and with Sisters all weary and sleepy — some sitting about, some lying on the floor with a gas mask for a pillow trying to snatch a few minutes sleep; the other of the same party of Sisters sitting on the roadside waiting for transport, tin hats on at various and unbecoming angles, pockets bulging and all wondering, ‘What next?’

Diary of Sister Elsie Tranter, 22 March 1918.AWM 3DRL/4081(A)

Civilian jobs

Whenever women did enter the workforce toreplace men, it was only as part of a ‘reserve’ labourforce. This meant that they had a short-term placein the workforce rather than a long-term right to aposition there, since soldiers would return to theirhomes, their families and ‘their’ jobs. Some womentook temporary jobs in the police force, in farming,in factories and in small businesses. Clerical workwas popular, with about 10000 women under-taking this form of employment during the war.

Women’s pre-war wages were about half of whatmen were paid for the same work. This wasdecided in the 1907 Harvester Case (see page 80),in which Justice Higgins established the principleof a basic wage that would enable a man to sup-port a wife and three children. Women’s wageswere to be a percentage of this amount. In theRural Workers’ Case in 1912, Justice Higginsrefused women the right to equal pay for equalwork because they ‘did not have to feed a family’.It was assumed that only men would fulfil the roleof ‘breadwinner’ and that all females would havea man to support them. World War I showed thereality to be different, with some men enlisting toescape family responsibilities. The governmentresponded by ensuring soldiers allocated part oftheir pay for wives and children at home.

Understand1. What were the main ways in which women in

Australia supported the war effort?2. What was the Commonwealth Government’s

attitude to women’s war work?3. How did Australian women’s war work differ from

the work of women in other combatant nations?4. What were the advantages and disadvantages of

women’s wartime roles?

Use sources5. (a) What does source 4.8.1 reveal about the

women who engaged in voluntary work?(b) What would you judge to be the similarities

and differences between the wartime experiences of the women in source 4.8.1 and those shown in source 4.8.2? In your answer, consider the work they did, the experiences it provided and its impact on their attitude towards war.

6. Sources 4.8.2 and 4.8.3 both provide impressions of Australian women’s experiences as nurses on the battle fronts of World War I. What are the similarities and differences? Which source is more useful for understanding women’s experiences at the battle front?

HUMANITIES 3

104

4.9

The war still showed no signs of ending in late1916. By this time, the AIF was the only force madeup entirely of volunteers. Australians’ enthusiasticresponses to recruitment decreased as they learnedmore about battle front conditions and the highrates of Australian casualties in France. By June1916, voluntary enlistment in the AIF was lessthan half of the 16500 men per month who wereneeded to maintain Australia’s fighting capacity.Following a visit to Britain and France, theAustralian Prime Minister, William (‘Billy’)Hughes, proposed a solution — conscription.

In 1916 and 1917, Billy Hughes fought hard toconvince Australians to vote ‘yes’ in the conscrip-tion referenda he introduced. He announced thefirst referendum with the words, ‘I am going towork for this referendum and its success as if itwere the only thing for which I live’. His determi-nation provoked a debate that bitterly divided thenation and forced Australians to consider wheretheir primary loyalty lay. It also created a confron-tation between Hughes and his own party, asopposition to conscription was part of the LaborParty platform.

A column graph showing enlistment in the AIF 1915–18

The Defence Act 1903 (Cwlth), gave the Aus-tralian Government the power to conscript menfor military service inside Australia but not forservice overseas. Hughes sought the power to con-script men for military service outside Australia.When he could not get majority support for this inthe Commonwealth Parliament, he decided to tryto gain the support of the people by means of areferendum. A referendum is a vote in which

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10 000

12 000

14 000

16 000

18 000

Mar

chJu

neSep

t.Dec

.

Mar

chJu

neSep

t.Dec

.

Mar

chJu

neSep

t.Dec

.

Mar

chJu

neSep

t.Nov

.

