David Stephens* ‘Memorial faffing about on Masters’ book is regrettable but there are bigger issues’, Honest History, 15 September 2025 This post originally appeared on our sister site, Defending Country. Earlier Honest History posts on Ben Roberts-Smith. *** 25 September…
Daley, Paul: The Leap
Paul Daley The Leap, Summit Books/Simon & Schuster, Sydney, 2025 Welcome to The Leap, an outback town fuelled by fear, churning with corruption, prejudice and misogyny – and blighted by its inescapable history of frontier violence. Into this nightmarish morass…
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Stephens, David: Leap into the Great Australian Silence: Paul Daley’s new novel reviewed
David Stephens* ‘Leap into the Great Australian Silence: Paul Daley’s new novel reviewed’, Honest History, 4 August 2025 David Stephens reviews Paul Daley’s The Leap. Remote Australia haunts Paul Daley. We saw that memorably in the opening paragraphs of his…
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Piggott, Michael: Re-stor(y)ing Australia’s cultural policy
Michael Piggott* ‘Re-stor(y)ing Australia’s cultural policy’, Honest History, 9 July 2025 Recently, Perth independent publisher Upswell released Anne-Marie Condé’s new book, The Prime Minister’s Potato and Other Essays, an anthology of beautifully written histories and speculations, most based on a single object, document…
Lawriwsky, Michael: Albert Jacka VC – myths and legends
Michael Lawriwsky ‘Albert Jacka VC – myths and legends’, Honest History, 1 May 2025 [This review originally appeared in Quadrant and is republished here with the permission of the editor of Quadrant and of the author of the review. It…
Piggott, Michael: War and trauma – who’d have thought? Part II
Michael Piggott* ‘War and trauma – who’d have thought? Part II’, Honest History, 21 March 2025 Part I of this article. Commentary (continued) 3 There is something deeply ironic about a War Memorial being urged by a consultant to accept…
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Piggott, Michael: War and trauma – who’d have thought? Part I
Michael Piggott* ‘War and trauma – who’d have thought? Part I’, Honest History, 19 March 2025 Evidence On 7 January 2025, an article appeared in the Canberra Times headed ‘Damning report slams Australian War Memorial over “diversity”, “colonial terminology”’. There…
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Stephens, David: Did Four Corners offer a new direction for a War Memorial that has lost its way?
David Stephens* ‘Did Four Corners offer a new direction for a War Memorial that has lost its way?’ Honest History, 18 March 2025 The war memorial to me is one of Australia’s most important places. It is sacred, but it’s…
Shield, John: Alamein to Zem Zem: a soldier-poet in the Western Desert in World War II
John Shield* ‘Alamein to Zem Zem: a soldier-poet in the Western Desert in World War II’, Honest History, 31 January 2025 The back cover of my copy of Alamein to Zem Zem (Penguin Modern Classics 1969, book originally published 1946)…
Stephens, David: War Memorial art has always been eclectic – and some of it has been incisive
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial art has always been eclectic – and some of it has been incisive’, Honest History, 23 January 2025 The Australian War Memorial has built up an eclectic art collection over many years. There is George Lambert’s…
Piggott, Michael: Broken Years, Black convicts and Bennelong: some inadvertent irritations
Michael Piggott* ‘Broken Years, Black convicts and Bennelong: some inadvertent irritations’, Honest History, 19 November 2024 The online world seems awash at the moment with lists of things annoying baby-boomers, and indeed why they themselves are so annoying. Archivists have…
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Piggott, Michael: White lies, archival truths and R.J.L. Hawke
Michael Piggott ‘White lies, archival truths and R.J.L. Hawke‘, Inside Story, 17 October 2024 This article contains archivist Piggott’s close analysis of the evidence relating to Hawke’s swim – or not-swim – in a pond at the Australian National University…
Gladman, Si: War Memorial raises concerns about religious dominance of Anzac Day with veterans group
‘War Memorial raises concerns about religious dominance of Anzac Day with veterans group’, Rationale, 23 August 2024 updated [The piece below follows an earlier article from Si Gladman. He is Executive Director of the Rationalist Society of Australia (RSA) and…
Stephens, David: Thales-War Memorial link remembered as a new Audit Office report is released – and a timely JCPAA report on integrity
David Stephens* ‘Thales-War Memorial link remembered as a new Audit Office report is released – and a timely JCPAA report on integrity’, Honest History, 27 June 2024 Update 28 June 2024: Defence refers another Thales contract to the National Anti-Corruption…
Gladman, Si: Time to take religion out of Anzac Day services
Si Gladman ‘Time to take religion out of Anzac Day services‘, Rationale, 25 May 2024 [Years ago, Honest History attended a service at the Australian War Memorial, presided over by a Bishop in a cassock. We thought that odd. Someone…
Stephens, David: 2024 Budget Rabbit-Hole Report: $8m More For The Australian War Memorial
David Stephens* ‘2024 Budget Rabbit-Hole Report: $8m more for the Australian War Memorial’, Honest History, 17 May 2024 (This post also appears on our sister website, defendingcountry.au. Earlier related material can be found linked from the Honest History home page.)…
Waterford, Jack: Our glorious tradition of being not very good at fighting wars
Jack Waterford ‘Our glorious tradition of being not very good at fighting wars‘, Canberra Times, 26 January 2024; pdf from our subscription; also in Pearls and Irritations (no paywall). Update 29 January 2024: two articles taking a wide view of Australia…
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Stephens, David: Remembrance Day mysteries at the War Memorial: answers to Senate Questions on Notice
David Stephens* ‘Remembrance Day mysteries at the War Memorial: answers to Senate Questions on Notice’, Honest History, 11 November 2023 updated Accountability via Senate Estimates Committees is a slow process. The difficult or embarrassing questions often get ‘taken on notice’,…
Stephens, David: Nine embarrassing minutes: the Australian War Memorial at Senate Estimates
David Stephens* ‘Nine embarrassing minutes: the Australian War Memorial at Senate Estimates’, Honest History, 5 November 2023 updated When the government changed it looked, just for a moment, as if some of our less accountable institutions, like the Australian War…
Stephens, David: After the Voice: Kim Beazley’s opportunity to give Truth-telling a big boost at the War Memorial
David Stephens* ‘After the Voice: Kim Beazley’s opportunity to give Truth-telling a big boost at the War Memorial’, Honest History, 19 October 2023 updated Update 23 October 2023: a version of this piece appeared on Pearls and Irritations. *** Michelle…
Marr, David: Killing for Country: A Family Story
David Marr Killing for Country: A Family Story, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2023; available electronically A gripping reckoning with the bloody history of Australia’s frontier wars. David Marr was shocked to discover forebears who served with the brutal Native Police in…
Stanley, Peter: “We have seized their country by the right of might”: David Marr’s Killing for Country
Peter Stanley* ‘“We have seized their country by the right of might”: David Marr’s Killing for Country’, Honest History, 8 October 2023 Peter Stanley reviews Killing for Country: A Family Story, by David Marr Brothers Reginald and D’arcy Uhr, the…
Roggeveen, Sam: The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and Peace
Sam Roggeveen The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and Peace, La Trobe University Press, Melbourne, 2023 The Echidna Strategy overturns the conventional wisdom about Australia’s security. Australia will need to defend itself without American help, but this doesn’t need…
Broinowski, Richard: Sam Roggeveen’s Echidna Strategy: priorities in foreign and defence policy
Richard Broinowski* ‘Sam Roggeveen’s Echidna Strategy: priorities in foreign and defence policy’, Honest History, 2 October 2023 updated Richard Broinowski reviews The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and Peace, by Sam Roggeveen Sam Roggeveen came from the Australian government’s…
Stephens, David: Frontier Wars retreat at the Australian War Memorial: September 2022-September 2023
David Stephens* ‘Frontier Wars retreat at the Australian War Memorial: September 2022-September 2023’, Honest History, 27 September 2023 updated Friday this week, 29 September, is the first anniversary of a remark by the then Chair of the Australian War Memorial…
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Griffiths, Tom: Odyssey down under
Tom Griffiths ‘Odyssey down under‘, Inside Story, 8 September 2023 In the beginning, on a vast tract of continental crust in the southern hemisphere of planet Earth, the Dreaming brought forth the landscape, rendering it alive and full of meaning.…
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Reynolds, Henry: Truth-Telling: History, Sovereignty and the Uluru Statement
Henry Reynolds Truth-Telling: History, Sovereignty and the Uluru Statement, NewSouth, Sydney, 2021 If we are to take seriously the need for telling the truth about our history, we must start at first principles. What if the sovereignty of the First…
Broinowski, Alison: Can we handle the truth? Henry Reynolds’ major 2021 work is crucial reference in this year of the Voice
Alison Broinowski* ‘Can we handle the truth? Henry Reynolds’ major 2021 work is crucial reference in this year of the Voice’, Honest History, 24 August 2023 Alison Broinowski reviews Truth-Telling: History, Sovereignty and the Uluru Statement, by Henry Reynolds Originally…
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.: Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 5 in a series
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.[1] ‘Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 5 in a series’, Honest History, 23 August 2023 updated The Australian War Memorial must properly recognise and commemorate the Australian Frontier Wars as an…
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.: Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 4 in a series
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.[1] ‘Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 4 in a series’, Honest History, 20 August 2023 updated The Australian War Memorial must properly recognise and commemorate the Australian Frontier Wars as an…
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.: Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 3 in a series
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.[1] ‘Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 3 in a series’, Honest History, 16 August 2023 updated The Australian War Memorial must properly recognise and commemorate the Australian Frontier Wars as an…
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.: Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 2 in a series
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.[1] ‘Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 2 in a series’, Honest History, 13 August 2023 updated The Australian War Memorial must properly recognise and commemorate the Australian Frontier Wars as an…
Stephens, David: Three important markers on the way to a New Australia – maybe
David Stephens* ‘Three important markers on the way to a New Australia – maybe’, Honest History, 11 August 2023 All of the many voices on and around the Voice need to be listened to, some with more respect than others,…
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Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.: Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 1 in a series
Defending Country Memorial Project Inc.[1] ‘Time to be honest about the Australian Frontier Wars: No. 1 in a series’, Honest History, 9 August 2023 updated The Australian War Memorial must properly recognise and commemorate the Australian Frontier Wars as an…
Stephens, David: Making the best of the Ben Roberts-Smith fiasco
David Stephens* ‘Making the best of the Ben Roberts-Smith fiasco‘, Pearls and Irritations, 2 August 2023 updated There may be an upside to the Ben Roberts-Smith case. Not for the family of Ali Jan or the people of Afghanistan. Not…
Stephens, David: What happens if the War Memorial Council goes in 13 different directions?
David Stephens* ‘What happens if the War Memorial Council goes in 13 different directions?’, Honest History, 20 July 2023 updated Honest History recently received an unsigned letter from the Hon. Kim Beazley AC, Chair of the Council of the Australian…
Wareham, Sue: Australian War Memorial must better educate kids on seriousness of war
Sue Wareham ‘Australian War Memorial must better educate kids on seriousness of war‘, Canberra Times, 15 July 2023 updated; pdf from our subscription Update 24 July 2023: Richard Llewellyn, ex War Memorial staff, writes in Pearls and Irritations: So often…
Stephens, David: Frontier Wars: fig leaf and credibility gap at the Australian War Memorial
David Stephens* ‘Frontier Wars: fig leaf and credibility gap at the Australian War Memorial, Honest History, 10 July 2023 updated Update 19 July 2023: Peter Stanley in Pearls and Irritations (‘The Native Mounted Police: extermination on the Australian frontier’) asks…
Stephens, David: Dam Busters and ‘Anzackery’ at the War Memorial
David Stephens ‘Dam Busters and “Anzackery” at the War Memorial‘, Pearls and Irritations, 6 July 2023 updated The old phrase ‘once more with feeling’ could apply to much of what the Australian War Memorial does. Or perhaps not 80 years…
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Turnbull, Noel: How were Indigenous warriors who did wear ‘the uniform’ treated?
Noel Turnbull ‘How were Indigenous warriors who did wear “the uniform” treated?‘, Pearls and Irritations, 25 June 2023 Riffs off the outburst of RSL National President, MAJ GEN Greg Melick, that only those Indigenous soldiers who wore the King’s or…
Lockhart, Greg: Weaving of Worlds: a Day on Île d’Yeu
Greg Lockhart Weaving of Worlds: a Day on Île d’Yeu, Reading Sideways Press, Leiden, Netherlands, 2022 I am visiting France from Australia this European summer with my wife Monique. Dominique Turbé and his wife also named Dominique Turbé, née Deschamps,…
Dobell, Graeme: Fire, ash and official secrecy
Graeme Dobell ‘Fire, ash and official secrecy‘, Inside Story, 5 June 2023 Long read reviewing Born of Fire and Ash: Australian Operations in Response to the East Timor Crisis 1999–2000, an official war history. Craig Stockings’s work on the official…
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Stephens, David: ‘Alice in Wonderland’: dissembling and dithering in Senate Estimates
David Stephens* ‘”Alice in Wonderland’: dissembling and dithering in Senate Estimates’, Honest History, 16 June 2023 updated Update 9 July 2023: See below under ‘And there’s this …’ for our follow-up on one of the War Memorial’s claims. *** Senate…
Stephens, David: And another thing: yet more on Ben Roberts-Smith
David Stephens* ‘And another thing: yet more on Ben Roberts-Smith’, Honest History, 6 June 2023 updated 18 August 2023: Stokes/Seven resisting respondents’ access to emails. ‘As part of its application for a third-party costs order, Nine is seeking to show…
Evans, Steve: Huge Australian War Memorial building project delays fuel doubt
Steve Evans ‘Huge Australian War Memorial building project delays fuel doubt‘, Canberra Times, 26 May 2023; pdf from our subscription Notes the massive reduction in equity injection from government to the Memorial in this year’s Budget compared with the Forward…
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Carroll Harris, Lauren: The Iraq War gallery
Lauren Carroll Harris ‘The Iraq War gallery’, The Saturday Paper, 20-26 May 2023; pdf from our subscription In-depth review of the proposed Iraq War section of the new, bigger, Australian War Memorial. Includes revealing quotes from a Memorial creator and…
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Stephens, David: Pearls and Irritations nails it again and again: recent food for thought (but it’s not like the Main Stream Media)
David Stephens* ‘Pearls and Irritations nails it again and again: recent food for thought (but it’s not like the Main Stream Media)’, Honest History, 19 May 2023 updated Update later this day: Speaking of … there’s a nice piece in…
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Stephens, David: Is this ‘substantial’? War Memorial finds another two square metres for the Frontier Wars (and four other Pre-1914 conflicts)
David Stephens* ‘Is this “substantial”? War Memorial finds another two square metres for the Frontier Wars (and four other Pre-1914 conflicts)’, Honest History, 5 May 2023 For some time now, Australian War Memorial Council Chair, Kim Beazley, has been making…
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Smith, Aaron: Calls grow for Australia’s frontier wars to be remembered on Anzac Day
Aaron Smith ‘Calls grow for Australia’s frontier wars to be remembered on Anzac Day‘, Guardian Australia, 25 April 2023 updated Update 26 April 2023: Anzac Day and the Frontier Wars discussed in other articles: ‘Should Frontier War heroes like Windradyne…
Stanley, Peter: Anzac Day reflects changing face of the nation
Peter Stanley ‘Anzac Day reflects changing face of the nation‘, The Australian, 24 April 2023 (pdf from our subscription – excluding comments) Historian and Heritage Guardian Peter Stanley ranges widely over the significance of Anzac Day, referring to early Anzac…
Stephens, David: Two uncles, two great-uncles, two wars: a family Anzac story
David Stephens* ‘Two uncles, two great-uncles, two wars: a family Anzac story’, Honest History, 25 April 2023 updated For most families who are directly affected by war, commemoration is not speeches by politicians, not parades and wreaths and children waving…
Holbrook, Carolyn, Frank Bongiorno & Michelle Arrow: The Australian War Memorial must deal properly with the frontier wars
Carolyn Holbrook, Frank Bongiorno & Michelle Arrow, ‘The Australian War Memorial must deal properly with the frontier wars‘, The Conversation, 24 April 2023 The authors note the recent efforts of War Memorial Council Chair, Kim Beazley, and the resistance provoked.…
Gammage, Bill: For Anzac 2023: Michael Thomas Kennedy: from Myall, Victoria, to Sens, France
Bill Gammage* ‘For Anzac 2023: Michael Thomas Kennedy: from Myall, Victoria, to Sens, France’, Honest History, 24 April 2023 [This article was originally a talk at Alliance Francaise, Turner, ACT, 18 March 2016, to mark the Centenary of the AIF…
Stephens, David: Movement at the Memorial: recent remarks from Chair Kim Beazley hold promise of change – but more needed
David Stephens* ‘Movement at the Memorial: remarks from Chair Kim Beazley hold promise of change – but more needed’, Honest History, 10 April 2023 updated (pdfs from our Canberra Times subscription: page 1 article, page 2 article, editorial) Update 15…
Stephens, David, Peter Stanley & Noel Turnbull: An Action Plan for Australian Frontier Wars recognition and commemoration (continued)
David Stephens[1] Peter Stanley[2] Noel Turnbull[3] ‘An Action Plan for Australian Frontier Wars recognition and commemoration (continued)’, Honest History, 3 April 2023 updated This article covers ACTIONS 3, 4 and 5 in a proposed Action Plan. Our earlier article covered…
Stephens, David, Peter Stanley & Noel Turnbull: Voice, Treaty, Truth: an Action Plan for Australian Frontier Wars recognition and commemoration
Update 1 December 2023: An updated, shorter version of the Action Plan is now available on the Defending Country website. The earlier version is retained below for the record. HH. *** David Stephens[1] Peter Stanley[2] Noel Turnbull[3] ‘Voice, Treaty, Truth:…
From the Honest History vault: It’s not just about the submarines; AUKUS fundamentally threatens Australian independence
Update 12 August 2024: so-called AUKUS 2.0. *** In October 2021, we posted a piece on Honest History decrying the focus on the submarine part of the AUKUS story. That was when the Morrison government (remember them?) was still in…
Stephens, David: Australian War Memorial $550 million redevelopment: Memorial provides some important clarifications and corrections
David Stephens* ‘Australian War Memorial $550 million redevelopment: Memorial provides some important clarifications and corrections’, Honest History, 17 March 2023 updated Update 5 June 2023: War Memorial answer to Question on Notice from Senator Shoebridge confirms that wrong information was…
Stephens, David: Another skirmish of attrition in Senate Estimates
David Stephens* ‘Another skirmish of attrition in Senate Estimates’, Honest History, 23 February 2023 Honest History watched this live on 15 February for the War Memorial’s appearance. We glanced at the video (from 20.07). Nothing leapt out from either medium.…
Stephens, David: A narcissist always searching for a new niche? Brendan Nelson’s autobiography: Part II: From the Big Build via the Frontier Wars to Boeing – but a lot left out