1915 1916 1917 1918

Source 4.9.1

people are asked to indicate their support for oropposition to a proposed change to a law or to theConstitution. Hughes hoped to gain sufficient ‘yes’votes to pressure the Labor-dominated Parlia-ment to change its mind. On 28 October 1916,Australian voters were asked:

Are you in favour of the government having in thisgrave emergency the same compulsory powers overcitizens in regard to requiring their military service,for the term of this war, outside the Commonwealth,as it now has in regard to military service withinthe Commonwealth?

The result was very close, with 1 087 557 ‘yes’votes and 1 160 033 ‘no’ votes. Three states voted‘yes’ and three ‘no’. Following the failure of hiscampaign, the Labor Party passed a vote of noconfidence in Hughes as its leader. Hughes and 24of his supporters left the Labor Party and joinedwith the opposition Liberal Party to form theNationalist Party. Hughes and the Nationalistshad a resounding victory at the May 1917 federalelection and Hughes decided to try a second refer-endum on conscription.

A cartoon from The Australian Worker, 5 October 1916, depicting Hughes building the ‘case’ for Labor

Source 4.9.2

THE CONSCRIPTION ISSUE

DIVIDES AUSTRALIA


105

Australians voted on a second conscription ref-erendum on Thursday, 20 December 1917. Thequestion this time was:

Are you in favour of the proposal of the Common-wealth Government for reinforcing the AustralianImperial Force overseas?

Once again the vote was close with the ‘no’ voteof 1 181 747 winning by a slim majority over the‘yes’ vote of 1 015 159. This time, four of the sixstates voted ‘no’. The AIF continued its partici-pation as an entirely voluntary force for theremaining 11 months of war.

The conscription debates of 1916–17 reflected thedivision of loyalties that had emerged in Australiasince the late nineteenth century and especiallysince Federation in 1901. On the one hand, Aus-tralians felt a loyalty to their own young nationand a desire to shape its destiny. At the same time,most still felt the ‘crimson thread of kinship’ —the strong links to Britain that could be seen in thedesire to re-create British culture in a land on theother side of the world. The conscription issuehighlighted other divisions within Australia aboutreligion, class and the inequality of sacrifice thatmany people felt Australian soldiers were beingasked to bear.

The campaign by Hughes for a ‘yes’ vote was organ-ised through the nationwide branches of the Rein-forcements Referendum Council and endorsed bymajor newspapers and journals including the Bul-

letin. Hughes embarked on a national speakingtour that was supported by the Council’s propa-ganda posters and leaflets. In 1916, his argumentsfocused on the themes of maintaining the AIF atfull strength and maintaining national honour bynot deserting Britain in its hour of need.

The campaign for compulsory military servicehad begun with the formation of the UniversalService League (USL) in 1915. This group repre-sented mainly Australian conservatives of themiddle and upper classes. Its membership includedprominent Australian academics from Sydney andMelbourne universities, Protestant church leadersand businessmen, and Alfred Deakin. This groupand the Women’s National League, the Women’sChristian Temperance Union and the NationalCouncil of Women were the main supporters ofconscription.

CHANGING ATTITUDES

THE CONSCRIPTION CAMPAIGN

A photograph of an animated Billy Hughes speaking to crowds during the 1916 conscription campaign AWM A03376

An extract from Hughes’s speech at the Sydney Town Hall in September 1916

Many people viewed conscription as an extensionof their loyalty to Britain. Protestant churchleaders saw it as an essential response in a cam-paign against the evil ‘Hun’. Women often saw con-scription as a means of supporting those men whowere already fighting. Others argued that conscrip-tion would ensure that the burden of service wasmore fairly shared than under a voluntary system.Some people argued that conscription could be used

Source 4.9.3

Source 4.9.4

‘To every man and woman in Australia’, Mr Hughes concluded, ‘the appeal of our soldiers fighting on the battlefield falls upon our ears and reaches straight to our heart. These comrades of ours, those brave volunteers who went through the glories and agonies of Gallipoli and are now gaining fresh laurels in the gigantic battle on the soil of France, repose full trust in us. Shall we fail them now? (Cries of “No”). Shall we condemn them to death — (“no, no”) — for they go to their death unless we send support . . . Are their sacrifices and those of our glorious dead to be made in vain? (“No”). Are their deaths to be unavenged? No, I say, a thousand times no!

‘. . . What Australian will consent to partial withdrawal from this life and death struggle? Who among us will support a base abandonment of our fellow citizens who are fighting for us to the death with deathless heroism? Tens of thousands of our kinsmen in Britain have died that we might live free and unmolested (Cheers). Is there one man who will say that we ought not to pay the debt that we owe to Britain with our lives if need be, for shielding our country with the bodies of her glorious soldiers and sailors from the scorching blast of war? (Cheers). In this great hour, when our country and all we hold dear are in deadly peril, who among us will not rise greatly and, putting aside all other things, prove himself by his deeds worthy of these great sacrifices, and prove himself worthy of the great privileges of citizenship in a free democracy?’

The Sydney Morning Herald, 19 September 1916.

HUMANITIES 3

106

to advantage to exclude men with wives and chil-dren, men whose skills were essential to the work-place, and males under 19 years of age becausethey were too young. The 1917 campaign for a ‘yes’vote took up an additional theme, branding thosemen who had not enlisted as ‘shameful’.

The Anti’s Creed, outlining the supposed characteristics of anti-conscriptionists

A number of anti-conscription organisationsalready existed before 1916. These were oftenlinked to a general anti-war movement andincluded the Industrial Workers of the World(IWW), an international socialist group; the Societyof Friends (Quakers); and the Women’s Peace Army.Groups that focused more specifically on anti-conscription goals included the Australian PeaceAlliance and the No Conscription Fellowship.

Trade unions also campaigned against conscrip-tion. Unions feared that their members might bereplaced by cheap foreign or female labour andthat the introduction of conscription wouldprovide opportunities for employers to abandonhard-won worker rights. During the 1916 refer-endum campaign, members of the Australian

Source 4.9.5

I believe the man at the Front should be sacrificed.I believe we should turn dog on them.I believe that our women should betray the men who

are fighting for them.I believe in taking all the benefit and none of the risks.I believe it was right to sink the Lusitania.I believe in murder on the high seas.I believe in the IWW.I believe in Sinn Fein.I believe that Britain should be crushed and humiliated.I believe in the massacre of Belgian priests.I believe in the murder of women, and baby-killing.I believe Nurse Cavell got her desserts.I believe that treachery is a virtue.I believe that disloyalty is true citizenship.I believe that desertion is ennobling.I believe in Considine, Fihelly, Ryan, Blackburn,

Brookfield, Mannix and all their works.I believe in egg power rather than man power.I believe in holding up transports and hospital ships.I believe in general strikes.I believe in burning Australian haystacks.I believe in mine-laying in Australian waters.I believe in handing Australia over to Germany.I believe I’m worm enough to vote No.Those who DON’T believe in the above Creed will VOTE

YES.

THE CAMPAIGN AGAINST CONSCRIPTION

Railways Union took advantage of their jobs toorganise the distribution of thousands of copiesof an anti-conscription manifesto which SenatorPearce, the Minister for Defence, had banned.

Some anti-conscriptionists argued that con-scription was wrong because war itself wasimmoral; others argued that it was unjust to forcesomeone to go to war. Some were motivated pri-marily by self-interest. Opposition to conscrip-tion came mainly from within the Labor Party andits trade union and Catholic supporters. Thesegroups feared that the working classes would bearthe burden of conscription. They feared that theworking classes would be over-burdened in anycase if the main asset of the more privilegedclasses — their wealth — was not also con-scripted. Labor Party supporters often viewed thepro-conscription lobby as war profiteers who, intheir selfishness, would happily condemn othersto die while they stayed home and made money.