David Stephens* ‘A narcissist always searching for a new niche? Brendan Nelson’s autobiography’, Honest History, 21 February 2023: Part II: ‘From the Big Build via the Frontier Wars to Boeing – but a lot left out’ Part I of this…
Nelson, Brendan: Of Life and Of Leadership
Brendan Nelson Of Life and Of Leadership, Connor Court, Brisbane, 2022 From his Roman Catholic, Labor leaning family upbringing in Launceston, to Adelaide and the transformation given him by the Jesuits, Brendan Nelson graduated in medicine. The joys and wounding…
Stephens, David: A narcissist always searching for a new niche? Brendan Nelson’s autobiography: Part I: From Med School to the War Memorial via the Menin Gate
David Stephens* ‘A narcissist always searching for a new niche? Brendan Nelson’s autobiography’, Honest History, 19 February 2023: Part I: From Med School to the War Memorial via the Menin Gate’ Part II of this review *** David Stephens reviews…
Stephens, David: Kim Beazley, Chair of War Memorial Council, makes welcome progress towards proper recognition of Frontier Wars – but now needs to drag others along, too
David Stephens* ‘Kim Beazley, Chair of War Memorial Council, makes welcome progress towards proper recognition of Frontier Wars – but now needs to drag others along, too’, Honest History, 7 February 2023 updated Update 22 June 2023: Earlier this month,…
Carlson, Bronwyn: ‘Change the date’ debates about January 26 distract from the truth telling Australia needs to do
Bronwyn Carlson ‘“Change the date” debates about January 26 distract from the truth telling Australia needs to do‘, The Conversation, 26 January 2023 updated As every year for many years, 26 January generated debates this year, made more significant by…
The Wire: Australian War Memorial set to provide greater recognition of the Frontier Wars
The Wire ‘Australian War Memorial set to provide greater recognition of the Frontier Wars‘, The Wire, 20 January 2023 updated Update 24 February 2023: Important article by Bronwyn Carlson and Terri Farrelly in The Conversation: ‘Friday essay: “killed by Natives”.…
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Fernandes, Clinton: Subimperial Power: Australia in the International Arena
Clinton Fernandes Subimperial Power: Australia in the International Arena (Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 2022); electronic version available How does Australia operate in the world? And why? In this closely evidenced, original account, former Australian Army intelligence analyst Clinton Fernandes categorically…
Broinowski, Alison: Reckless self-endangerment: Clinton Fernandes on Australia as a sub-imperial power
Alison Broinowski* ‘Reckless self-endangerment: Clinton Fernandes on Australia as a subimperial power’, Honest History, 28 December 2022 Alison Broinowski reviews Clinton Fernandes, Subimperial Power: Australia in the International Arena Australia is supposed to be significant internationally, yet Australians are remarkably…
Cashen, Phil: ‘Service and sacrifice’ in the Great War: analysed (as it should be more often)
Phil Cashen ‘”Service and sacrifice” in the Great War: analysed (as it should be more often)’, Shire at War, 30 October 2022; 11 December 2022 Update 17 February 2023: Analysis of the wounded returned men from the Shire of Alberton…
Lockhart, Greg: Australia and the Vietnam War: Part 2 – No-win situation
Greg Lockhart* ‘Australia and the Vietnam War: Part 2 – No-win situation’, Honest History, 20 December 2022 Greg Lockhart is a leading historian of Australia’s Vietnam War (Nation in Arms: the Origins of the People’s Army of Vietnam; The Minefield: an…
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Lockhart, Greg: Australia and the Vietnam War: Part 1 – Neo-Colonial Race Strategy
Greg Lockhart* ‘Australia and the Vietnam War: Part 1 – Neo-Colonial Race Strategy’, Honest History, 14 December 2022 updated Greg Lockhart is a leading historian of Australia’s Vietnam War (Nation in Arms: the Origins of the People’s Army of Vietnam;…
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Piggott, Michael: Waiting for a cultural policy for Christmas
Michael Piggott* ‘Waiting for a cultural policy for Christmas’, Honest History, 12 December 2022 updated When Anthony Albanese announced his ministry at the end of May, Tony Burke became Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, and separately, Minister for the…
Stephens, David: Look out, Minister! War Memorial drops heavy hints about needing more money for its big build
David Stephens* ‘Look out, Minister! War Memorial drops heavy hints about needing more money for its big build’, Honest History, 8 December 2022 When a project runs over the original cost estimate, the proponent has to tell the parliamentary Public…
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Stephens, David: More lunge-parry-thrust in Senate Estimates on War Memorial matters
David Stephens* More ‘lunge-parry-thrust** in Senate Estimates on War Memorial matters’, Honest History, 7 December 2022 updated Update 3 May 2023: FOI claim on War Memorial delivers heavily redacted version of Memorial’s briefing notes for this Estimates hearing (Ref No. 2022-23-08). Very little…
Stephens, David: The War Memorial is again running away from the Frontier Wars
David Stephens* ‘The War Memorial is again running away from the Frontier Wars‘, Pearls and Irritations, 5 December 2022 updated Note: the P&I post linked here is an updated version of our earlier post. *** The Australian War Memorial has…
Manning, Paddy: The Successor: the High-Stakes Life of Lachlan Murdoch
Paddy Manning The Successor: the High-Stakes Life of Lachlan Murdoch, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2022 As heir apparent to his father’s global media empire, Lachlan Murdoch is one of the world’s most powerful people. Yet despite a life in the spotlight,…
Broinowski, Richard: Buccaneers down through the generations: Lachlan Murdoch
Richard Broinowski* ‘Buccaneers down through the generations: Lachlan Murdoch’, Honest History, 3 December 2022 Richard Broinowski reviews The Successor: the High-Stakes Life of Lachlan Murdoch, by Paddy Manning The tradition of swashbuckling press barons in the English-language is not new.…
Stephens, David: Walking backwards for Christmas: Estimates Committee transcript shows the War Memorial’s Frontier Wars retreat
David Stephens* ‘Walking backwards for Christmas**: Estimates Committee transcript shows the War Memorial’s Frontier Wars retreat’, Honest History, 28 November 2022 updated Update 3 May 2023: FOI claim on War Memorial delivers heavily redacted version of Memorial’s briefing notes for…
Baker, Mark: Last posts
Mark Baker ‘Last posts’, Inside Story, 11 November 2022 This article is mostly about the difficulties the National Archives of Australia (NAA) has experienced in funding the digitisation of military service records from World War II. Baker notes the inevitable…
Stephens, David: War Memorial misses opportunity to clarify confusion about Frontier Wars
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial misses opportunity to clarify confusion about Frontier Wars’, Honest History, 3 November 2022 updated Update 28 November 2022: Analysis of the Estimates transcript confirms the Memorial’s backsliding from the position of 29 September. The Memorial has…
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Stephens, David: What a difference seven months makes: value of War Memorial equity in October Budget $50m less than in March
David Stephens* ‘What a difference seven months makes: value of War Memorial equity in October Budget $50m less than in March’, Honest History, 28 October 2022 updated Update 3 May 2023: FOI claim on War Memorial delivers heavily redacted version of Memorial’s…
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Lee, David: John Curtin
David Lee John Curtin, Connor Court, Brisbane, 2022 (Australian Biographical Monographs 16) Acclaimed by many as Australia’s greatest prime minister, John Curtin overcame alcoholism and a troubled relationship with the Scullin Labour Government to win the Labor leadership by one…
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Piggott, Michael: A slim but masterful biographical introduction to John Curtin
Michael Piggott* ‘A slim but masterful biographical introduction to John Curtin’, Honest History, 14 October 2022 Michael Piggott reviews John Curtin by David Lee (Australian Biographical Monographs 16) Are you heartily sick of ex-prime ministers yet? Just last year there…
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Stephens, David: War Memorial fails to come clean on Capital Management Plan for its $548m big build: digest this, Minister!
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial fails to come clean on Capital Management Plan for its $548m big build: digest this, Minister!’, Honest History, 13 October 2022 updated Note: this post should be read in conjunction with our series on the $50m…
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Stephens, David: Startling events at the Australian War Memorial
David Stephens* ‘Startling events at the Australian War Memorial‘, Pearls and Irritations, 12 October 2022 For those who came in late, a rundown of cost blowout and secrecy surrounding it, changes on the War Memorial Council involving Stokes, Abbott and…
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Stephens, David: The growing cost of the War Memorial’s vanity build: Part III: hot stuff, heavy hints, loose ends, and a bunch of dates
David Stephens* ‘The growing cost of the War Memorial’s vanity build: Part III: hot stuff, heavy hints, loose ends, and a bunch of dates’, Honest History, 4 October 2022 updated Part I of this series looked at correspondence between Honest…
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Stephens, David: The growing cost of the War Memorial’s vanity build: a tale of four letters: Part II
David Stephens* ‘The growing cost of the War Memorial’s vanity build: a tale of four letters: Part II’, Honest History, 28 September 2022 updated In Part I, we looked at two letters, one from Honest History/Heritage Guardians to the Treasurer…
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Stephens, David: Why on Earth did Labor reappoint Tony Abbott to the Council of the Australian War Memorial?
David Stephens* ‘Why on Earth did Labor reappoint Tony Abbott to the Council of the Australian War Memorial?’ Honest History, 27 September 2022 updated Update 19 October 2022: Could the answer to the above question lie in the suggestion that…
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Stephens, David: The growing cost of the War Memorial’s vanity build: a tale of four letters: Part I
David Stephens* ‘The growing cost of the War Memorial’s vanity build: a tale of four letters: Part I’, Honest History, 26 September 2022 updated First in a series: Part II; Part III. Later developments, as disclosed in October Budget. ***…
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Stephens, David: Publicity for SBS documentary, The Australian Wars, provokes response from War Memorial but public input is needed
David Stephens* ‘Publicity for SBS documentary, The Australian Wars, provokes response from War Memorial but public input is needed’, Honest History, 23 September 2022 updated Update 5 October 2022: NITV panel discussion including Rachel Perkins: Land Wars. ‘It’s a story…
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Arrow, Michelle & Frank Bongiorno: The real “history war” is the attack on our archives and libraries
Michelle Arrow & Frank Bongiorno ‘The real “history war” is the attack on our archives and libraries‘, Brisbane Times, 16 September 2022 (and other Nine Newspapers) updated; pdf from our subscription Chronicles the gradual running down of our national cultural…
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Stephens, David: Pulling the plug on the Governor-General’s $18 million pet project: are other boondoggles* safe?
David Stephens* ‘Pulling the plug on the Governor-General’s $18 million pet project: are other boondoggles* safe?’, Honest History, 8 September 2022 The government has scrapped a grant of $18 million for a leadership program promoted by Governor-General David Hurley. The…
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Beaumont, Joan: Australia’s Great Depression: How a Nation Shattered by the Great War Survived the Worst Economic Crisis it has Ever Faced
Joan Beaumont Australia’s Great Depression: How a Nation Shattered by the Great War Survived the Worst Economic Crisis it has Ever Faced, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2022; electronic version available How a nation still in grief from the Great War…
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Wright, Claire EF: Australian resilience in 1929-32 has relevance to post-Pandemic Australia, as Joan Beaumont’s strong synthesis shows
Claire EF Wright* ‘Australian resilience in 1929-32 has relevance to post-Pandemic Australia, as Joan Beaumont’s strong synthesis shows’, Honest History, 5 September 2022 Claire EF Wright reviews Joan Beaumont’s Australia’s Great Depression: How a Nation Shattered by the Great War…
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Knaus, Christopher: Australian War Memorial cannot be given ‘blank cheque’ to cover cost blowouts, Labor MP says
Christopher Knaus ‘Australian War Memorial cannot be given “blank cheque” to cover cost blowouts, Labor MP says‘, Guardian Australia, 31 August 2022 No blank cheque remark comes from ACT Labor MP, David Smith, from this week. Smith had been a…
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Stanley, Peter: The Australian War Memorial goes AWOL
Peter Stanley ‘The Australian War Memorial goes AWOL‘, Pearls and Irritations, 1 September 2022 Post from military historian and former Principal Historian, Australian War Memorial. The Memorial has plugged an inaccurate book, The Digger of Kokoda, and refuses to debate…
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Stephens, David: What’s the Idea? Still searching for the soul of the nation
David Stephens* ‘What’s the Idea? Still searching for the soul of the nation’, Honest History, 23 August 2022 I don’t propose to do a review of Julianne Schultz’s, The Idea of Australia: A Search for the Soul of a Nation,…
Molan, Jim: Danger On Our Doorstep
Jim Molan Danger On Our Doorstep, Harper Collins, Sydney, 2022; electronic version available What are Australia’s options in confronting a rising and belligerent China? For the first time in nearly 80 years, war on our doorstop is not just possible,…
Broinowski, Richard: This book will increase hostility between Australia and China
Richard Broinowski* ‘This book will increase hostility between Australia and China’, Honest History, 19 August 2022 Richard Broinowski reviews Jim Molan’s Danger On Our Doorstep As I write, the risk of war with China over Taiwan grows exponentially. Nancy Pelosi’s…
Stephens, David: Uluru Statement shows the way on Australian Frontier Wars
David Stephens ‘Uluru Statement shows the way on Australian Frontier Wars‘, Pearls and Irritations, 18 August 2022 ‘We seek constitutional reforms to empower our people and take a rightful place in our own country’ (Uluru Statement) Empowerment grows not just…
Stanley, Peter: Forty questions about The Digger of Kokoda
Peter Stanley* ‘Forty questions about The Digger of Kokoda’, Honest History, 8 August 2022 updated Update 1 September 2022: Peter Stanley on Pearls and Irritations website. Update 15 August 2022: Nicholas Stuart in the Canberra Times (paywall); see also articles…
Menadue, John: Our dangerous ally could drag us into war with China
John Menadue ‘Our dangerous ally could drag us into war with China‘, Pearls and Irritations, 3 August 2022 The US is the most aggressive and violent country in the world. It is addicted to a belief in its exceptionalism, grounded…
Stephens, David: Australian War Memorial needs to own Australian Frontier Wars
David Stephens* ‘Australian War Memorial needs to own Australian Frontier Wars‘, Pearls and Irritations, 7 August 2022 Proper recognition and commemoration of the Australian Frontier Wars at the Australian War Memorial would be a practical expression of the Spirit of…
Patience, Allan: Can Australia become a confident, independent country?
Allan Patience ‘Can Australia become a confident, independent country?‘, Pearls and Irritations, 5 August 2022 The article examines the prospects for the Australian-American ‘alliance’ at a time of increasing uncertainty. Given the restricted military capability that Australia possesses (for example,…
Turner, Ross: John Maynard says Frontier Wars deserve Canberra memorial
Ross Turner ‘John Maynard says Frontier Wars deserve Canberra memorial‘, NITV Living Black, 2 August 2022 Extensive interview by Karla Grant of Professor John Maynard of the University of Newcastle, a Worimi man from the Port Stephens region of New…
Stanley, Peter: Time to tell the truth at the Australian War Memorial
Peter Stanley ‘Time to tell the truth at the Australian War Memorial‘, Canberra Times, 30 July 2022 (pdf from our subscription) Op ed from Research Professor at UNSW Canberra, long-time Principal Historian at the Memorial, and Heritage Guardian. The article…
Bargwanna, Stephen: Australian War Memorial needs to tell stories of Frontier Wars in colonisation of Australia
Stephen Bargwanna ‘Australian War Memorial needs to tell stories of Frontier Wars in colonisation of Australia‘, Canberra Times, 29 July 2022 (pdf from our subscription) The author is a descendant of WJ Wills of Burke and Wills fame, who died…
Daley, Paul: Jesustown: A Novel
Paul Daley Jesustown: A Novel, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2022 From award-winning journalist Paul Daley comes a gripping multi-generational saga about Australian frontier violence and cultural theft that will capture the national imagination … Morally bereft popular historian Patrick Renmark…
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Stephens, David: Paul Daley’s novel Jesustown is as complex and troubling as our Australian history
David Stephens* ‘Paul Daley’s novel Jesustown is as complex and troubling as our Australian history’, Honest History, 3 July 2022 David Stephens reviews Jesustown: A Novel, by Paul Daley Important novels are grounded in an appreciation of human nature and…
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Broinowski, Alison: Review: The daughters of John Burton are determined to correct the public record of their parents
Alison Broinowski ‘Review: The daughters of John Burton are determined to correct the public record of their parents‘, Canberra Times, 11 June 2022 (pdf from our subscription) updated Review of Persons of Interest: An Intimate Account of Cecily and John…
Lockhart, Greg: Anglicans, ANZAC and the nation
Greg Lockhart ‘Anglicans, ANZAC and the nation‘, Pearls and Irritations, 10 June 2022 There has been a change in the way we understand the ANZAC tradition. Since 1945, the literature on ANZAC has led us to think of its ‘classical’…
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Stephens, David: An historical agenda for the Albanese Government
David Stephens* ‘An historical agenda for the Albanese Government’, Honest History, 7 June 2022 updated History is not just a matter for historians, museums and school teachers. How we deal with our past shapes the present and future of all…
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Stephens, David: Rule Britannia and Dig! Dig! Dig! Illumination and Excavation at the War Memorial
David Stephens* ‘Rule Britannia and “Dig! Dig! Dig!”: Illumination and Excavation at the War Memorial’, Honest History, 3 June 2022 Whichever of the two Matts, Keogh (sworn in this week as Minister for Veterans’ Affairs), or Thistlethwaite (Assistant Minister) takes…
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Stephens, David: As the War Memorial destruction goes on, and Boeing’s man takes control, FOI throws dim light on the process
David Stephens* ‘As the War Memorial destruction goes on, and Boeing’s man takes control, FOI throws dim light on the process’, Honest History, 5 May 2022 updated The destruction of the Australian War Memorial is unstoppable. And Brendan Nelson, the…
Oliver, Bobbie: Hell No! We Won’t Go! Resistance to Conscription in Post War Australia
Bobbie Oliver Hell No! We Won’t Go! Resistance to Conscription in Post War Australia, Interventions, Melbourne, 2022 Using court records and private correspondence as well as newspaper accounts, Hell no! We won’t go! records the stories of many young men who…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget what it was like: Bobbie Oliver’s book, Hell No! We Won’t Go! Resistance to Conscription in Post War Australia
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget what it was like: Bobbie Oliver’s book, Hell No! We Won’t Go! Resistance to Conscription in Post War Australia’, Honest History, 27 April 2022 David Stephens reviews Bobbie Oliver’s book, Hell No! We Won’t Go!…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget#8: Has the Australia that the Great War Diggers fought for been captured by spivs and oligarchs?