An anti-conscription poster sponsored by the Labor Party

Dr Daniel Mannix, the Catholic Archbishop ofMelbourne, was one of the most outspoken andcontroversial critics of conscription. Having beenborn and educated in Ireland, Mannix’s viewswere influenced by a reluctance to support anyBritish cause. This was particularly the case fol-lowing the British Government’s harsh treatmentof the 1916 Irish rebels and the execution of theirleaders. To Mannix and his followers, this eventonly served to prove that the British could behavejust as barbarically as the ‘Huns’ (who in 1914 hadbeen falsely portrayed as having ruthlessly bayo-neted Belgian babies). Mannix argued that Aus-tralia had already given enough and that the warwas being prolonged for economic advantages.

Source 4.9.6

ARCHBISHOP MANNIX


107

Farmers were also on the anti-conscriptionside. They feared that a compulsory call up of allmen in the 18–40 age group would deprive themof workers.

A photograph of Dr Daniel Mannix, the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne

An extract from a speech given by Dr Daniel Mannix

Understand1. What was the main difference between

recruitment for the AIF and recruitment for other nations’ armies by 1916?

2. Construct a timeline to show the main events relevant to the conscription issue in the period 1915–17.

Source 4.9.7

Source 4.9.8

We are told that the rich are giving their money, and that the poor should, therefore, cheerfully give or risk their lives . . .

I say that this cheap talk about equal sacrifice is galling, absurd and ridiculous. (Applause). The wealthy classes would be very glad to send the last man, but they have no notion of

giving the last shilling, nor even the first. (Loud applause.) I warn you not to be under the delusion that the capitalists will, in the end, pay for the war. You know that these people have a remarkable facility for passing these obligations on. (Laughter) . . . While there was every justification for England’s coming into the war to protect Belgium and France, and to protect herself, there was — and is — no justification for that country to go into the war or to remain at war for the purpose of securing the economic domination of the world. (Applause.) When we can say we have vindicated the rights of the small nations, and secured ourselves from aggression, we should think of making peace, even though we had not secured the economic domination of the world . . .

I say deliberately that it is a great exaggeration for Mr Hughes to state that 7000 men are required to be sent to the front monthly from Australia. At the very outside, the military authorities should not need more than 5000, and I am inclined to believe that perhaps 4000 would be enough.

The Advocate, 8 December 1917.

3. In what ways did the conscription issue create problems within Australian society?

4. (a) What was the actual request being made to the voting public in each of the conscription referenda?

(b) Which words/phrases might have encouraged people to vote ‘yes’?

(c) What question was not put directly to the voting public? What do you think were the reasons for this?

(d) Try re-wording the questions to encourage a ‘no’ vote.

5. Construct a table that lists the groups opposed to conscription and the reasons for their opposition.

6. Why would some people have considered it inappropriate to have a priest such as Daniel Mannix giving his views on conscription?

7. Why was it surprising that many farmers opposed Hughes’s views on conscription?

Use sources

8. Use source 4.9.1 and your own knowledge to explain the general trends regarding enlistment in 1915–18.

9. Use source 4.9.2 to answer the following questions:(a) Who is the person represented in the cartoon?(b) What kind of ‘case’ does the cartoonist

suggest he is making?(c) What is the issue which the cartoonist shows

is linked to the ‘case’? (d) What does the cartoonist suggest will be the

effect of this issue on the Labor Party?10. What image of Billy Hughes is suggested by

source 4.9.3? 11. What arguments for conscription does Hughes

emphasise in source 4.9.4?12. Write five to eight lines explaining the image of

the anti-conscriptionist that is created in source 4.9.5.

13. What argument does source 4.9.6 give for opposing conscription? What does the source reveal about the role of women in the conscription campaigns?

14. What reasons for opposing conscription does Mannix put forward in source 4.9.8?

Dig deeper

15. Write a speech outlining either the case for or the case against conscription. Your speech should show an understanding of the attitudes and concerns of Australians in 1916–17.

16. Using the internet, research the story of a young Australian boxing champion, Les Darcy, who became embroiled in the conscription debates in 1916. Write a one-page biography of his brief and controversial life.