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget#8: Has the Australia that the Great War Diggers fought for been captured by spivs and oligarchs?’ Honest History, 25 April 2022 We began this Lest We Forget series by referring to Yassmin Abdel-Magied’s 2017 use…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget#6: Brendan Nelson is to be Chair of the War Memorial Council – but who will really run the place?
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget#6: Brendan Nelson is to be Chair of the War Memorial Council – but who will really run the place?’ Honest History, 23 April 2022 updated Update 27 April 2022: 2ST radio (Shoalhaven and Southern Highlands)…
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West, Brad: What is the danger of corporate sponsorship of the Australian War Memorial? For one thing, it can undermine military professionalism
Brad West* ‘What is the danger of corporate sponsorship of the Australian War Memorial? For one thing, it can undermine military professionalism’, Honest History, 22 April 2022 The potential renewal of the sponsorship deal between the international arms manufacturer Lockheed…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget#4: Will today’s children have to go to war – and do we commemorate past wars in a way that makes them think they’ll have to?
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget#4: Will today’s children have to go to war – and do we commemorate past wars in a way that makes them think they’ll have to?’ Honest History, 21 April 2022 The poet Osbert Sitwell (1892-1969) …
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget#3: Five years since The Honest History Book put Anzac in its proper place in Australian history
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget#3: Five years since The Honest History Book put Anzac in its proper place in Australian history’, Honest History, 18 April 2022 Five years ago this month, NewSouth Books published The Honest History Book, edited by…
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Koike, Miyakatsu: Four Years in a Red Coat: the Loveday Internment Camp Diary of Miyakatsu Koike
Miyakatsu Koike Four Years in a Red Coat: the Loveday Internment Camp Diary of Miyakatsu Koike (translated by Hiroko Cockerill; edited with an introduction by Peter Monteath and Yuriko Nagata), Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2022 Four Years in a Red Coat…
Piggott, Michael: This Japanese internment camp diary is a gentle and innocent work from a dark time
Michael Piggott* ‘This Japanese internment camp diary is a gentle and innocent work from a dark time’, Honest History, 10 April 2022 Michael Piggott reviews Four Years in a Red Coat: The Loveday Internment Camp Diary of Miyakatsu Koike (translated…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget#1: Five years since Yassmin Abdel-Magied’s perceptive remark
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget#1: Five years since Yassmin Abdel-Magied’s perceptive remark’, Honest History, 10 April 2022 updated Lest We Forget has come to mean ‘Remember’, or even ‘Remember, or else!’, in relation to the commemoration of men and women…
Finnane, Mark: A Museum of Australian Policing: That’s a good idea, but what stories will it tell?
Mark Finnane* ‘A Museum of Australian Policing: That’s a good idea, but what stories will it tell?’, Honest History, 9 April 2022 In one of the flurry of pre-Budget news drops, the Home Affairs Minister, Karen Andrews, announced recently that…
Stephens, David: New (and newish) books received: Australian architecture; beyond COVID; communists; Evatt on the Court; the history of history
David Stephens* New (and newish) books received: Australian architecture; beyond COVID; communists; Evatt on the Court; the history of history’, Honest History, 4 March 2022 updated Honest History has not read all of these books but they all address important…
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Odgers, Brett: Still talking to the War Memorial? The review and regeneration of Anzac Parade, Canberra
Brett Odgers* ‘Still talking to the War Memorial? The review and regeneration of Anzac Parade, Canberra’, Honest History, 1 March 2022 [In the lead up to Anzac Day and as we confront another war in Europe, how we treat our…
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Stephens, David: From the Honest History vault: 80 years since the Darwin bombing but context remains all-important
David Stephens* From the Honest History vault: 80 years since the Darwin bombing but context remains all-important’, Honest History, 18 February 2022 updated Tomorrow is 80 years since the first bombing of Darwin during World War II. Our commemoration cohort,…
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Stephens, David: From the Honest History vault: Dr Chau Chak Wing, ASIO person of interest and Australian War Memorial Fellow and donor
David Stephens* ‘From the Honest History vault: Dr Chau Chak Wing, ASIO person of interest and Australian War Memorial Fellow and donor’, Honest History, 15 February 2022 In Senate Estimates yesterday, Senator Kitching (ALP, Vic) mentioned Dr Chau Chak Wing,…
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Knapman, Gareth: The Batman Treaty’s feudal obligation to the Kulin and the unpaid debt of $68 million a year
Gareth Knapman* ‘The Batman Treaty’s feudal obligation to the Kulin and the unpaid debt of $68 million a year’, Honest History, 10 February 2022 [Dr Knapman is writing a book which addresses the question, how did British colonial figures understand…
Stephens, David: War Memorial Heritage Management Plan: a loose end still hanging
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial Heritage Management Plan: a loose end still hanging’, Honest History, 4 February 2022 updated Update 5 May 2022: Our FOI claims on the Department and the Memorial still leave a loose end The Australian Heritage Council…
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Fahy, Michelle: Australia captured: how the military-industrial complex has captured Australia’s top strategic advisory body
Michelle Fahy ‘Australia captured: how the military-industrial complex has captured Australia’s top strategic advisory body‘, Declassified Australia, 9 December 2021 Analysis of the compromised position of the allegedly independent Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) in…
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Turnbull, Noel: The commemoration industry and the militarization of Australian history
Noel Turnbull ‘The commemoration industry and the militarization of Australian history: a speech given to the Middle Park Men’s Group‘, 24 November 2021’, Noel Turnbull, 27 November 2021 [W]hat concerns me is the way Australia has developed a commemoration industry…
O’Connell, Deirdre: Harlem Nights: The Secret History of Australia’s Jazz Age
Deirdre O’Connell Harlem Nights: The Secret History of Australia’s Jazz Age, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 2021 The 1920s were a time of wonder and flux, when Australians sensed a world growing smaller, turning faster-and, for some, skittering off balance. American…
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Myrtle, John: Tough gig: American jazz culture comes to 1928 White Australia
John Myrtle* ‘Tough gig: American jazz culture comes to 1928 White Australia’, Honest History, 3 December 2021 John Myrtle reviews Harlem Nights: The Secret History of Australia’s Jazz Age by Deirdre O’Connell Jazz, distinctively American musical style. The historical significance…
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Stephens, David: National Capital Authority consultation report on War Memorial Main Works: latest (but maybe not last) phase in a sorry saga
David Stephens* ‘National Capital Authority consultation report on War Memorial Main Works: latest (but maybe not last) phase in a sorry saga’, Honest History, 25 November 2021 updated Summary: The War Memorial redevelopment project is unstoppable. We tried! *** The…
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Stephens, David: Why would you destroy something that 96 per cent of your visitors liked? War Memorial Annual Report 2020-21
David Stephens* ‘Why would you destroy something that 96 per cent of your visitors liked? War Memorial Annual Report 2020-21’, Honest History, 12 November 2021 Annual reports of Australian government departments and agencies are normally tabled in the Parliament before…
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Stephens, David: For Remembrance Day: parsing “the Australian War Memorial”
David Stephens* ‘For Remembrance Day: parsing “the Australian War Memorial”’, Honest History, 7 November 2021 updated Update 11 November 2021: Reprinted on Pearls & Irritations as ‘Australian War Memorial expansion is a disgrace beyond words’. *** Recently at Senate Estimates,…
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Sulllivan, Christopher Daniel: The case for an Australian folk music tradition
Christopher Daniel Sullivan The case for an Australian folk music tradition, PhD thesis, Southern Cross University, 2020 (available on open access, including music files) Using new and more comprehensive sources this thesis re-interprets the evidence for an Australian folk music…
Blaxland, John: Twenty years in Afghanistan
John Blaxland ‘Twenty years in Afghanistan‘, Wartime [Australian War Memorial] No. 96, Spring 2021, pp. 10-16 John Blaxland is a distinguished academic, specialising in war and strategy. He is also a former member of the Australian Defence Force. For both…
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Wareham, Sue: Transparency lacking in Australian defence policy
Sue Wareham ‘Transparency lacking in Australian defence policy‘, Independent Australia, 19 October 2021 updated Update 28 October 2021: see also this from Marcus Reubenstein reprinted in Pearls & Irritations. Update 30 November 2021: Mike Scrafton in Pearls & Irritations analyses…
Stephens, David: Townsville Veterans’ Wellness Centre and Afghanistan War Memorial Gardens, Brisbane: avoiding bigger issues?
David Stephens* ‘Townsville Veterans’ Wellness Centre and Afghanistan War Memorial Gardens, Brisbane: avoiding bigger issues?’, Honest History, 20 October 2021 updated Two press releases this week from Federal Veterans’ Affairs Minister, Andrew Gee, tell of two openings in Queensland. They…
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Stephens, David: ‘Eve of Destruction’ at the War Memorial: why are we trashing ‘our most sacred place’?
David Stephens* ‘”Eve of Destruction” at the War Memorial; why are we trashing “our most sacred place”?, Honest History, 17 October 2021 updated Some time in the next couple of weeks (while Parliament is sitting, so most of us will…
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Stephens, David: Attempted Tudging of school history curriculum is but the most recent in a long line
David Stephens* ‘Attempted Tudging of school history curriculum is but the most recent in a long line’, Honest History, 11 October 2021 updated Update 27 July 2022: Academic Stewart Riddle surveys the history of the history wars, including most recent…
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Stephens, David: It’s not just about the submarines and the furore with the French: AUKUS, AUSMIN, and lessons from history
David Stephens* ‘It’s not just about the submarines and the furore with the French: AUKUS, AUSMIN, and lessons from history’, Honest History, 1 October 2021 updated Sometimes slang cuts through and helps us understand. Earlier this week, we had a…
Weirick, James: Submission to the National Capital Authority: Australian War Memorial Redevelopment – Main Works Packages
James Weirick* ‘Submission to the National Capital Authority: Australian War Memorial Redevelopment – Main Works Packages’, Honest History, 26 September 2021 This was one of 587 submissions to the NCA on the Australian War Memorial Main Works. The Authority expects…
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Piggott, Michael: Out of Tune, but still mouldering: the National Archives of Australia
Michael Piggott* ‘Out of Tune, but still mouldering: the National Archives of Australia’, Honest History, 20 September 2021 This article follows Michael Piggott’s earlier piece, ‘Mouldering away: how long a journey for our National Archives?’, which coincided with a campaign…
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Menadue, John: Our democracy is decaying from within
John Menadue ‘Our democracy is decaying from within‘, Pearls & Irritations, 16 September 2021 Former senior public servant and businessman calls for a summit of community leaders to help chart democratic renewal. With the loss of trust in our political…
Simons, Margaret: What responsibilities do journalists have on social media?
Margaret Simons ‘What responsibilities do journalists have on social media?‘ ABC Religion and Ethics, 30 August 2021 Thoughtful piece from a senior journalist and academic. Takes a balanced view of the pros and cons of journalists working on social media…
Reynolds, Henry: The terrible effects and disastrous consequences of war. But we keep doing it.
Henry Reynolds ‘The terrible effects and disastrous consequences of war. But we keep doing it’, Pearls & Irritations, 3 September 2021 Many of the world’s 190 or so nation states have been involved in conflict. But few small- or medium-sized…
Wareham, Sue: “No Australian who has ever fallen in our uniform has ever died in vain, ever”: the PM and the AWM
Sue Wareham ‘“No Australian who has ever fallen in our uniform has ever died in vain, ever”: the PM and the AWM‘, Pearls & Irritations, 31 August 2021 Weaves together the claims of the Prime Minister that Australian soldiers never…
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Knapman, Gareth: Bain Attwood on the not so terra nullius: a review article
Gareth Knapman* ‘Bain Attwood on the not so terra nullius’: a review article’, Honest History, 31 August 2021 In 2020, Bain Attwood published Empire and the Making of Native Title: Sovereignty, Property and Indigenous People. Attwood presents a compelling argument…
Haultain-Gall, Matthew: The Battlefield of Imperishable Memory: Passchendaele and the Anzac Legend
Matthew Haultain-Gall The Battlefield of Imperishable Memory: Passchendaele and the Anzac Legend, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2021 Given the extent of their sacrifices, the Australians’ exploits in Belgium ought to be well known in a nation that has fervently commemorated…
Fathi, Romain: Why have Australians forgotten Belgium when we obsess about our Diggers’ deeds in France?
Romain Fathi* ‘Why have Australians forgotten Belgium when we obsess about our Diggers’ deeds in France?’ Honest History, 30 August 2021 Romain Fathi reviews Matthew Haultain-Gall’s The Battlefield of Imperishable Memory: Passchendaele and the Anzac Legend The central question this…
Stephens, David: Two absorbing evenings: the National Capital Authority information sessions on the Australian War Memorial $498m redevelopment project
David Stephens* ‘Two absorbing evenings: the National Capital Authority’s information sessions on the Australian War Memorial’s $498m redevelopment project’, Honest History, 23 August 2021 updated After the farce of the ‘early works’ consultation on the War Memorial project, the National…
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Stephens, Alan: Another bright shining lie: the ADF and Afghanistan
Alan Stephens ‘Another bright shining lie: the ADF and Afghanistan‘, Pearls & Irritations, 19 August 2021 This essay is concerned with the military-strategic dimension of our latest national bright shining lie; namely, the marketing by the Australian Defence Force’s hierarchy…
Stephens, David: Reflections on Afghanistan: hell no, never, ever go? And the gunrunners win anyway
David Stephens* ‘Reflections on Afghanistan: hell no, never, ever go? And the gunrunners win anyway’, Honest History, 19 August 2021 updated Update 1 April 2022: Memorial response to Senate Estimates Question from Senator Steele-John (Question No. 179). Pdf. Carefully worded.…
Daley, Paul: Morrison says troops died “for a great cause” in Afghanistan. To quote a grieving father, that’s bullshit
Paul Daley ‘Morrison says troops died “for a great cause” in Afghanistan. To quote a grieving father, that’s bullshit‘, Guardian Australia, 16 August 2021 Scott Morrison is shamelessly audacious to claim Australian service personnel died for “a great cause” in this country’s…
Barlow, Karen: National Capital Authority finds little support or understanding: poll
Karen Barlow ‘National Capital Authority finds little support or understanding: poll‘, Canberra Times, 9 August 2021 Reports poll from The Australian Institute (national poll of 1004 people) where respondents were asked whether they ‘agree or disagree that the National Capital…
Strangio, Paul: Who were Australia’s best prime ministers? We asked the experts
Paul Strangio ‘Who were Australia’s best prime ministers? We asked the experts‘, The Conversation, 2 August 2021 Survey of 60 or so academic experts, 2020 and 2010. Sets out criteria (longevity, achievements, management of party, relations with electorate) and ranks…
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Piccini, Jon: The forgotten Australian veterans who opposed National Service and the Vietnam War
Jon Piccini ‘The forgotten Australian veterans who opposed National Service and the Vietnam War‘, The Conversation, 26 July 2021 Article comes out on the 50th anniversary of announcement by McMahon Government of withdrawal of Australian troops from Vietnam. Author has…
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Stephens, David: Honest History’s Alternative Guide to the Australian War Memorial: what chance is there that the new bigger, Memorial will let these stories be told?
David Stephens* ‘Honest History’s Alternative Guide to the Australian War Memorial: what chance is there that the new bigger, Memorial will let these stories be told?’, Honest History, 26 July 2021 updated Update 25 September 2021: Two months on and…
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Stephens, David: A wasting asset? War Memorial visitor numbers have been declining – and vainglorious vandalism could make them worse
David Stephens* ‘A wasting asset? War Memorial visitor numbers have been declining – and vainglorious vandalism could make them worse’, Honest History, 23 July 2021 updated Five years ago, Honest History asked the Australian War Memorial if it kept a…
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Holbrook, Carolyn, James Walter & Paul Strangio: Is the COVID vaccine rollout the greatest public policy failure in recent Australian history?
Carolyn Holbrook, James Walter & Paul Strangio ‘Is the COVID vaccine rollout the greatest public policy failure in recent Australian history?‘, The Conversation, 21 July 2021 There are three principal factors for measuring public policy success or failure. The first…
Waterford, Jack: Let’s re-imagine Anzac Day and phase out ADF and RSL’s ownership
Jack Waterford ‘Let’s re-imagine Anzac Day and phase out ADF and RSL’s ownership‘, Pearls and Irritations, 21 July 2021 Our War Memorial commemorates all Australians, professional or civilian, who have died on active service, and makes no distinctions between them.…
Stephens, David: National Capital Authority brush-off continues with ‘one size fits all’ Statement of Reasons for Memorial decision
David Stephens* ‘National Capital Authority brush-off continues with “one size fits all” Statement of Reasons for Memorial decision’, Honest History, 7 July 2021 updated *** Update 14 July 2021: Citizens dissatisfied by the NCA brush-off described below may wish to…
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Stephens, David: Seventy-five per cent of Australians in national poll believe War Memorial project $500 million would be better spent on health, education, and veterans’ support services; just 13 per cent prefer spending on the Memorial
David Stephens* ‘Seventy-five per cent of Australians in national poll believe War Memorial project $500 million would be better spent on health, education, and veterans’ support services; just 13 per cent prefer spending on the Memorial’, Honest History, 5 July…
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Stephens, David: “We have once again been played for mugs by a deeply flawed process”: analysis of the National Capital Authority consultation report on the $498m Australian War Memorial redevelopment project “early works” application
David Stephens* ‘“We have once again been played for mugs by a deeply flawed process”: analysis of the National Capital Authority consultation report on the $498m Australian War Memorial redevelopment project “early works” application’, Honest History, 28 June 2021 …
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Younge, Gary: Why every single statue should come down
Gary Younge ‘Why every single statue should come down‘, The Guardian (UK), 1 June 2021 updated (associated podcast; also in hard copy of The Guardian Weekly, 11 June 2021) ‘Statues of historical figures are lazy, ugly and distort history’, says…
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Menadue, John: Militarism has become the norm. We now even have an Army Lieutenant General heading the vaccine roll out
John Menadue ‘Militarism has become the norm. We now even have an Army Lieutenant General heading the vaccine roll out‘, Pearls and Irritations, 24 June 2021 updated Concerned that the states were getting the political kudos for handling quarantine ,…
Fitzpatrick, Sheila: White Russians, Red Peril: a Cold War History of Migration to Australia
Sheila Fitzpatrick White Russians, Red Peril: a Cold War History of Migration to Australia, La Trobe University Press, Melbourne, 2021; electronic version available Making use of newly discovered Russian-language archives and drawing on a lifetime’s study of Soviet history and…
Abbott, Derek: A rewarding and timely book on Russians who came to Australia
Derek Abbott* ‘A rewarding and timely book on Russians who came to Australia’, Honest History, 17 June 2021 Derek Abbott reviews Sheila Fitzpatrick’s White Russians, Red Peril: a Cold War History of Migration to Australia Immigration into Australia seems always…
Piggott, Michael: Mouldering away: how long a journey for our National Archives?
Michael Piggott* ‘Mouldering away: how long a journey for our National Archives?’, Honest History, 16 June 2021 [See also this post on the campaign to save the Archives. HH] As many Honest History supporters will know, in recent months the…
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Fahy, Michelle: Landforces’ brothers in arms: how a weapons peddler qualified for charitable status
Michelle Fahy ‘Landforces’ brothers in arms: how a weapons peddler qualified for charitable status‘, Michael West Media, 4 June 2021 [C]onsider the activities of a not-for-profit organisation that many Australians will be astounded to discover has gained privileged charitable status…
Stephens, David: Afghanistan, Matt Anderson, the Australian War Memorial $498m megabuild, Brendan Nelson, the Brereton Report, Nine Newspapers, the Prime Minister, Ben Roberts-Smith, Seven Media, Kerry Stokes, and lots of lawyers
David Stephens* ‘Afghanistan, Matt Anderson, the Australian War Memorial $498m megabuild, Brendan Nelson, the Brereton Report, Nine Newspapers, the Prime Minister, Ben Roberts-Smith, Seven Media, Kerry Stokes, and lots of lawyers’, Honest History, 7 June 2021 Some important Federal Court…
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Dowling, Peter: The Australian War Memorial: a changed future
Peter Dowling* ‘The Australian War Memorial: a changed future’, Honest History, 2 June 2021 In August 1916, a tall, lean figure, dressed in the khaki of the Australian Imperial Force, strode through the battlefield of Pozières, in the Somme department…
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Newton, Douglas: Private Ryan and the Lost Peace: A Defiant Soldier and the Struggle against the Great War
Douglas Newton Private Ryan and the Lost Peace: A Defiant Soldier and the Struggle against the Great War, Longueville Media, Sydney, 2021 Imagine the Great War ending early, in 1915, or 1916, or even 1917. Imagine round-table negotiations and a…
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Stephens, David: Everyman as soldier: how men in suits in drawing rooms conned the people – and their families – into fighting on
David Stephens* ‘Everyman as soldier: how men in suits in drawing rooms conned the people – and their families – into fighting on’, Honest History, 28 May 2021 David Stephens reviews Douglas Newton’s Private Ryan and the Lost Peace: A…
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Baker, Mark: The Emperor’s Grace: Untold Stories of the Australians Enslaved in Japan during World War II
Mark Baker The Emperor’s Grace: Untold Stories of the Australians Enslaved in Japan during World War II, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2021 The Emperor’s Grace is the story of the men of C Force – the first contingent of Australian, British…
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Alexander, Kristen: Readable account of Australian POWs in Japan – though it lacks a bit of context
Kristen Alexander* ‘Readable account of Australian POWs in Japan – though it lacks a bit of context’, Honest History, 14 May 2021 Kristen Alexander reviews Mark Baker’s The Emperor’s Grace: Untold Stories of the Australians Enslaved in Japan during World…
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Newton, Douglas: Whitlam, Keating, Anzac, and the drums of wars past
Douglas Newton ‘Whitlam, Keating, Anzac, and the drums of wars past‘, Pearls and Irritations, 13 May 2021 updated Looks at attitudes of modern Australian prime ministers to our old wars and goes on to summarise the history of the Great…
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Kent, Ann: Submission to the National Capital Authority: The Australian War Memorial
Ann Kent* ‘Submission to the National Capital Authority: The Australian War Memorial’, Honest History, 13 May 2021 [This is one of the 599 submissions received by the Authority on the current consultation. HH] I write in defence of the proper…
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Stead, Naomi: Australian War Memorial
Naomi Stead ‘Australian War Memorial‘, The Saturday Paper, 8-15 May 2021; (pdf from our subscription) A thoughtful and comprehensive evisceration of the War Memorial project from the Professor of Architecture at Monash University. There is an edited version in the…
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Stephens, David: Armenian Genocide: President Biden recognises what Armenians knew more than a century ago
David Stephens* ‘Armenian Genocide: President Biden recognises what Armenians knew more than a century ago’, Honest History, 3 May 2021 updated Update 16 May 2025: Bruce Scates of ANU on the story of an Australian woman who helped Armenians after…
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Stephens, David: Shots across the bows: some Anzac weekend reading and listening
David Stephens* ‘Shots across the bows: some Anzac weekend reading and listening’, Honest History, 23 April 2021 updated Just a very quick jog around the field, unfortunately. Wearing their Heritage Guardians hats, the Honest History elves have been busy finalising…
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Stephens, David: Getting the story straight: Senate Estimates hears from War Memorial on Afghanistan, extensions, and other matters
David Stephens* ‘Getting the story straight: Senate Estimates hears from War Memorial on Afghanistan, extensions, and other matters’, Honest History, 6 April 2021 updated The Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade spent just 28 minutes on the evening…
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Stephens, David: Radio, reminiscences, a radical, the Limestone Plains, and a new play by a distinguished journo: a roundup
David Stephens* ‘Radio, reminiscences, a radical, the Limestone Plains, and a new play by a distinguished journo: a roundup’, Honest History, 31 March 2021 In between helping the Heritage Guardians resist the entirely unnecessary and inappropriate $498m legacy project at…
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Wheeler, Tone: Tone on Tuesday: The democratic spatial narrative of the Australian War Memorial
Have your say with the National Capital Authority on the Memorial’s ‘early works’ application. You don’t need to live in Canberra. Arguments here. *** Tone Wheeler ‘Tone on Tuesday: The democratic spatial narrative of the Australian War Memorial‘, Architecture and Design, 30…
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Curtis, Katina: War Memorial redevelopment will force Anzac Day ceremonies to move
Have your say with the National Capital Authority on the Memorial’s ‘early works’ application. You don’t need to live in Canberra. Arguments here. *** Katina Curtis ‘War Memorial redevelopment will force Anzac Day ceremonies to move‘, Sydney Morning Herald, 29…
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Stephens, David: Memorial Rorts: how the Australian War Memorial expansion was rammed through despite public opposition
Have your say with the National Capital Authority on the Memorial’s ‘early works’ application. You don’t need to live in Canberra. Arguments here. *** David Stephens ‘Memorial Rorts: how the Australian War Memorial expansion was rammed through despite public opposition‘,…
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Stephens, David: The great War Memorial tree massacre: the price we will pay for the Edifice Complex
Have your say with the National Capital Authority on the Memorial’s ‘early works’ application. You don’t need to live in Canberra. Arguments here. *** David Stephens* ‘The great War Memorial tree massacre: the price we will pay for the Edifice…
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Wakeling, Adam: A House of Commons for a Den of Thieves: Australia’s Journey from Penal Colony to Democracy
Adam Wakeling A House of Commons for a Den of Thieves: Australia’s Journey from Penal Colony to Democracy, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2020 In 1788, Great Britain founded a colony in Australia to swallow up its criminals. And swallow them…
Stephens, David: Narrow focus but not sharp: Public Works Committee report on $498m War Memorial project
David Stephens* ‘Narrow focus but not sharp: Public Works Committee report on $498m War Memorial project’, Honest History, 15 March 2021 updated The parliamentary Public Works Committee was never going to take a broad view of the $498m, seven year,…
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Stephens, David: Australian War Memorial $498m project: consultation on two fronts
David Stephens* ‘Australian War Memorial $498m project: consultation on two fronts’, Honest History, 12 March 2021 There are currently two ways in which people can have their say about the War Memorial development project. The Canberra Times story gives an…
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Stephens, David: February was a good history month: recent reads across the Wide Brown Land
David Stephens* ‘February was a good history month: recent reads across the Wide Brown Land’, Honest History, 10 March 2021 HH confesses to slippage in keeping up with reading matter. We blame February holidays. Here are some short notes on…
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Stephens, David: War Memorial news: backing Chairman Stokes; reaching out to military history buffs; jumping the gun on closing Anzac Hall; possibly getting Tony Abbott as Council Chair
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial news: backing Chairman Stokes; reaching out to military history buffs; jumping the gun on closing Anzac Hall; possibly getting Tony Abbott as Council Chair’, Honest History, 8 March 2021 updated The Australian War Memorial benefits not…
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Broinowski, Alison: Now or never: Australia must develop its own foreign policy
Alison Broinowski ‘Now or never: Australia must develop its own foreign policy‘, Independent Australia, 3 March 2021 Surveys Australia’s foreign policy since the beginning and concludes thus: Regional solutions to regional differences will come from diplomacy, not armed force. But…
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Wareham, Sue: Let’s not allow the Australian War Memorial to become something much uglier
Sue Wareham* ‘Let’s not allow the Australian War Memorial to become something much uglier‘, Canberra Times, 27 February 2021 (pdf from our subscription) Also on op ed page of hard copy of the Times. Letters to the paper followed. Slightly edited…
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Stephens, David: Reaction to Public Works Committee report on War Memorial’s big build: rare dissent emphasises the problems with this project
David Stephens* ‘Reaction to Public Works Committee report on War Memorial’s big build: rare dissent emphasises the problems with this project’, Honest History, 24 February 2021 Update 15 March 2021: Analysis of the PWC report, plus some odd business in…
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Collard, Sarah: ‘It must all be a part of our reckoning with the truth’: Albanese acknowledges Frontier Wars in House
Sarah Collard ‘“It must all be a part of our reckoning with the truth’”: Albanese acknowledges Frontier Wars in House‘, SBS/NITV News, 16 February 2021 updated Update 23 February 2021: Paul Daley in Guardian Australia Albanese’s fine words in federal…
Stephens, David: Four history reads for a wet weekend, including Henry Reynolds on Australia Day and wrapping ourselves in the flag
David Stephens* ‘Four history reads for a wet weekend, including Henry Reynolds on Australia Day and wrapping ourselves in the flag’, Honest History, 6 February 2021 Forty millimetres of rain overnight at HH HQ in Canberra, and there may be…
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Stephens, David: Same old, same old – and lots of brass: still no historians on the Australian War Memorial Council
David Stephens* ‘Same old, same old – and lots of brass: still no historians on the Australian War Memorial Council’, Honest History, 5 February 2021 Minister Chester has announced the filling of two vacancies on the Council of the Australian…
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McKenna, Mark: Australia’s haunted house
Mark McKenna ‘Australia’s haunted house‘, The Monthly, February 2021, pp. 8-11 (possible paywall but here’s a pdf from a subscription/purchased copy) Update 8 February 2021: McKenna on 7 am Podcast with Ruby Johns for Schwartz Media. *** The Brereton Report…
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Stephens, David: Day Break by Amy McQuire and Matt Chun: a children’s book focusses sharply on 26 January
David Stephens* ‘Day Break by Amy McQuire and Matt Chun: a children’s book focusses sharply on 26 January’, Honest History, 31 January 2021 Much of the debate about Australia Day/Invasion Day 26 January has been between grown-ups. This book, Day…
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McQuire, Amy: If your child asks why Australia is celebrating a day of invasion, what will you tell them?
Amy McQuire ‘If your child asks why Australia is celebrating a day of invasion, what will you tell them?‘, Guardian Australia, 26 January 2021 First Nations children are silenced even though the most brutal acts of colonisation were perpetrated and…
Morrissey, Doug: Ned Kelly: The Stringybark Creek Police Murders
Doug Morrissey Ned Kelly: The Stringybark Creek Police Murders, Connor Court Publishing, Brisbane, 2020 Doug Morrissey presents the definitive account of the Stringybark Creek Police Murders. The ambush murder of three policemen at Stringybark Creek in October 1878 was Ned…
Piggott, Michael: What are we to make of Edmund Barton, our first prime minister? An exhibition in Canberra
Michael Piggott* ‘What are we to make of Edmund Barton, our first prime minister? An exhibition in Canberra’, Honest History, 4 January 2021 Michael Piggott reviews an exhibition at Parliament House, Canberra: ‘Edmund Barton: Australia’s first Prime Minister’. The exhibition…
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Daley, Paul: The strange case of the weapons maker and the Australian children’s charity
Paul Daley ‘The strange case of the weapons maker and the Australian children’s charity‘, Guardian Australia, 4 December 2020 Chronicles the slow retreat of Australian charity, The Smith Family, from its involvement with arms manufacturer, BAE Systems. Persistent pressure, ultimately…
Kenny, Mark: Why looking back is the only way forward: COVID-19, the Federation, and the chance of genuine reconciliation
Mark Kenny ‘Why looking back is the only way forward: COVID-19, the Federation, and the chance of genuine reconciliation: 2020 Henry Parkes Oration‘, Parkes Foundation, 19 October 2020 Makes the case for an Indigenous museum; contrasts it with spending on…
Fahy, Michelle: LobbyLand ‘culture of cosiness’: colossal conflicts of interest in Defence spending blitz
Michelle Fahy ‘LobbyLand “culture of cosiness”: colossal conflicts of interest in Defence spending blitz‘, Pearls and Irritations, 13 October 2020 updated On corporate influence on government policy and how weapons makers cultivate relationships with politicians and top officials in the…
Stephens, David: War Memorial’s ‘Final Preliminary Documentation’ leaves many unanswered questions on $498m project: over to you, DAWE
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial’s “Final Preliminary Documentation” leaves many unanswered questions on $498m project: over to you, DAWE’, Honest History, 9 October 2020 updated As foreshadowed in our posts of 30 September and 2 October, the Australian War Memorial has…
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McIlroy, Tom: Government’s heritage adviser warns against War Memorial redevelopment
Tom McIlroy ‘Government’s heritage adviser warns against War Memorial redevelopment‘, Australian Financial Review, 4 October 2020 updated (pdf from our subscription) Riffs off submission No. 152 to the Memorial’s EPBC Act consultation (Download Preliminary Documentation Public Comment). The Australian Heritage…
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Inglis, Ken, Bill Gammage, Seumas Spark & Jay Winter, with Carol Bunyan, Dunera Lives: Profiles
Ken Inglis, Bill Gammage, Seumas Spark & Jay Winter, with Carol Bunyan Dunera Lives: Profiles, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2020 The story of the “Dunera Boys” is an intrinsic part of the history of Australia in the Second World War…
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Holt, Stephen: Another Philipp (sic) encounters Australia: one of many stories in a rich second Dunera volume
Stephen Holt* ‘Another Philipp (sic) encounters Australia: one of many stories in a rich second Dunera volume’, Honest History, 30 September 2020 Stephen Holt reviews Dunera Lives: Profiles, by Ken Inglis, Bill Gammage, Seumas Spark and Jay Winter with Carol…
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Stephens, David: Review note: Ted Egan’s The Anzacs: 100 Years On in Story and Song
David Stephens* ‘Review note: Ted Egan’s The Anzacs: 100 Years On in Story and Song‘, Honest History, 18 September 2020 Update: Mr Egan offers free copies of the book to worthy causes. Contact. *** Ted Egan is what was once…
De Maria, William: Australian War Memorial: from keeper of the flame to hider of shame?