ICT

MADE EA

SYwww.jaconline.com.au/ict-me

Internet searchWord-processed table

HUMANITIES 3

108

4.10

LEST WE FORGET: AUSTRALIA’S

ROLE IN WORLD WAR I

The armistice and ceasefire that brought an end tothe ‘war to end all wars’ came into effect at 11 amon 11 November 1918 — the eleventh hour of theeleventh day of the eleventh month. People cel-ebrated the war’s end and mourned its high cost.It would have been hard to find an Australianfamily not affected by more than four years offighting. Australia had a high death toll among thecountries that served in World War I. Within apopulation of nearly four and a half million:• 416 809 Australians volunteered for military

service• 324 000 of these served overseas• 155 000 were wounded• 61 720 Australians died either at sea, in the air

or, more commonly, on foreign soil — 45 000 inFrance and Belgium and over 8000 on theGallipoli Peninsula in Turkey.

A photograph of a Sydney street scene after the announcement of the armistice in November 1918 AWM H11563

In the nearly 90 years since the end of the war,Australian people and governments have estab-lished traditions and practices that recall thesacrifices of the Australians who served and diedin World War I. For families too far away toattend a funeral service or see the burial plot,this provided some comfort. It has also helpedpeople of later generations to understand theexperiences of those who fought.

Source 4.10.1

In Australia and in other allied nations,11 November became known as Armistice Day andas a day to remember those who had died in WorldWar I. After further high losses in World War II,the Australian Government changed the name ofthe day to Remembrance Day, a day in which thedead from both world wars would be commem-orated. In 1997, the then Governor-General SirWilliam Deane reinforced this commitment withan official proclamation stating both the name ofthe day and its purpose — now extended to com-memorate all Australians who have died in con-flicts fought for Australia.

A key aspect of Remembrance Day ceremoniesis the one minute’s silence at 11 am recalling thesilence of the World War I dead and of the cease-fire that silenced the guns of war. This traditionbegan in 1919 in London following the sugges-tion of Melbourne journalist Edward GeorgeHoney in a letter to the Evening News.

Throughout Australia, people also commem-orate this day with wreath-laying ceremonies atlocal and national war memorials. Wearing a redpoppy is another Remembrance Day tradition. TheFlanders Poppy, as it has become known, grewwild in the trenches, bomb craters and battlefieldsof the Western Front and also in Turkey, where avalley near Anzac Cove was called ‘Poppy Valley’.

One of the important results of World War I forAustralia was the birth of the ‘Anzac tradition’associated with the sacrifices and mateship thatemerged in the campaign on the Turkish penin-sula. The sacrifices are observed in a public hol-iday each year on the anniversary of the Gallipolilanding: 25 April.

Australians, both at home and abroad, first com-memorated the Gallipoli landing and the eightmonths of fighting there on 25 April 1916. Theacting Prime Minister officially named this day‘Anzac Day’ in the same year. In the 1920s, peoplebegan to organise ceremonies to honour the Anzacs,and 1923 saw the beginning of the dawn servicesthat are now an Anzac Day tradition.

REMEMBRANCE DAY

ANZAC DAY


109

Another feature of Anzac Day is the Anzac Daymarch, where men and women who have served inwars march through the streets of towns and citieslined with spectators wanting to pay their respects.Many then move on to reunions and, among men,there is the tradition of playing ‘two-up’.

A photograph of the Anzac Day march, Brisbane 2003

While Anzac Day lost popularity in Australiaduring the Vietnam War era, by the mid 1980s itwas becoming important to new generations ofAustralians. In the early twenty-first century,thousands of young Australians travel to Gal-lipoli each year to join in the Anzac Day services,beginning with the Dawn Service.

A photograph of young people at Gallipoli for the Dawn Service

Rosemary for remembrance

The ancient Greeks believed that wearing rose-mary helped improve the memory and, in thecenturies since, rosemary has become a symbolof remembrance. On Anzac Day, soldiers and

Source 4.10.2

Source 4.10.3

members of the public often wear a sprig of rose-mary to commemorate the war dead. On Anzac Day,poppies are used mainly for memorial wreaths.