William De Maria ‘Australian War Memorial: from keeper of the flame to hider of shame?‘ Michael West Media, 16 September 2020 Conceived during World War I amidst the mustard gas, the dead soldiers, and rotting horses on the wet battlefields…
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Dapin, Mark: Public Enemies: Russell “Mad Dog” Cox, Ray Denning and the Golden Age of Armed Robbery
Mark Dapin Public Enemies: Russell “Mad Dog” Cox, Ray Denning and the Golden Age of Armed Robbery, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2020; electronic version available In the Australia of the 1960s, 70s and 80s, armed robbers were the top of…
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Bongiorno, Frank: An obedient nation of larrikins: why Victorians are not revolting
Frank Bongiorno ‘An obedient nation of larrikins: why Victorians are not revolting‘, The Conversation, 10 September 2020 Update 21 September 2020: Dave Milner in The Shot newsletter on the low-key Melburnian cope. Speculates about what (mostly supportive) Victorian attitudes to…
Wareham, Sue: This government needs to stop militarising our biggest challenges
Sue Wareham* ‘This government needs to stop militarising our biggest challenges‘, Canberra Times, 7 September 2020 (pdf from our subscription) Criticises the focus on using the Australian Defence Force to deal with domestic emergencies, including the current pandemic. The risk…
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McKay, Jim & Karen Brooks: Toys for the boys: white men’s business at the War Memorial
Jim McKay & Karen Brooks ‘Toys for the boys: white men’s business at the War Memorial‘, Broad Agenda, 18 August 2020 Masculinity: Most cultural institutions in the national capital are facing austerity measures so crippling they can barely conduct their…
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Cook, John with Jon Bauer: The Last Lighthouse Keeper: A Memoir
John Cook with Jon Bauer The Last Lighthouse Keeper: A Memoir, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2020; electronic version available In Tasmania, John Cook is known as ‘The Keeper of the Flame’. As one of Australia’s longest-serving lighthouse keepers, John spent…
Stephens, David: War Memorial visitor figures not keeping pace with population increase
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial visitor figures not keeping pace with population increase’, Honest History, 10 August 2020 updated In 2016 and again in 2017, Honest History took a long view of Australian War Memorial visitor statistics going back to 1990-91.…
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Cashen, Phil: The White Australia Policy: always in the background
Phil Cashen ‘The White Australia Policy: always in the background‘, Shire at War, 28 July 2020 From down Alberton, Gippsland, Victoria way comes this detailed post from blogger-historian, Phil Cashen. It looks at the treatment of the White Australia Policy…
Collaery, Bernard: Oil under Troubled Water: Australia’s Timor Sea Intrigue
Bernard Collaery Oil under Troubled Water: Australia’s Timor Sea Intrigue, Melbourne University Press, 2020; electronic edition available In May 2018 Bernard Collaery, a former Attorney-General of the Australian Capital Territory and long-term legal counsel to the government of East Timor,…
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Goodwin, Paul with Gordon Goodwin: The Last Navigator
Paul Goodwin with Gordon Goodwin The Last Navigator, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2020 Promoted as ‘From the Queensland bush to Bomber Command and Pathfinders … a true story of courage and survival against the odds’. This is the powerful first-hand…
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Williams, Elliot: Australian War Memorial tells volunteers they can lose role if they speak publicly about redevelopment
Elliot Williams ‘Australian War Memorial tells volunteers they can lose role if they speak publicly about redevelopment‘, Canberra Times, 28 July 2020 (pdf of our subscriber copy) Update 1 September 2020: Paddy Gourley writes in CT Public Sector Informant (paywall…
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McIlroy, Tom: “Shameful”: Ex-directors oppose War Memorial redevelopment
Tom McIlroy ‘”Shameful”; Ex-directors oppose War Memorial redevelopment’, Australian Financial Review, 13 July 2020 (pdf from our subscription) Quotes former Directors Gower and Kelson and Heritage Guardians’ David Stephens in advance of Public Works Committee. ‘Former bosses of the Australian…
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Daley, Paul: The Australian War Memorial’s expansion money would be better spent on traumatised veterans
Paul Daley ‘The Australian War Memorial’s expansion money would be better spent on traumatised veterans‘, Guardian Australia, 3 July 2020 Update later: More than 85 comments by 6.00 pm AEST, most with thumbs up attached – and not one supporting…
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Rollo, Stuart: Collateral murder in a militarised society
Stuart Rollo ‘Collateral murder in a militarised society‘, Overland, 22 June 2020 Subtle analysis of how the links between the uniformed military, particularly the SAS, arms manufacturers and exporters, and the commemoration industry are gradually making Australia more militarised. These…
Three reads for a wet weekend – including a long read on the orange elephant in the room of 2020
Inside Story, The Conversation and the New York Review of Books. All part of the mainstream media, but regularly carrying well-written, substantial think pieces, riffing off current events, but always with current relevance. Inside Story has a piece by Norman…
Van Teeseling, Ingeborg: When white Australians fought against the Maori for control of their land
Ingeborg van Teeseling ‘When white Australians fought against the Maori for control of their land‘, The Big Smoke, 14 June 2020 Australian colonists signed on in the 186os to help the New Zealand Pakeha (whites) deal with the Maori inhabitants…
Edwards, Peter: Law, Politics and Intelligence: A Life of Robert Hope
Peter Edwards Law, Politics and Intelligence: A Life of Robert Hope, NewSouth, Sydney, 2020 Robert Marsden Hope (1919–99), a NSW Supreme Court judge, shaped the structures, operations and doctrines of Australia’s intelligence agencies more than any other individual. Commissioned by…
Abjorensen, Norman: Before the triumphs and the tragedies
Norman Abjorensen ‘Before the triumphs and the tragedies‘, Inside Story, 2 June 2020 Review of Becoming John Curtin and James Scullin: The Making of the Modern Labor Party, by Liam Byrne. It was a time of intense political ferment [says…
Liddle, Celeste: Seeing the con in reconciliation
Celeste Liddle ‘Seeing the con in reconciliation‘, Eureka Street, 28 May 2020 Arrernte feminist writer on the annual disappointment of Reconciliation Week, which began on 27 May. Comments section is strong also. We don’t have ‘land rights’ [says Liddle], just…
Aktar, Ayhan: The struggle between nationalist and jihadist narratives of Gallipoli, 1915-2015
Ayhan Aktar ‘The struggle between nationalist and jihadist narratives of Gallipoli, 1915-2015‘, Forum for Modern Language Studies, Vol. 56, No. 2, April 2020, pp. 213-28 (paywall) There have been a number of milestones in the (re-)writing of the history of…
Fraser, Nancy, Susan Neiman, Thomas Piketty, and 3000 scholars from 600 universities around the world: Humans are not resources. Coronavirus shows why we must democratise work
Nancy Fraser, Susan Neiman, Thomas Piketty, and 3000 scholars from 600 universities around the world ‘Humans are not resources. Coronavirus shows why we must democratise work‘, Guardian, 16 May 2020 For a while (2014-17), Honest History ran ‘Inequality’ as a…
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Scrimgeour, Anne: On Red Earth Walking: The Pilbara Aboriginal Strike, Western Australia 1946–1949
Anne Scrimgeour On Red Earth Walking: The Pilbara Aboriginal Strike, Western Australia 1946–1949, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2020 The book is reviewed for Honest History by Rolf Gerritsen. Other reviews: Kathy Gollan in Newtown Review of Books; Jan Richardson in…
Gerritsen, Rolf: A tour de force investigation of Indigenous and labour history
Rolf Gerritsen* ‘A tour de force investigation of Indigenous and labour history’, Honest History, 12 May 2020 Rolf Gerritsen reviews On Red Earth Walking: The Pilbara Aboriginal Strike, Western Australia 1946-1949, by Anne Scrimgeour This history is the product of…
Wareham, Sue: Prioritising health
Sue Wareham ‘Prioritising health‘, Pearls and Irritations, 11 May 2020 Global military spending continues to rise. Critical health goals could be achieved for a fraction of what we spend on wars. Focussing funding on health rather than military spending, globally…
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Jackson, Andra: The lasting legacy of the Vietnam Moratorium
Andra Jackson ‘The lasting legacy of the Vietnam Moratorium‘, Eureka Street, 8 May 2020 An appropriate marking of the 5oth anniversary of the Moratorium demonstration in Melbourne’s Bourke Street, by someone who was there (as was the author of this…
Stephens, David: Afghanistan not underdone at Australian War Memorial (thanks to Boeing): a flaw in argument for extensions
Heritage Guardians campaign diary follows the story from early 2019 of the campaign against the Memorial project *** David Stephens* ‘Afghanistan not underdone at Australian War Memorial (thanks to Boeing): a flaw in argument for extensions’, Honest History, 4 May…
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Stephens, David: Anzac Day and history as what we choose to remember
David Stephens* ‘Anzac Day and history as what we choose to remember‘, Pearls and Irritations, 24 April 2020 updated The Covid-19 pandemic has been compared with the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918-19. That many of us knew nothing about that…
Fathi, Romain: Submission to the Senate’s inquiry into opportunities for strengthening Australia’s relations with the Republic of France
Romain Fathi Submission to the Senate’s inquiry into opportunities for strengthening Australia’s relations with the Republic of France, 2 April 2020 As a result of having a historical narrative that is curated by DVA and not WWI experts, the John…
Irving, Terry: The Fatal Lure of Politics: The Life and Thought of Vere Gordon Childe
Terry Irving The Fatal Lure of Politics: The Life and Thought of Vere Gordon Childe, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2020 Renowned Australian-born archaeologist and prehistorian Vere Gordon Childe (1892–1957) had a lifelong fascination with socialist politics. In his early life…
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Holt, Stephen: A genuine Aussie digger: Vere Gordon Childe 1892-1957
Stephen Holt* ‘A genuine Aussie digger: Vere Gordon Childe 1892-1957’, Honest History, 19 April 2020 Stephen Holt reviews The Fatal Lure of Politics: The Life and Thought of Vere Gordon Childe, by Terry Irving The Honest History project, since it…
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Bond, Catherine: Tyrannical power exercised untyrannically?
Catherine Bond ‘Tyrannical power exercised untyranically?‘ Inside Story, 1 April 2020 updated Law has always been crucial to Australia’s involvement in war, whether through existing defence legislation or new provisions designed to deal with a developing incident or conflict. Law…
Browne, Peter & Seumas Spark, ed.: ‘I Wonder’: The Life and Work of Ken Inglis
Peter Browne & Seumas Spark, ed. ‘I Wonder’: The Life and Work of Ken Inglis, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2020 Ken Inglis was one of Australia’s most creative, wide-ranging and admired historians. During a scholarly career spanning nearly seven decades,…
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Megarrity, Lyndon: The recovery: technology and society
Lyndon Megarrity ‘The recovery: technology and society‘, Australian Policy and History, 9 April 2020 During the CV-19 pandemic, the use of Information Technology has enabled millions to work from home and gain some relief from social isolation while avoiding potential…
Wareham, Sue: Healthcare not warfare
Sue Wareham ‘Healthcare not warfare‘, Pearls and Irritations, 6 April 2020 updated Update 11 May 2020: Sue Wareham on the need to prioritise health care over defence spending. Update 23 April 2020: Allan Behm in Guardian Australia argues for a…
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Myrtle, John: Rethinking Australian journalism in the 1960s: The 1966-67 work value case and the Sydney newspaper strike
John Myrtle* ‘Rethinking Australian journalism in the 1960s: The 1966-67 work value case and the Sydney newspaper strike‘, Honest History, 7 April 2020 This is a detailed study of two industrial relations events from more than 50 years ago. Journalists…
Stephens, David: New Australian War Memorial Director’s children’s war books give some hints to his thinking
David Stephens* ‘New War Memorial Director’s children’s war books give some hints to his thinking’, Honest History, 31 March 2020 updated The new Director of the Australian War Memorial, Matthew Anderson PSM, commences duty on 14 April. He comes to…
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Pegram, Aaron: Surviving the Great War: Australian Prisoners of War on the Western Front 1916–18
Aaron Pegram Surviving the Great War: Australian Prisoners of War on the Western Front 1916–18, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge & Port Melbourne, 2020; electronic version available Between 1916 and 1918, more than 3,800 men of the Australian Imperial Force were…
Alexander, Kristen: They also served: Australians dealing with the challenge of captivity during the Great War
Kristen Alexander* ‘They also served: Australians dealing with the challenge of captivity during the Great War’, Honest History, 13 March 2020 Kristen Alexander reviews Surviving the Great War: Australian Prisoners of War on the Western Front, 1916-18, by Aaron Pegram…
Fahy, Michelle: Brothers-in-Arms: the high-rotation revolving door between the Australian government and arms merchants
Michelle Fahy* ‘Brothers-in-Arms: the high-rotation revolving door between the Australian government and arms merchants‘, Michael West Media, 11 March 2020 A disturbing number of Australia’s military personnel, senior defence and intelligence officials and politicians leave their public service jobs and…
Ruby, Felicity: Silent partners: US bases in Australia
Felicity Ruby ‘Silent partners: US bases in Australia‘, Australian Foreign Affairs, Issue 8, February 2020, pp. 29-54 [T]here is very little public understanding or discussion of these bases, or their uses, or the way in which they have constrained Australian…
Hocking, Jenny: Archival secrets and hidden histories
Jenny Hocking ‘Archival secrets and hidden histories‘, Griffith Review 67: Matters of Trust, February 2020 Access is the pivot between archives and history; it is the filter through which an archival record steps out from a shadowy past and becomes…
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Smith, Zoe: ‘The Great Australian Silence’: Sexual violence in Australian history
Zoe Smith ‘“The Great Australian Silence”: Sexual violence in Australian history‘, History Matters (University of Sheffield), 5 February 2020 From the first establishment of European settlements in Australia, forced sexual relations perpetrated by white settlers have remained relatively unspoken about…
Fahy, Michelle: Selling arms with impunity
Michelle Fahy ‘Selling arms with impunity‘, Pearls and Irritations, 30 January 2020 updated Detailed piece by a researcher into the arms trade. Covers: government funding for Australian arms exports; role of federal, state and local governments; developments in the United…
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Torosyan, Lilly: Book review: Dark Pasts: Changing the State’s Story in Turkey and Japan
Lilly Torosyan ‘Book review: Dark Pasts: Changing the State’s Story in Turkey and Japan‘, Armenian Weekly, 15 January 2020 The book is by Jennifer M. Dixon, who seeks to solve the mystery of why and how some states come to…
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Stephens, David: Architects and doctors come down hard on War Memorial heritage arguments
David Stephens* ‘Architects and doctors come down hard on War Memorial heritage arguments’, Honest History, 18 December 2019 updated Spinners know how to make the best of a bad story. Australian War Memorial spokespersons, in spruiking the case for the…
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Stanley, Peter: Uneasy peace
Peter Stanley ‘Uneasy peace‘, Inside Story, 15 December 2019 Review of a new collection of essays, The Great War: Aftermath and Commemoration, edited by Carolyn Holbrook and Keir Reeves, and published by UNSW Press. The book was launched last month.…
Watson, Joey & Ian Coombe: Four Australian military legends that are more myth than fact
Joey Watson & Ian Coombe ‘Four Australian military legends that are more myth than fact‘, ABC News, 14 December 2019 Features the current ABC RN series, ‘Myths of war‘, presented by Mark Dapin, author of, most recently, Australia’s Vietnam: Myths…
Hyde, Lewis: A Primer for Forgetting: Getting Past the Past
Lewis Hyde A Primer for Forgetting: Getting Past the Past, Canongate, Edinburgh, 2019; originally published Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 2019; electronic version available We live in a culture that prizes memory—how much we can store, the quality of…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget? This primer for forgetting has some stuff worth remembering
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget? This primer for forgetting has some stuff worth remembering’, Honest History, 11 December 2019 David Stephens reviews A Primer for Forgetting: Getting Past the Past, by Lewis Hyde A book about forgetting (and remembering) should…
Fewtrell, Terry: War Memorial needs a new Act, not a new building
Terry Fewtrell ‘War Memorial needs a new Act, not a new building’, Canberra Times, 5 December 2019 For an institution with the title “Australian War Memorial”, it is incomprehensible, and ultimately indefensible, for it not to recognise and commemorate the…
Stephens, David: Heritage values threatened, misleading documentation presented, gaming of the approvals process: the War Memorial’s (first) EPBC Act Referral on its $498m expansion program
David Stephens* ‘Heritage values threatened, misleading documentation presented, gaming of the approvals process: the War Memorial’s (first) EPBC Act Referral on its $498m expansion program’, Honest History, 5 December 2019 updated As foreshadowed, the Heritage Guardians group has provided a…
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Clarke, Stephen: What nations remember: Martyn Brown on what happened in Crete in 1941
Stephen Clarke* ‘What nations remember: Martyn Brown on what happened in Crete in 1941’, Honest History, 30 November 2019 Stephen Clarke reviews Martyn Brown’s Politics of Forgetting: New Zealand, Greece and Britain at War On 20 May 2011, I was an…
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Brown, Martyn: Politics of Forgetting: New Zealand, Greece and Great Britain at War
Martyn Brown Politics of Forgetting: New Zealand, Greece and Great Britain at War, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2019; electronic version available Greece was a poor country in turmoil and pain during the 1940s. A military dictatorship was followed by invasion…
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Martin Hobbs, Mia: Soldier recognition, trauma, and the Australian War Memorial
Mia Martin Hobbs ‘Soldier recognition, trauma, and the Australian War Memorial‘, Australian Policy and History, 26 November 2019 Recent PhD and oral historian looks at arguments for the Memorial extensions against the backdrop of the literature on post-traumatic stress. The…
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Farrelly, Elizabeth: Dull, wasteful and overblown – is this the best Australia can do?
Elizabeth Farrelly ‘Dull, wasteful and overblown – is this the best Australia can do?‘, Age, 30 November 2019 Architecture critic and commentator looks at the expansion plans for the Australian War Memorial against a backdrop of consideration of Canberra’s planning:…
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Stephens, David: From the Honest History vault: Lest We Forget Dr Chau Chak Wing, the War Memorial’s Chinese-Australian connection
David Stephens* ‘From the Honest History vault: Lest We Forget Dr Chau Chak Wing, the War Memorial’s Chinese-Australian connection’, Honest History, 27 November 2019 Update 3 February 2021: Dr Chau Chak Wing wins defamation case against ABC and Nine Newspapers,…
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Broinowski, Alison: Reading Room: Russia and the West: the Last Two Action-Packed Years 2017-19
Alison Broinowski ‘Reading Room: Russia and the West: The Last Two Action-Packed Years 2017-19‘, Australian Outlook, 14 November 2019 Review of recent book by former diplomat, Tony Kevin, in which the author offers two papers he gave to the Independent…
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Abjorensen, Norman: Cometh the hour, cometh the leader?
Norman Abjorensen ‘Cometh the hour, cometh the leader?‘ Inside Story, 18 November 2019 Marks the release of an updated edition of the author’s The Manner of Their Going: Prime Ministerial Exits in Australia. (Michael Piggott reviewed the first edition of…
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Tanter, Richard: Pine Gap history – dogged by censorship and dereliction of duty
Richard Tanter ‘Pine Gap history – dogged by censorship and dereliction of duty‘, Pearls and Irritations, 14 November 2019 Melbourne University academic and peace activist, Richard Tanter, looks at a release of heavily redacted official papers relating to Pine Gap.…
Stephens, David: For Remembrance Day: The Anzac thoughts of Tony Abbott, new member of the War Memorial Council
David Stephens* ‘For Remembrance Day: The Anzac thoughts of Tony Abbott, new member of the War Memorial Council – and “war historian”‘, Honest History, 11 November 2019 As Tony Abbott, former prime minister, defeated member for Warringah, has been appointed…
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Oliver, Bobbie: For Remembrance Day: Another gaffe inflicted on the Australian War Memorial with Tony Abbott appointment
Bobbie Oliver* ‘For Remembrance Day: Another gaffe inflicted on the Australian War Memorial with Tony Abbott appointment’, Honest History, 10 November 2019 [Bobbie Oliver comments on the appointment of former prime minister, Tony Abbott, to the Council of the Memorial.…
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Newton, Douglas: For Remembrance Day: Helping the Australian War Memorial address its future – but to do so in a rather different way
Douglas Newton* For Remembrance Day: Helping the Australian War Memorial address its future – but to do so in a rather different way’, Honest History, 10 November 2019 [In 2018, distinguished Australian historian, Douglas Newton, responded to an invitation to…
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Broome, Richard, Charles Fahey, Andrea Gaynor, Katie Holmes: Mallee Country: Land, People, History
Richard Broome, Charles Fahey, Andrea Gaynor, Katie Holmes Mallee Country: Land, People, History, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2019 Mallee Country tells the powerful history of mallee lands and people across southern Australia from Deep Time to the present. Carefully shaped and…
Myrtle, John: Weathering the Mallee over nearly two centuries
John Myrtle* ‘Weathering the Mallee over nearly two centuries’, Honest History, 8 November 2019 John Myrtle reviews Mallee Country: Land, People, History by Richard Broome, Charles Fahey, Andrea Gaynor and Katie Holmes Mallee Country records a project on the ecological…
Pascoe, Bruce: Salt: Selected Stories and Essays
Bruce Pascoe Salt: Selected Stories and Essays, Black Inc, Melbourne, 2019 A collection of stories and essays by the award-winning author of Dark Emu, showcasing his shimmering genius across a lifetime of work. This volume of Bruce Pascoe’s best and most…
Bell, Diane: Read and savour the salt of Bruce Pascoe’s stories and essays of our land
Diane Bell* ‘Read and savour the salt of Bruce Pascoe’s stories and essays of our land’, Honest History, 1 November 2019 Diane Bell reviews Bruce Pascoe’s Salt: Selected Stories and Essays Bruce Pascoe’s dedication of Salt, ‘For the three rivers…
Stephens, David: Review note: An exhibition on averting war and keeping the peace: new at the War Memorial
David Stephens* ‘Review note: An exhibition on averting war and keeping the peace: new at the War Memorial’, Honest History, 23 October 2019 updated The Courage for Peace, a new exhibition at the Australian War Memorial, is a modest attempt…
Lawrence, Susan & Peter Davies: Sludge: Disaster on Victoria’s Goldfields
Susan Lawrence & Peter Davies Sludge: Disaster on Victoria’s Goldfields, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2019 Everyone knows gold made Victoria rich. But did you know gold mining was disastrous for the land, engulfing it in floods of sand, gravel and silt…
Stephens, David: War Memorial stirrings: Works Approval application for a car park; an Annual Report that giveth and taketh away; an exhibition about peace-keeping
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial stirrings: Works Approval application for a car park; an Annual Report that giveth and taketh away; an exhibition about peace-keeping’, Honest History, 18 October 2019 updated This week has seen a number of developments at the…
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Wareham, Sue: Abbott – a natural fit for a war memorial sliding from commemoration to propaganda
Sue Wareham ‘Abbott – a natural fit for a war memorial sliding from commemoration to propaganda‘, Pearls and Irritations, 11 October 2019 From Heritage Guardians member, Sue Wareham, and follows earlier items in HG’s campaign against the $498m extensions to…
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Daley, Paul: Military buff Tony Abbott is the wrong choice for the Australian War Memorial
Paul Daley ‘Military buff Tony Abbott is the wrong choice for the Australian War Memorial‘, Guardian Australia, 9 October 2019 updated The war memorial’s council lacks a professional historian and critics say it’s like a hospital being run by homeopaths…
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McIlroy, Tom: Kerry Stokes guaranteed $500m War Memorial plan
Tom McIlroy ‘Kerry Stokes guaranteed $500m War Memorial plan‘, Australian Financial Review, 7 October 2019 (Pay-wall. Pdf copy made from open access version.) Story based on FOI material provided to Heritage Guardians and Honest History. Seven West chairman and Rich…
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Stephens, David: War Memorial releases material under FOI relating to $498m expansion program: did a billionaire’s personal guarantee clinch the deal?
David Stephens* ‘War Memorial releases material under FOI relating to $498m expansion program: did a billionaire’s personal guarantee clinch the deal?’ Honest History, 4 October 2019 updated Update 5 November 2019: Dr Nelson’s final bow at Estimates gives more information…
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Hilferty, Fiona, Ellie Lawrence-Wood, Ilan Katz, & Miranda Van Hooff: 5,800 defence veterans homeless in Australia, that’s more than we thought
Fiona Hilferty, Ellie Lawrence-Wood, Ilan Katz & Miranda Van Hooff ‘5,800 defence veterans homeless in Australia, that’s more than we thought‘, The Conversation, 30 September 2019 Our research puts a new number on the problem. We still do not know…
Stephens, David: History is never settled and is always vulnerable to political manipulation: recent Russian and Polish examples
David Stephens* ‘History is never settled and is always vulnerable to political manipulation: recent Russian and Polish examples’, Honest History, 10 September 2019 Honest History has always had an aversion to complaints that someone is ‘rewriting history’. John Howard occasionally…
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Macklin, Robert: Castaway: The Extraordinary Survival story of Narcisse Pelletier, a Young French Cabin Boy Shipwrecked on Cape York in 1858
Robert Macklin Castaway: The Extraordinary Survival story of Narcisse Pelletier, a Young French Cabin Boy Shipwrecked on Cape York in 1858, Hachette, Sydney, 2019 In 1858, fourteen-year-old French cabin boy Narcisse Pelletier was aboard the trader Saint-Paul when it was wrecked off…
Flora, Steve: Robert Macklin’s Castaway is an interesting and informative read in a modest-sized, though wide-ranging, book
Steve Flora* ‘Robert Macklin’s Castaway is an interesting and informative read in a modest-sized, though wide-ranging, book’, Honest History, 10 September 2019 Steve Flora reviews Castaway: The Extraordinary Survival story of Narcisse Pelletier, a Young French Cabin Boy Shipwrecked on…
Gilling, Tom: Project Rainfall: The Secret History of Pine Gap
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Daley, Paul: Who should lead the Australian War Memorial?
Paul Daley ‘Who should lead the Australian War Memorial?‘ ArtsHub, 2 September 2019 Criticises the suggestion that Tony Abbott might become Director of the Memorial, or even (perhaps) join its Council. Like Anzac, the memorial has been immune to political…
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Toohey, Brian: Secret: The Making of Australia’s Security State
Brian Toohey Secret: The Making of Australia’s Security State, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 2019 Elected governments pose the greatest threat to Australians’ security. Political leaders increasingly promote secrecy, ignorance and fear to introduce new laws that undermine individual liberties and…
Broinowski, Alison: State of insecurity: how government secrecy preserves power and conceals stuff-ups
Alison Broinowski* ‘State of insecurity: how government secrecy preserves power and conceals stuff-ups’, Honest History, 3 September 2019 Alison Broinowski reviews Secret: The Making of Australia’s Security State, by Brian Toohey If you’re old enough to remember the National Times…
Willheim, Ernst: The saga of Bernard Collaery and Witness K continues
Ernst Willheim ‘The saga of Bernard Collaery and Witness K continues‘, Pearls and Irritations, 28 August 2019 updated Extensive notes for a speech given to the Australian Institute of International Affairs, Canberra, 27 August. [The speech] is about Australian commercial…
Quiggin, John: Forget the generation gap – the gulf between rich and poor tells the real story of our times
John Quiggin ‘Forget the generation gap – the gulf between rich and poor tells the real story of our times‘, Guardian Australia, 26 August 2019 Commentary on a Grattan Institute study of the generation gap and ensuring a ‘fair go’…
Stephens, David: From the Honest History vault: Awkward humility: the speeches of the Hon. Brendan Nelson AO
David Stephens* ‘From the Honest History vault: Awkward humility: the speeches of the Hon. Brendan Nelson AO‘, Honest History, 15 August 2019 A long piece in two parts on the oral oeuvre of the soon to be former Director of…
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ABC News: Australian War Memorial director Brendan Nelson to step down from top job at end of year
ABC News ‘Australian War Memorial director Brendan Nelson to step down from top job at end of year‘, ABC News, 15 August 2019 Covers announcement by Director to staff, announcement by Minister, statement by Leader of the Opposition. An end…
Davidson, Jared: Dead Letters: Censorship and Subversion in New Zealand 1914-20
Jared Davidson Dead Letters: Censorship and Subversion in New Zealand 1914-20, Otago University Press, Dunedin, 2019 Intimate and engaging, this dramatic narrative weaves together the personal and political, bringing to light the reality of wartime censorship. In an age of growing…
McLeod, John: State surveillance in Great War New Zealand
John McLeod* ‘State surveillance in Great War New Zealand’, Honest History , 14 August 2019 John McLeod reviews Jared Davidson’s Dead Letters: Censorship and Subversion in New Zealand 1914-20 Jared Davidson’s Dead Letters reveals the history of postal censorship in…
Blainey, Geoffrey: Before I Forget: An Early Memoir
Geoffrey Blainey Before I Forget: An Early Memoir, Penguin Books, Melbourne, 2019; electronic version available Before I Forget is the long-awaited memoir from Professor Geoffrey Blainey – Australia’s most significant and popular historian – that tells the story of the first…
Abbott, Derek: Geoffrey Blainey’s engaging narrative of his emergence as man and historian
Derek Abbott* ‘Geoffrey Blainey’s engaging narrative of his emergence as man and historian’, 9 August 2019 Derek Abbott reviews Geoffrey Blainey’s Before I Forget: An Early Memoir Geoffrey Blainey is one of Australia’s most highly regarded and most prolific historians.…
Stephens, David: Abbott wrong fit for War Memorial Council, says campaigner opposing AWM expansion
David Stephens ‘Abbott wrong fit for War Memorial Council, says campaigner opposing AWM expansion‘, The Riot Act, 7 August 2019 updated Comment on the kite flown about possible appointment of Tony Abbott to the War Memorial Council. (Update 1 October…
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Dingwall, Doug: Australian War Memorial reverses plan to build on nature park
Doug Dingwall ‘Australian War Memorial reverses plan to build on nature park‘, Canberra Times, 6 August 2019 Front page story on hard copy. Reports that the Memorial has decided to confine its expansion-related car parking to the current boundaries of…
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Llewellyn, Richard: The Australian War Memorial Redevelopment Program: the “Mitchell Option” reassessed
Richard Llewellyn ‘The Australian War Memorial Redevelopment Program: the “Mitchell Option” reassessed‘, Honest History, 22 July 2019 updated [For the context to this paper, go to the Heritage Guardians campaign diary, which includes an earlier paper by Richard Llewellyn.] Update…
Shield, John: The soldier settlers of Ubobo, south-west of Gladstone, have left only memories
John Shield* ‘The soldier settlers of Ubobo, south-west of Gladstone, have left only memories’, Honest History, 21 July 2019 On 13 August 1929 the Ubobo Branch of the Returned Sailors and Soldiers Imperial League of Australia (RSSILA) held its annual…
Broinowski, Richard: “How to Defend Australia” is an important wake-up call
Richard Broinowski ‘“How to Defend Australia” is an important wake-up call‘, Australian Outlook, 14 July 2019 updated Hugh White’s latest book How to Defend Australia is reviewed by former senior diplomat, Richard Broinowski AO. ‘Hugh White should be praised’, says…
Bottoms, Timothy: Massacre recollections Elder stories of Frontier Wars in FNQ
Timothy Bottoms ‘Massacre recollections Elder stories of Frontier Wars in FNQ‘, YouTube, 16 July 2019 North Queensland-based historian, Tim Bottoms, has posted this 13 minute video in which Aboriginal Elders recount specific instances of frontier violence. The late Kenny Jimmy…
Hill, Lisa: Our Mob Served: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories of War and Defending Australia, edited by Allison Cadzow and Mary Anne Jebb
Lisa Hill ‘Our Mob Served: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories of War and Defending Australia, edited by Allison Cadzow and Mary Anne Jebb’, ANZ LitLovers, 9 July 2019 ‘I expect’, says Lisa Hill in the course of this post,…
Holman, Brett: “The aeroplane is the nearest thing to animate life that man has created”: Ross Smith’s 1919 account of an epic flight
Brett Holman* ‘“The aeroplane is the nearest thing to animate life that man has created”: Ross Smith’s 1919 account of an epic flight’, Honest History, 11 July 2019 Brett Holman reviews Flight to Fame: Victory in the 1919 Great Air…
Smith, Ross & Peter Monteath: Flight to Fame: Victory in the 1919 Great Air Race, England to Australia
Ross Smith & Peter Monteath Flight to Fame: Victory in the 1919 Great Air Race, England to Australia, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2019 In March 1919, Australia’s prime minister announced a prize of £10,000 for the first successful flight from Great…
Coe, Bruce: Pulling Through: The Story of the King’s Cup
Bruce Coe Pulling Through: The Story of the King’s Cup, Slattery Media, Melbourne, 2019 The story behind the winning of the 1919 King’s Cup by the Australian Imperial Forces No. 1 crew is fascinating. Wartime authorities created diversions for war…
Jordan, Lucas: Rowing on after the Great War: the origins of the King’s Cup
Lucas Jordan* ‘Rowing on after the Great War: the origins of the King’s Cup’, Honest History, 8 July 2019 Lucas Jordan reviews Bruce Coe’s Pulling Through: The Story of the King’s Cup On Saturday, 5 July 1919, an eight-man rowing…
Gower, Steve: The Australian War Memorial: A Century on from the Vision
Steve Gower The Australian War Memorial: A Century on from the Vision, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2019 In this book, Steve Gower, the highly successful director of the Australian War Memorial from 1996 to 2012, gives a comprehensive account of the…
Abbott, Derek: A personal memoir from a safe pair of hands: Steve Gower on the Australian War Memorial
Derek Abbott* ‘A personal memoir from a safe pair of hands: Steve Gower on the Australian War Memorial’, Honest History, 2 July 2019 Derek Abbott reviews The Australian War Memorial: A Century on from the Vision, by Steve Gower Steve…
Stephens, David: Strengthening the RSL link is not the most pressing need for the War Memorial Council
David Stephens* ‘Strengthening the RSL link is not the most pressing need for the unrepresentative and anachronistic War Memorial Council’, Honest History, 30 June 2019 updated During the recent election campaign, New South Wales President of the RSL, James Brown,…
Arthure, Susan, Fidelma Breen, Stephanie James & Dymphna Lonergan, ed. Irish South Australia: New Histories and Insights
Susan Arthure, Fidelma Breen, Stephanie James & Dymphna Lonergan, ed. Irish South Australia: New Histories and Insights, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2019 Irish South Australia charts Irish settlement from as far north as Pekina, to the state’s south-east and Mount Gambier. It…
Morrissey, Doug: Something new and original on the Irish in South Australia
Doug Morrissey* ‘Something new and original on the Irish in South Australia’, Honest History, 27 June 2019 Doug Morrissey reviews Irish South Australia: New Histories and Insights, edited by Susan Arthure, Fidelma Breen, Stephanie James, and Dymphna Lonergan This is…
Scappatura, Vince: The US Lobby and Australian Defence Policy
Vince Scappatura The US Lobby and Australian Defence Policy, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2019 Australian society and its leaders generally take for granted the importance and value of this nation’s relationship with the United States. The US is commonly thought…
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Broinowski, Alison: Unreliable protection from unnecessary enemies: Scappatura on the US Lobby and us
Alison Broinowski* ‘Unreliable protection from unnecessary enemies: Scappatura on the US Lobby and us’, Honest History, 25 June 2019 Alison Broinowski reviews Vince Scappatura, The US Lobby and Australian Defence Policy A blast of fresh air blew through the Australian…
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O’Mallon, Finbar: War memorial risks becoming a “theme park”: former director
Finbar O’Mallon ‘War memorial risks becoming a “theme park”: former director‘, Canberra Times, 24 June 2019 Interview with former Director Brendon Kelson, referring to his letter to the Prime Minister regarding the proposed Memorial extensions. Mr Kelson offers the Memorial’s…
Llewellyn, Richard: The Australian War Memorial extensions: a critique of the design choice
Richard Llewellyn ‘The Australian War Memorial extensions: a critique of the design choice‘, Honest History, 24 June 2019 Richard Llewellyn held the senior position of Registrar at the Australian War Memorial from 1986 to 1995. His paper (almost 8700 words)…
Stanley, Peter: Reading the Act: what is the Australian War Memorial for?
Peter Stanley ‘Reading the Act: what is the Australian War Memorial for?‘ Pearls and Irritations, 19 June 2019 Argues that the Australian War Memorial Act 1980 sets out the responsibilities of the Memorial and that providing a ‘therapeutic milieu’ for…
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Featherstone, Nigel: Bodies of Men
Nigel Featherstone Bodies of Men, Hachette Australia, Sydney, 2019; electronic version available A beautifully evocative tale of two men whose lives are brought together in tragedy – for lovers of books by Kevin Powers and Sebastian Barry. There is nothing…
Bye, Clarissa: Military heroes in fight of their lives as more veterans die through suicide
Clarissa Bye ‘Military heroes in fight of their lives as more veterans die through suicide‘, Daily Telegraph, 16 June 2019 Continues a campaign by Daily Telegraph, including editorially, for a Royal Commission into suicide of Australian Defence Force veterans. Earlier…
Stephens, David: Paul Daley and Don Watson address the place of place in the Australian story – as well as death and the Australian character
David Stephens* ‘Paul Daley and Don Watson address the place of place in the Australian story – as well as death and the Australian character’, Honest History, 7 June 2019 Sunday papers contain long reads and thoughtful essays, some of…
Piggott, Michael: We are in debt to those responsible for these two journals
Michael Piggott* ‘We are in debt to those responsible for these two journals’, Honest History, 2 June 2019 Michael Piggott reviews the Australian Journal of Biography and History and the ANU Historical Journal II If the appearance of new journal…
Megarrity, Lyndon: The Whitlam connection: local government in the Hawke era
Lyndon Megarrity ‘The Whitlam connection: local government in the Hawke era‘, Government News, 27 May 2019 ‘Hawke and Whitlam were different in many ways, but they were united in their support for local government’s role in the federal system and…
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Knaus, Christopher: Brendan Nelson warned to avoid “potential conflict” of paid role with Thales
Christopher Knaus ‘Brendan Nelson warned to avoid “potential conflict” of paid role with Thales‘, Guardian Australia, 24 May 2019 Update 22 November 2024: later FOI release includes the letter from Minister Ronaldson, but also a list of payments made by…
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Palmer, Charlotte: Is the Australian War Memorial a place of healing?