People like the war correspondent and historianC. E. W. Bean had been considering since 1915 howAustralia’s losses could be honoured and commem-orated. C. E. W. Bean played a major role in estab-lishing a permanent commemoration of theAustralians who served in World War I: the Aus-tralian War Memorial in Canberra. It includes theRoll of Honour, a series of panels listing all thosewho died in the war; a Commemorative Roll thatlists those who died from war wounds later; relicsof war experiences that Australians brought homewith them; and an impressive series of visual dis-plays depicting the day-to-day experiences of thosewho fought.

Today, the Australian War Memorial commem-orates the sacrifices of all Australians who servedand died for their country in wartime.

The Australian War Memorial, Canberra — the Commemorative Area AWM PAIU2001/056.10

The Returned and Services League (RSL) was orig-inally established in 1916 as ‘the Returned Soldiersand Sailors Imperial League of Australia’. It wasestablished in different states within Australiabut by 1918 had become a national organisation.It grew out of the desire of returned soldiers tokeep in contact with wartime mates and to sharethe feelings of camaraderie they had developed

THE AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL, CANBERRA

Source 4.10.4

THE RSL

HUMANITIES 3

110

through living and fighting side by side. As well asprotecting the interests of ex-servicemen, it pro-moted political conservatism and traditional loy-alty to Britain. The RSL has been active ever sincein maintaining links among veterans and in pro-moting commemoration of their war work.

The Ode that is spoken each day in RSL clubs around Australia, followed by a minute’s silence. It is an extract from the 1914 elegy ‘For the Fallen’ by English poet Laurence Binyon (1869–1943).

The Commonwealth War Graves Commissionlooks after the graves and memorials of all thosefrom Commonwealth countries who served inWorld War I (and in wars since). The Office ofAustralian War Graves works to ensure thatpeople recognise and remember Australians’wartime contributions. In 1993, the AustralianGovernment exhumed (dug up) a World War Isoldier’s body from the Adelaide cemetery inVillers-Bretonneux, France, and re-buried it atthe Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

Source 4.10.5

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old;

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

THE COMMONWEALTH WAR GRAVES COMMISSION

An extract from the speech given by the then Prime Minister Paul Keating on 11 November 1993 at the funeralservice of the Unknown Soldier

Source 4.10.6

We do not know this Australian’s name and we never will.We do not know his rank or his battalion. We do not

know where he was born, nor precisely how and when he died. We do not know where in Australia he had made his home or when he left it for the battlefields of Europe. We do not know his age or his circumstances — whether he was from the city or the bush; what occupation he left to become a soldier; what religion, if he had a religion; if he was married or single. We do not know who loved him or whom he loved. If he had children we do not know who they are. His family is lost to us as he was lost to them. We will never know who this Australian was.

Yet he has always been among those whom we have honoured. We know that he was one of the 45 000 Australians who died on the Western Front. One of the 416 000 Australians who volunteered for service in the First World War. One of the 324 000 Australians who served overseas in that war and one of the 60 000 Australians who died on foreign soil. One of the 100 000 Australians who have died in wars this century.

He is all of them. And he is one of us . . .

The Unknown Australian Soldier whom we are interring today was one of those who, by his deeds, proved that real nobility and grandeur belongs not to empires and nations, but to the people on whom they, in the last resort, always depend.

That is surely at the heart of the Anzac story, the Australian legend which emerged from the war. It is a legend not of sweeping military victories so much as triumphs against the odds, of courage and ingenuity in adversity. It is a legend of free and independent spirits whose discipline derived less from military formalities and customs than from the bonds of mateship and the demands of necessity . . .

This Unknown Australian is not interred here to glorify war over peace; or to assert a soldier’s character above a civilian’s; or one race or one nation or one religion above another; or men above women; or the war in which he fought and died above any other war; or one generation above any that has been or will come later.

The Unknown Soldier honours the memory of all those men and women who laid down their lives for Australia . . .

Paul Keating

Photograph of the tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra AWM PAIU2003/001.11

As well as visiting World War I sites in Turkey,many Australians nowadays visit the areas inFlanders and the Somme where Australiansfought during World War I. One village of specialimportance is Villers-Bretonneux in the Sommeregion of northern France, which the Australianambassador visits for a wreath-laying ceremonyon the Sunday nearest to Anzac Day every year.