Charlotte Palmer ‘Is the Australian War Memorial a place of healing?‘ Pearls and Irritations, 23 May 2019 Article by retired Canberra GP medical practitioner, with 25 years’ clinical experience in treating psychological trauma. For those with untreated or unresolved distress,…
Martin, Richard J.: The Gulf Country: The Story of People and Place in Outback Queensland
Richard J. Martin The Gulf Country: The Story of People and Place in Outback Queensland, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2019; electronic edition available With its great rivers, grassy plains and mangrove-fringed coastline, Queensland’s remote Gulf Country is rich and fertile…
Megarrity, Lyndon: Book on Queensland’s Gulf Country shows how people have lived and thrived in isolated communities
Lyndon Megarrity* ‘Book on Queensland’s Gulf Country shows how people have lived and thrived in isolated communities’, Honest History, 20 May 2019 Lyndon Megarrity reviews Richard J. Martin, The Gulf Country: The Story of People and Place in Outback Queensland…
Sheehan, Mark J., ed.: Advocates and Persuaders
Mark J. Sheehan, ed. Advocates and Persuaders, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2019; electronic version available The authors of Advocates and Persuaders aim to demystify the political practice of lobbying. They believe that lobbying has a significant role to play in a healthy…
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Warhurst, John: Case studies on the role of pressure groups, lobbyists and public relations people in our democracy
John Warhurst* ‘Case studies on the role of pressure groups, lobbyists and public relations people in our democracy’, Honest History, 20 May 2019 John Warhurst reviews Mark J. Sheehan, ed., Advocates and Persuaders Advocates and persuaders, also known as peak…
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Myrtle, John: “A man of intriguing contradictions”: Edward St John and the South Africa Defence and Aid Fund
John Myrtle* ‘”A man of intriguing contradictions”: Edward St John and the South Africa Defence and Aid Fund’, Honest History, 17 May 2019 Edward St John QC, a prominent Sydney barrister and human rights campaigner, was a founding member and…
Smith, Tony: Review note: Don Brian: The Convict Voice: Songs of Transportation to Norfolk Island and NSW
Tony Smith ‘Review note: Don Brian: The Convict Voice: Songs of Transportation to Norfolk Island and NSW’, Honest History, 13 May 2019 updated © 2019 Tony Smith Transportation to the eastern states ceased around 1850 but continued later in Western…
Hardie, Elsbeth: The Passage of the Damned: What Happened to the Men and Women of the Lady Shore Mutiny
Elsbeth Hardie The Passage of the Damned: What Happened to the Men and Women of the Lady Shore Mutiny, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2019 In an extraordinary move, in 1797, the British government pressed a small group of French and…
Flora, Steve: Story of 1797 mutiny is a work in search of an identity
Steve Flora* ‘Story of 1797 mutiny is a work in search of an identity’, Honest History, 13 May 2019 updated Steve Flora reviews Elsbeth Hardie’s The Passage of the Damned: What Happened to the Men and Women of the Lady…
Janson, Julie: The Light Horse Ghost
Julie Janson The Light House Ghost, Nibago, Avalon, NSW, 2018; electronic version available From the World War 1 Middle Eastern Theatre of War, the Desert Campaign and the Light Horse military victory, to a quiet family life in a gold…
Broinowski, Alison: A novel about war on the home front and in the Middle East
Alison Broinowski* ‘A novel about war on the home front and in the Middle East’, Honest History, 12 May 2019 Alison Broinowski reviews Julie Janson’s The Light Horse Ghost Julie Janson knows about the other Australia. Descended from the Darug…
Dapin, Mark: Australia’s Vietnam: Myth vs History
Mark Dapin Australia’s Vietnam: Myth vs History, NewSouth, Sydney, 2019 This book should be read by anyone interested in the way myths become accepted as history.’ — Peter Edwards, author of Australia and the Vietnam War Why everything you think you…
Stephens, David: Mark Dapin: politely pushing back against Australia’s Vietnam mythology
David Stephens* ‘Mark Dapin: politely pushing back against Australia’s Vietnam mythology’, Honest History, 7 May 2019 updated David Stephens reviews Mark Dapin’s Australia’s Vietnam: Myth vs History The Honest History enterprise has devoted a lot of time and effort to…
Duffy, Michael & Nick Hordern: World War Noir: Sydney’s Unpatriotic War
Michael Duffy & Nick Hordern World War Noir: Sydney’s Unpatriotic War, NewSouth, Sydney, 2019 It seems that not even world war could stop crime in Sydney. In fact, World War Noir confirms that war and crime — in the form of…
Stephens, David: Australian War Memorial’s $498 million funding boost would be better spent on veterans
David Stephens ‘Australian War Memorial’s $498 million funding boost would be better spent on veterans‘, The Strategist, 2 May 2019 Response to arguments of Director, Australian War Memorial, as published in The Strategist recently. There are holes in Dr Nelson’s…
Knaus, Christopher: Brendan Nelson denies ‘conflict of interest’ after passing on fees from arms firm to war memorial (with Comment)
Christopher Knaus ‘Brendan Nelson denies “conflict of interest” after passing on fees from arms firm to war memorial‘, Guardian Australia, 24 April 2019 updated Article in the Guardian‘s ‘Transparency Project’ series looks at Director Nelson’s receipt of fees from arms…
Stephens, David: Lest We Forget Yassmin Abdel-Magied: a two-year retrospective
David Stephens* ‘Lest We Forget Yassmin Abdel-Magied: a two-year retrospective’, Honest History, 24 April 2019 updated Update 7 May 2019: ABC presenter Sami Shah on being Yassmin-ed. Update 26 April 2019: also on Independent Australia website. *** Two years ago,…
Stephens, David: More on the War Memorial’s carelessness about naming rights
David Stephens* ‘More on the War Memorial’s carelessness about naming rights’, Honest History, 23 April 2019 A couple of weeks ago, Honest History posted some analysis about ‘naming rights’ at the Australian War Memorial. The piece was triggered by War…
Daley, Paul: Both major parties were suckerpunched into supporting the $500m war memorial expansion
Paul Daley ‘Both major parties were suckerpunched into supporting the $500m war memorial expansion‘, Guardian Australia, 22 April 2019 updated One of the signatories of the open letter against the War Memorial extensions provides a passionate but well-reasoned analysis of…
Stephens, David: Köken Ergun’s Şehitler (Heroes) is a well observed Dardanelles doco that deserves wide distribution
David Stephens* Köken Ergun’s Şehitler (Heroes) is a well observed Dardanelles doco that deserves wide distribution’, Honest History, 18 April 2019 updated Update 24 April 2019: Turkish nationals are to be excluded from Australian ceremonies at Gallipoli, 2019. Security reasons cited.…
Holmes, Jack: Does it matter that the President knows nothing about history? We asked 3 historians
Jack Holmes ‘Does it matter that the President knows nothing about history? We asked 3 historians‘, Esquire, 13 April 2019 From the politics editor of Esquire magazine, interviews three youngish American historians, riffing off the Trumpian ignorance of history (and…
Stephens, David: Architects dig in against Australian War Memorial extensions; mixed messages from the Memorial; odd perspective from the ABC
David Stephens* ‘Architects dig in against Australian War Memorial extensions; mixed messages from the Memorial; odd perspective from the ABC’, Honest History, 12 April 2019 updated Philip Leeson, ACT Chapter President of the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA), told ABC…
Stephens, David: A free kick from the ABC and an opportunity missed at Senate Estimates: when does the use of a name become a naming right?
David Stephens* ‘A free kick from the ABC and an opportunity missed at Senate Estimates: when does the use of a name become a naming right?’ Honest History, 11 April 2019 updated Senate Estimates this week were something of a…
Cooper, Jan: Searching for my father: a war story
Jan Cooper* ‘Searching for my father: a war story’, Honest History, 8 April 2019 Recently I went in search of information about my father, Doug Cooper. Like others born in 1940 or thereabouts, I suspected that I was not alone…
Stephens, David: Thoughts of the people against the War Memorial’s grandiose extensions project
David Stephens* ‘Thoughts of the people against the War Memorial’s grandiose extensions project’, Honest History, 8 April 2019 On 23 March, the Canberra Times carried a story about an open letter from 83 distinguished Australians opposing the plan to spend…
Menzies, Pam: Port Kembla: A Memoir
Pam Menzies Port Kembla: A Memoir, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2019 Port Kembla: A Memoir is the story of a steel town and its movers and shakers like the entrepreneurial Hoskins and Ted Roach, the wharfies’ leader, who were part of…
McQueen, Humphrey: Born free: wage-slaves and chattel-slaves
Humphrey McQueen ‘Born free: wage-slaves and chattel slaves‘, Honest History, 31 March 2019 To adapt Marx’s linking of cotton and slavery with capitalism to the civilising enterprise of the South Australian Company: “Without chattel slaves, the Angases have no mahogany…
Fathi, Romain: Our Corner of the Somme: Australia at Villers-Bretonneux
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ABC RN Late Night Live: Everyone loves Trove
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Britton, Peter: Working for the World: The Evolution of Australian Volunteers International
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Kampmark, Binoy: NZ shooter: the myth of Australian values
Binoy Kampmark ‘NZ shooter: the myth of Australian values‘, Eureka Street, 19 March 2019 The painful truth is that Anning and Tarrant are representative of an aspect of Australian national identity. For decades, they were entirely representative. Their increasing loss of relevance,…
Brett, Judith: From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia got Compulsory Voting
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Arrow, Michelle: The Seventies: The Personal, the Political and the Making of Modern Australia
Michelle Arrow The Seventies: The Personal, the Political and the Making of Modern Australia, NewSouth, Sydney, 2019; electronic version available In 1970 homosexuality was illegal, God Save the Queen was our national anthem and women pretended to be married to access the…
Daley, Paul: As the toll of Australia’s frontier brutality keeps climbing, truth telling is long overdue
Paul Daley ‘As the toll of Australia’s frontier brutality keeps climbing, truth telling is long overdue‘, Guardian Australia, 4 March 2019 updated Major article on our continuing neglect of killings of Indigenous Australians from 1788 till at least 1928. Examines…
Fahey, John: Australia’s First Spies: The Remarkable Story of Australia’s Intelligence Operations, 1901-45
John Fahey Australia’s First Spies: The Remarkable Story of Australia’s Intelligence Operations, 1901-45, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2018; available electronically The first systematic account of Australian intelligence operations in the early 20th century offers fascinating new insights into Australian politics…
Fraser, Peg: Black Saturday: Not the End of the Story
Peg Fraser Black Saturday: Not the End of the Story, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2018 The Victorian bushfires of February 2009 captured the attention of all Australians and made headlines around the world. One hundred and seventy-three people lost their…
Crowe, Shaun: Whitlam’s Children: Labor and the Greens in Australia
Shaun Crowe Whitlam’s Children: Labor and the Greens in Australia, MUP Academic, Melbourne, 2018; electronic version available Over the past three decades, progressive politics in Australia has undergone a gradual but unmistakable transformation. Where the Australian Labor Party once enjoyed…
Daley, Paul: Decolonising the dictionary: reclaiming Australian history for the forgotten
Paul Daley ‘Decolonising the dictionary: reclaiming Australian history for the forgotten‘, Guardian Australia, 17 February 2019 updated Long article pointing to the deficiencies in the Australian Dictionary of Biography (ADB, located at the Australian National University), especially its earlier volumes…
Edwards, John: John Curtin’s War (Volumes I and II)
John Edwards John Curtin’s War: Volume I, Penguin Random House, Sydney, 2017; Volume II, Penguin Random House, Sydney, 2018; also available electronically Using much new material John Edwards’ vivid, landmark biography places Curtin as a man of his times, puzzling…
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Soutphommasane, Tim: Why being an Australian citizen doesn’t mean others will believe you truly belong
Tim Soutphommasane ‘Why being an Australian citizen doesn’t mean others will believe you truly belong‘, Sydney Morning Herald, 10 February 2019 The ideal of White Australia was seminal and for all the success of Australian multiculturalism, we remain conditioned by…
Wells, Alexander: Whatever happened to the arts of peace?
Alexander Wells ‘Whatever happened to the arts of peace?‘ Overland, 8 February 2019 In the mass media and cultural institutions, we have just marked the 100-year anniversary of Armistice by continuing to fixate on warfare – at the expense of…
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Holbrook, Carolyn: Failure to attach: Australians and their Federation
Carolyn Holbrook ‘Failure to attach: Australians and their Federation: History and Policy Conference, King’s College, London, 17 December 2018‘, Soundcloud The Australian federation was hailed as a beacon of democratic governance at the time of its establishment in 1901—a cutting-edge…
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Bromfield, Nicholas: The genre of Prime Ministerial Anzac Day addresses, 1973–2016
Nicholas Bromfield ‘The genre of Prime Ministerial Anzac Day addresses, 1973–2016‘, Australian Journal of Politics and History, 64, 1, March 2018, pp. 81-97 Statistical analysis based on the author’s PhD thesis. Includes some interesting insights. The last quarter of a…
George, Denise: Mary Lee: The Life and Times of a “Turbulent Anarchist” and Her Battle for Women’s Rights
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Megarrity, Lyndon: Geoffrey Bolton and the writing of Australian history
Lyndon Megarrity ‘Geoffrey Bolton and the writing of Australian history‘, Australian Policy and History, 10 December 2018 Question and answer style in the website’s ‘Prominent Profiles’ series. Covers broad overview of Bolton’s career, how Megarrity came to know Bolton and…
Ashenden, Dean: Saving the War Memorial from itself
Dean Ashenden ‘Saving the War Memorial from itself‘, Inside Story, 15 January 2019 updated Long article canvassing many aspects of the War Memorial’s current direction, from its refusal to recognise the Frontier Wars, to the composition of its Council, and…
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Kalagian Blunt, Ashley: My Name is Revenge
Ashley Kalagian Blunt My Name is Revenge, Spineless Wonders Publishing, Melbourne, 2018; electronic version available My Name is Revenge is in two parts. There is a novella, and an essay reflecting on the historic events that inspired that novella, and meditating…
Hawkins, Jo: Consuming Anzac: The History of Australia’s Most Powerful Brand
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Lilley, Ian & Celmara Pocock: Australia’s problem with Aboriginal World Heritage
Ian Lilley & Celmara Pocock ‘Australia’s problem with Aboriginal World Heritage‘, The Conversation, 13 December 2018 Of 19 World Heritage sites across the country, including such wonders as the Great Barrier Reef and the Sydney Opera House, only two, Kakadu…
Jones, Benjamin T., Frank Bongiorno & John Uhr, ed.: Elections Matter: Ten Federal Elections that Shaped Australia
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Bongiorno, Frank: The year some things changed
Frank Bongiorno ‘The year some things changed‘, Sydney Review of Books, 3 December 2018 updated Head of the ANU School of History (and Honest History president) reviews The Year Everything Changed: 2001 by Phillipa McGuinness, author (and publisher of The…
Jeyaratnam, Emil: Twelve charts on race and racism in Australia
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Hutchison, Margaret: Painting War: A History of Australia’s First World War Art Scheme
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Stanley, Peter, ed.: Jeff Grey: A Life in History
Peter Stanley, ed. Jeff Grey: A Life in History, School of Humanities & Social Sciences, UNSW Canberra, Canberra, 2018 Memorial volume for UNSW Canberra’s late Professor of History. Authors are Frank Bongiorno, John Connor, Peter Dennis, Eleanor Hancock, Peter Stanley,…
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Haigh, Bruce: The ANZACS: ransacked by the Right
Bruce Haigh ‘The ANZACS: ransacked by the Right‘, Independent Australia, 24 November 2018 Retired diplomat writes that the Anzac myth has been constructed to serve conservative interests. Australia’s default position is to the right of centre. We are just emerging…
Byrne, Frank with Frances Coughlan and Gerard Waterford: Living in Hope
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Stanley, Peter: Commemoration without conscience: the War Memorial must remain sacred
Peter Stanley ‘Commemoration without conscience: the War Memorial must remain sacred‘, Canberra Times, 22 November 2018 Article by military historian (and Past-President of Honest History) arguing that, if the Memorial is indeed a sacred place, that status is incompatible with…
Reynolds, Henry: Frontier conflict and the War Memorial: an enduring controversy
Henry Reynolds ‘Frontier conflict and the War Memorial: an enduring controversy‘, Meanjin (blog), 20 November 2018 Discusses War Memorial resistance to commemoration of the Frontier Wars, casualty figures, the nature of the conflict, Mabo, and terra nullius. It [frontier conflict]…
Karageorgos, Effie: An urgent rethink is needed on the idealised image of the ANZAC digger
Effie Karageorgos ‘An urgent rethink is needed on the idealised image of the ANZAC digger‘, The Conversation, 21 November 2018 Having spent all that money on Great War commemoration we need to become more honest – respectfully – about the way…
Davies, Geoff: Lest we also forget
Geoff Davies ‘Lest we also forget‘, Pearls and Irritations, 20 November 2018 Pungent and telling piece by an author and retired scientist. He enjoins us regarding a number of important events and issues, introducing each one with the words ‘lest…
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Menadue, John: Sacrifice is being politicised. Militarism is becoming the norm
John Menadue ‘Sacrifice is being politicised. Militarism is becoming the norm‘, Pearls and Irritations, 17 November 2018 Passionate post from Australian Elder, former senior public servant and businessman (and among Honest History’s distinguished supporters). Remembrance is morphing into acceptance of…
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Reynolds, Henry: Has the cavalcade of commemoration finally halted?