Villers-Bretonneux has a ‘twin town’ relationshipwith the town of Robinvale in Victoria and includesexamples of how both France and Australia havejoined together to pay homage to the Australianswho fought there during World War I. The relation-ship came about after March 1918 when Australian

Source 4.10.7

TOURIST TRIPS


111

troops prevented the Germans from capturing thevillage during their 1918 Spring Offensive.Children throughout Victoria collected the moneyto construct (in 1927) the ‘Victoria school’ in Villers-Bretonneux — built in the architectural style ofAustralian state schools of the period and decor-ated with Australian timbers and flora and faunamotifs. At the top of the blackboard in every class-room are the words N’oublions jamais l’Australie(‘Never forget Australia’). The school’s roof spacecontains a small commemorative museum.

A number of local streets such as the Rue deMelbourne recall Australian place names and thelocal war cemetery is called the Adelaidecemetery. Villagers are proud to show Australianstheir village VB logo (Victoria Bitter) and enjoyanother link to Australia at the local pub.

Use sources1. What do sources 4.10.1 to 4.10.8 reveal about the

values and attitudes underpinning the commemoration of Australia’s involvement in World War I?

Use ICT2. Visit the website for this book and click on the

Australian War Memorial weblink for this chapter (see ‘Weblinks’, page xvi). Take a virtual site tour to find out: (a) the link between the Dawn Service and the

army tradition of ‘stand to’(b) who originally attended the Dawn Service and

what happened there(c) who attends this service nowadays and what

kinds of activities it incorporates(d) how the War Memorial itself has contributed

to Australia’s commemoration of World War I.

3. For information about some of the regulations protecting the use of the word ‘Anzac’, visit the website for this book and click on the Department of Veterans’ Affairs weblink for this chapter (see ‘Weblinks’, page xvi).

4. Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian who served as a medical officer during World War I, portrayed the Flanders poppy as a flower of remembrance in his 1915 poem ‘In Flanders’ Fields’. Use the internet to find a copy of the words of his poem and do further research to also find some of the verses that others have written in reply to it.

Design and create

5. Create a mind map to show the different ways in which Australia commemorates World War I.

6. Use desktop publishing to create a poster to indicate the main features of each of the following: (a) The Australian Corps Memorial Park at Le

Hamel, France(b) The Australian National Memorial at Villers-

Bretonneux, France (c) The Australian War Memorial, London.

Dig deeper

7. Investigate how film-makers, artists and sculptors have sought to commemorate Australia’s involvement in World War I. Create a poster to communicate your findings to other people. (You might be particularly interested in the controversy surrounding the work that sculptor Rainer Hoff created for the War Memorial in Hyde Park, Sydney.)

8. Use biographical dictionaries, encyclopedias and the internet to investigate C. E. W. Bean’s work in commemorating Australians’ role in World War I. Summarise your findings in a PowerPoint presentation.

Worksheets

4.5 The search for Sergeant Corbett

Photograph of war graves at the Adelaide cemetery in Villers-Bretonneux, France

Source 4.10.8IC

T

MADE EA

SY

www.jaconline.com.au/ict-meDesktop publishing

HUMANITIES 3

112

Check & Challenge

EFFECTS OF THE WARHow did World War I affect Australia’s history? Your response to this question should be about 25 lines in length and should include reference to the following as well as to any other issues you think are important:• how the war affected Australia’s relationship with

Great Britain• how the war affected Australia’s view of itself as a

nation and as a member of the world beyond its own shores

• how the war affected relationships within Australian society.

ATTITUDES TOWARDS GERMANSThere were many German immigrants in South Australia. What do you think is the attitude of the author of this source towards them? What action do you think the author would like people to take?

A map of South Australia that the Sydney Mirror published on 17 June 1916

Source 4.11.1

DEVELOP YOUR HISTORICAL SKILLS1. Work in pairs to create a timeline of the most

important dates and events relevant to Australia’s involvement in World War I. When you have done this, decide how to colour-code the events to indicate whether they provide an example of:(a) a continuing pattern of wartime life(b) an event causing another event or

development (c) evidence of change.You can use more than one colour for each event if you need to.

2. Working in a group of two or three people, find ten historical sources that provide information on Australia’s role in World War I. Arrange these in order from most valuable to least valuable, then exchange your sources with another group to see how its members would rank them. Discuss the results.

3. Work in pairs to imagine and construct a conversation that might have taken place at a meeting between one of the following pairs of people:

(a) a conscientious objector and a recruitment officer

(b) a Defence Department official and someone whose son had been imprisoned under the Defence Act 1903

(c) a Defence Department official and a member of the AWSC

(d) a member of the Universal Service League and a member of the No Conscription Fellowship

(e) Daniel Mannix and William Morris Hughes.

In each case consider:• what event or issue they would

have discussed• what different attitudes, values

and perspectives they would reveal in the conversation

• if each could ask only one question of the other, what the question would be and what answer you would expect to hear.

ON

THE CD-R

OM

Australia

and WWI


113

4. Use the information in source 4.3.1 (pages 92–3) to help you identify some of the equipment of war shown in source 4.11.2. In what ways is the photo different from the artist’s image in 4.3.1?

A photograph of soldiers resting in dugout shelters at Gallipoli AWM G00544

5. What is the difference in meaning and in pronunciation between a ‘corps’ and a ‘corpse’? What meaning do they have in common?

6. Divide into groups of four or five. Each group is to come up with an idea for how your school could commemorate Australia’s role in World War I on either Anzac Day or Remembrance Day. After each group has reported its ideas, decide as a class which ones you will use and who will put these into action. You will need to think about who will be your target audience, the extent of this audience’s knowledge and how to communicate effectively with this group and involve it in your commemoration.

7. (a) Who wrote source 4.11.3 and why? What message did the writer want to get across? Which parts of the letter would have helped achieve this?

Source 4.11.2

(b) When was the letter written? What difference might the outbreak of war have made to the kind of reply the writer might have received?

(c) Write an answer to the letter. Your answer should reflect the likely attitudes of government officials in mid 1914. Use word processing to present this as an official communication.

An extract from a letter written by a person whose son was imprisoned under The Defence Act 1903 (Cwlth)

CLASS PROJECTCreate a wall display that aims to show key aspects of World War I and Australia’s role within it. Your display should include:• a timeline showing the years in which the war

took place and key events within each year• pictures that indicate the war experiences of men

and women on the home front and on the battle front at particular times (see, for example, source 4.11.2)

• speech balloons or thought bubbles that contain examples of people’s attitudes and responses to particular events

• extracts from diaries, poems, letters and newspapers.You could carry out this class project by dividing

into five groups, with each group taking responsibility for one year of the war.

Source 4.11.3

Dear Sir,

Finding I am unable to obtain justice from the Defence Department, I write earnestly appealing to you to kindly use your influence in connexion with the unjust treatment of our lad, who, through loyalty to his parents’ views of Christian teaching, is undergoing solitary confinement in the cells at Queenscliff fortress.

Tom is a lad of 16, and was sent to Queenscliff on Wednesday last for 21 days, for refusing to train under the Defence Act. My wife and I are members of the Society of Friends, and hold strong convictions on this matter of militarism . . . He is locked in a cell 10 foot by 10 foot . . . It has no window, the light coming through a grating. He has a wooden stretcher, the mattress and blankets are taken away in the morning, and not brought back until dark. He has half an hour’s exercise in the morning . . . is on half diet, has not been allowed to read, nor to write to his parents . . .

A letter written by F. J. Roberts, 10 June 1914.Letter taken from Commonwealth Parliamentary Debates,

vol. 74, pp. 2338–9.

ICT

MADE EA

SY

www.jaconline.com.au/ict-meWord processing

Date post:	08-Jun-2018
Category:	Documents
Upload:	hamien
View:	216 times
Download:	0 times

Chapter 4 9/2014/9...European nations of Austria–Hungary, Britain, ... Entente in response to...

Documents