Henry Reynolds ‘Has the cavalcade of commemoration finally halted?‘ Pearls and Irritations, 16 November 2018 Leading historian says historians of the future will wonder where our obsession with war – made flesh in the Anzac centenary – came from and…
Cashen, Phil: 192. Thanksgiving Sunday, 17/11/18
Phil Cashen ‘192. Thanksgiving Sunday, 17/11/18‘, Shire at War, 12 November 2018 Another excellent microcosmic piece – Phil Cashen has done 192 of them to date – from the Shire of Alberton, this time closely examining sermons in local churches…
Newton, Douglas: Merchants of death should not be funding Australian War Memorial
Douglas Newton ‘Merchants of death should not be funding Australian War Memorial‘, Sydney Morning Herald, 7 November 2018 To fund worthy causes such as a national commemoration, mounted in all our names, is why we have governments and taxation. Meeting…
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Stephens, David: A grandiose commemorative project for Canberra raises lots of questions
David Stephens ‘A grandiose commemorative project for Canberra raises lots of questions‘, Pearls and Irritations, 2 November 2018 Asks some pointed questions about the $498 million War Memorial extensions. Among the questions: Does the implication that the Memorial is ‘sacred’…
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Innes, Melanie & Heather Sharp: World War I commemoration and student historical consciousness: a study of high-school students’ views
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Cashen, Phil: Spanish flu. Part 1
Phil Cashen ‘Spanish flu. Part 1‘, Shire at War, 29 October 2018 updated Update 25 April 2019: Glenn Davies in Independent Australia on Sister Rosa O’Kane, who nursed sufferers from the flu. Good general coverage on the epidemic. *** A…
Fahy, Michelle: Invictus Games, glossing over inconvenient truths – the arms trade and the British royals
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Fernandes, Clinton: Island off the Coast of Asia: Instruments of Statecraft in Australian Foreign Policy
Clinton Fernandes Island off the Coast of Asia: Instruments of Statecraft in Australian Foreign Policy, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2018 Island off the Coast of Asia: Instruments of Statecraft in Australian Foreign Policy is an unprecedented 230-year Australian study that reveals…
Holt, Stephen: Is Ordinary Joe our most forgotten PM?
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Phelps, Peter: The Bulldog Track: A Grandson’s Story of an Ordinary Man’s War and Survival on the Other Kokoda Trail
Peter Phelps The Bulldog Track: A Grandson’s Story of an Ordinary Man’s War and Survival on the Other Kokoda Trail, Hachette, Sydney, 2018; electronic version available This is the story of Tom Phelps and the “other Kokoda Track”. Seventy-five years…
Lydon, Jane & Lyndall Ryan, ed.: Remembering the Myall Creek Massacre
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Wakeling, Adam: Stern Justice: The Forgotten Story of Australia, Japan and the Pacific War Crimes Trials
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Morrissey, Doug: Ned Kelly: Selectors, Squatters and Stock Thieves
Doug Morrissey Ned Kelly: Selectors, Squatters and Stock Thieves, Connor Court Publishing, Brisbane, 2018 Doug Morrissey’s acclaimed book Ned Kelly: A Lawless Life (2015) was short listed for the prestigious Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Australian History in 2016. This, his second…
Wright, Clare: You Daughters of Freedom: The Australians Who Won the Vote and Inspired the World: Democracy Trilogy, Book Two
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Cochrane, Peter: Best We Forget: The War for White Australia, 1914-18
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Raffin, Greg: Mutiny on the Western Front: 1918
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Taylor, Brendan: The Four Flashpoints: How Asia Goes to War
Brendan Taylor The Four Flashpoints: How Asia Goes to War, La Trobe University Press/Black Inc., Melbourne, 2018 In this revelatory analysis, geopolitical expert Brendan Taylor examines the four Asian flashpoints most likely to erupt in sudden and violent conflict: the…
Daley, Paul: Colonial Australia’s foundation is stained with the profits of British slavery
Paul Daley ‘Colonial Australia’s foundation is stained with the profits of British slavery‘, Guardian Australia, 21 September 2018 Riffs off recently published book, Island Off the Coast of Asia: Instruments of Statecraft in Australian Foreign Policy, by Clinton Fernandes. Fernandes…
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Stephens, David: It’s a cultural thing – isn’t it?
David Stephens ‘It’s a cultural thing – isn’t it?‘ Inside Story, 5 September 2018 A parliamentary inquiry seems to be carefully avoiding the real challenge for Australia’s national museums, archives and libraries … [The inquiry by the Joint Committee on…
Megarrity, Lyndon: Northern Dreams: The Politics of Northern Development in Australia
Lyndon Megarrity Northern Dreams: The Politics of Northern Development in Australia, Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2018 Northern Dreams brings to life the passionate arguments about Northern Australia’s national significance and analyses the political debates that have periodically drawn the public’s…
Searle, Rick: Charles Ulm: The Untold Story of One of Australia’s Greatest Aviation Pioneers
Rick Searle Charles Ulm: The Untold Story of One of Australia’s Greatest Aviation Pioneers, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2018 Charles Ulm and Charles Kingsford Smith were two of the most important pioneers of Australian aviation. Together they succeeded in a…
Alfano, Mark: They shall not die in vain: how the Islamic State honours its fallen soldiers – and how Australians do the same
Mark Alfano ‘They shall not die in vain: how the Islamic State honours its fallen soldiers – and how Australians do the same‘, The Conversation, 20 August 2018 Perceptive piece from a philosopher; based on frequency analysis of Islamic State…
Read, John L.: Dear Grandpa, Why? Reflections from Kokoda to Hiroshima
John L. Read Dear Grandpa, Why? Reflections from Kokoda to Hiroshima, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2018 Edward Tompson Mobsby, father of twin baby girls, volunteered for war service and was shot down by the Japanese in New Guinea in 1942. John…
Broinowski, Alison: Conspiracies are not all theoretical: some letters to Trump
Alison Broinowski* ‘Conspiracies are not all theoretical: some letters to Trump’, Honest History, 13 August 2018 ©Alison Broinowski 2018 Before the 2016 election, candidate Donald Trump told voters he would ‘find out who really knocked down the World Trade Center’.…
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Barritt-Eyles, Lisa: Remembering the Gulf War
Lisa Barritt-Eyles ‘Remembering the Gulf War‘, Australian Outlook, 2 August 2018 Concise outline from a PhD student of Australia’s involvement in the Gulf War, 1990-91. On 2nd August 28 years ago, Iraq invaded Kuwait amid the uncertainty of the changing…
Flanagan, Richard: The world is being undone before us. If we do not reimagine Australia, we will be undone too
Richard Flanagan ‘The world is being undone before us. If we do not reimagine Australia, we will be undone too‘, Guardian Australia, 5 August 2018 Speech at Garma festival, NT, by distinguished author. (Over 500 comments at time of this…
Clark, Anna: Friday essay: the “great Australian silence” 50 years on
Anna Clark ‘Friday essay: the “great Australian silence” 50 years on‘, The Conversation, 3 August 2018 updated Marks the 50th anniversary of the famous Boyer lectures by anthropologist WEH Stanner, which drew attention to Australian reluctance to confront our Indigenous…
Reynolds, Henry: A hundred years of mateship (2)
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Douglas, Bob: What will it take to restore governance to its rightful owners?
Bob Douglas ‘What will it take to restore governance to its rightful owners?’, Pearls and Irritations, 26 July 2018 Around the world, and also here in Australia, voters are turning away from the political process, alarmed at the capture of…
Keating, Michael: The future Budget outlook – a comment on the Parliamentary Budget Office report on trends affecting the sustainability of Commonwealth taxes
Michael Keating ‘The future Budget outlook – a comment on the Parliamentary Budget Office report on trends affecting the sustainability of Commonwealth taxes‘, Pearls and Irritations, 24 July 2018 The independent Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) has released a report on…
Morris, Shireen: The Uluru Statement from the Heart: why I have hope
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Harman, Kristyn: Explainer: how Tasmania’s Aboriginal people reclaimed a language, palawa kani
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Jones, Benjamin T.: Where does Mark Latham sit among Labor rats?
Benjamin T. Jones ‘Where does Mark Latham sit among Labor rats?‘ Independent Australia, 13 July 2018 Historical survey from 1911 through Hughes, Lyons, Lang and the Groupers, with a few more mentioned in the comments from readers. ‘Contrary to [Graham]…
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Inglis, Ken, Jay Winter & Seumas Spark, with Carol Bunyan: Dunera Lives: A Visual History
Ken Inglis, Jay Winter & Seumas Spark, with Carol Bunyan Dunera Lives: A Visual History, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2018 In July 1940, around 2000 refugees, most of whom were Jewish and from Germany or Austria, were sent from Britain…
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Whiteford, Peter: Good times, bad times
Peter Whiteford ‘Good times, bad times‘, Inside Story, 5 July 2018 Looks at recent evidence of growing inequality in Australia, mostly driven by gains among the highest earners. There is little doubt that inequality is worse now than it was…
FitzSimons, Peter: Monash’s Masterpiece: The Battle of Le Hamel and the 93 Minutes that Changed the World
Peter FitzSimons Monash’s Masterpiece: The Battle of Le Hamel and the 93 Minutes that Changed the World, Hachette, Sydney, 2018; e-book available Peter FitzSimons brings to life the story of the battle of Le Hamel – the Allied triumph masterminded…
Dando-Collins, Stephen: Heroes of Hamel: : The Australians and Americans whose WWI Victory Changed Modern Warfare
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Bongiorno, Frank: From “Toby Tosspot” to “Mr Harbourside Mansion”, personal insults are an Australian tradition
Frank Bongiorno ‘From “Toby Tosspot” to “Mr Harbourside Mansion”, personal insults are an Australian tradition‘, The Conversation, 29 June 2018 ‘Political name-calling and insults are sometimes like water off a duck’s back. But others can stick.’ A useful survey. Frank…
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Davison, Graeme: The year of living anxiously
Graeme Davison ‘The year of living anxiously‘, Inside Story, 26 June 2018 Long review of the recently published book by Phillipa McGuinness, NewSouth publisher. The book is called The Year Everything Changed: 2001. The book offers, says Davison an understanding…
Daley, Paul: How do we settle the “statue wars”? Let’s start by telling the truth about our past
Paul Daley ‘How do we settle the “statue wars”? Let’s start by telling the truth about our past‘, Guardian Australia, 29 June 2018 The author says colonial-era statues, properly considered, can lead us towards an honest history. The article riffs…
Shaw, Ian W.: Murder at Dusk: How US Soldier and Smiling Psychopath Eddie Leonski Terrorised Wartime Melbourne
Ian W. Shaw Murder at Dusk: How US Soldier and Smiling Psychopath Eddie Leonski Terrorised Wartime Melbourne, Hachette, Sydney, 2018 May 1942: Melbourne was torn between fearing Japanese invasion and revelling in the carnival atmosphere brought by the influx of…
Broinowski, Alison: Australia, 2018: Lies, cover-ups and suppression of free speech
Alison Broinowski ‘Australia, 2018: Lies, cover-ups and suppression of free speech‘, Independent Australia, 20 June 2018 Honest History’s vice president summarises the current state and recent history of freedom in the wide brown land whose young men died in the…
Gapps, Stephen: The Sydney Wars: Conflict in the Early Colony, 1788-1817
Stephen Gapps The Sydney Wars: Conflict in the Early Colony, 1788-1817, NewSouth, Sydney, 2018 The Sydney Wars tells the history of military engagements between Europeans and Aboriginal Australians – described as “this constant sort of war” by one early colonist –…
Buchan, Bruce: Cooking the books
Bruce Buchan ‘Cooking the books’, Inside Story, 14 June 2018 Looks at a British Library exhibition on Cook and contrasts it with recent Australian announcements about celebrating the 250th anniversary of Cook’s 1770 voyage. Buchan draws this conclusion. Not long…
Schultz, Julianne & Sandra Phillips, ed.: Griffith Review 60: First Things First
Julianne Schultz & Sandra Phillips, ed. Griffith Review 60: First Things First, April 2018 After more than two hundred years of largely unresolved disputes, Australia needs to hear the voices of Australia’s First Nations – and act on them. First…
Lake, Meredith: The Bible in Australia: A Cultural History
Meredith Lake The Bible in Australia: A Cultural History, NewSouth, Sydney, 2018 In this surprising and revelatory history of the Bible in Australia, Meredith Lake gets under the skin of a text that’s been read, wrestled with, preached and tattooed,…
Hastings, David: Odyssey of the Unknown Anzac
David Hastings Odyssey of the Unknown Anzac, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2018; New Zealand edition published by Auckland University Press In 1928 the Returned Sailors and Soldiers Imperial League of Australia produced 10,000 copies of a poster asking for help…
Piggin, Stuart & Robert D. Linder: The Fountain of Public Prosperity: Evangelical Christians in Australian History 1740–1914
Stuart Piggin & Robert D. Linder The Fountain of Public Prosperity: Evangelical Christians in Australian History 1740–1914, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2018 The official religion brought to Australia with the First Fleet was Evangelical Christianity, the “vital religion” then shaping…
Lambert, Michael: Review of Fair Share by Stephen Bell and Michael Keating: Part I; Part II
Michael Lambert ‘Review of Fair Share by Stephen Bell and Michael Keating; Part I; Part II‘, Pearls and Irritations, 28-29 May 2018 The coverage of topics [in the Bell-Keating book] is extensive. While its overall theme is exploring the mitigation…
Burden, Gemmia: The violent collectors who gathered Indigenous artefacts for the Queensland Museum
Gemmia Burden ‘The violent collectors who gathered Indigenous artefacts for the Queensland Museum‘, The Conversation, 28 May 2018 Detailed examination of the links between frontier violence and museum collecting. While there is no evidence of the museum being directly involved…
Review note: Eleanor’s Secret is an easy read but draws on specialist knowledge
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Troughton, Geoffrey & Philip Fountain, ed.: Pursuing Peace in Godzone: Christianity and the Peace Tradition in New Zealand
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Whyte, Sally: War Memorial should ditch weapons manufacturers: Anti war organisation
Sally Whyte ‘War Memorial should ditch weapons manufacturers: Anti war organisation‘, Canberra Times, 21 May 2018 updated Interview with Sue Wareham of Medical Association for Prevention of War (and one of Honest History’s distinguished supporters). Wareham discusses MAPW’s submission to…
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Tseen Khoo: What Anzac Day meant for Asian Australians
Tseen Khoo ‘What Anzac Day meant for Asian Australians‘, Eureka Street, 7 May 2018 Anzac Day ‘can signal and embrace former war-time foes [notably Turks] as contemporary allies’ but it can also be a day ‘that mobilises the easily ignited…
Taffe, Sue: A White Hot Flame: Mary Montgomerie Bennett – Author, Educator, Activist for Indigenous Justice
Sue Taffe A White Hot Flame: Mary Montgomerie Bennett – Author, Educator, Activist for Indigenous Justice, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2018 Mary Montgomerie Bennett (1881–1961) is an important but under-recognised figure in Australian history. A member of a successful squatting…
Mitchell, Adrian: Peat Island: Dreaming and Desecration
Adrian Mitchell Peat Island: Dreaming and Desecration, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2018 For just over 100 years an institution for the mentally ill has stood on little Peat Island, in the lower Hawkesbury. It was decommissioned in 2010; quite empty now,…
Reynolds, Henry: The fighting retreat of the Anglo-Australians
Henry Reynolds ‘The fighting retreat of the Anglo-Australians‘, Pearls and Irritations, 16 May 2018 Anglo-Australian atavism is at the root of the recent moves for an upgraded Captain Cook Memorial and related stuff, the defence of Australia Day, and the…
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Whitaker, Robyn J.: How the Bible helped shape Australian culture
Robyn J. Whitaker ‘How the Bible helped shape Australian culture‘, The Conversation, 15 May 2018 Discusses Meredith Lake’s new book, The Bible in Australia: A Cultural History. Time and time again, Lake traces the multiplicity of biblical interpretations and applications to…
Daley, Paul: The National Picture: overwhelming reminder of wilful gaps in Australia’s history
Paul Daley ‘The National Picture: overwhelming reminder of wilful gaps in Australia’s history‘, Guardian Australia, 14 May 2018 Review of a new exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, ‘The National Picture: the art of Tasmania’s Black War’. The…
Reynolds, Henry: Australia’s perpetual ‘war footing’
Henry Reynolds ‘Australia’s perpetual “war footing”‘, Pearls and Irritations, 7 May 2018 Riffs off a belligerent interview in 2013 by then Defence Minister, Senator David Johnston. [Johnston] clearly took it for granted that there was a need for Australian military…
McGibbon, Ian: William Malone and the entrenched myth of insubordination at Gallipoli
Ian McGibbon ‘William Malone and the entrenched myth of insubordination at Gallipoli‘, Stuff, 22 April 2018 A distinguished New Zealand military historian unpicks a myth that Kiwi officer, William Malone, disobeyed orders from a British superior at Gallipoli, specifically at…
Broinowski, Alison: Anzackery and the preening peloton
Alison Broinowski ‘Anzackery and the preening peloton‘, Pearls and Irritations, 24 April 2018 Honest History vice president weaves together Australian Defence Force duchessing of politicians, MSM Anzac cliches, critiques of Anzackery, culminating in praise for Richard Flanagan’s recent NPC speech.
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Brooker, Ben: 100 years of Anzac: ludicrous spending for nationalist validation
Ben Brooker ‘100 years of Anzac: ludicrous spending for nationalist validation‘, Overland, 24 April 2018 updated Sets the Monash Centre at Villers-Bretonneux against the broader context of commemorative spending, quoting Honest History estimates. Sharp points on opportunity cost and musing…
Hamilton, Andrew: Remembering shared humanity on Anzac Day
Andrew Hamilton ‘Remembering shared humanity on Anzac Day’, Eureka Street, 22 April 2018 [Politicians have] spent heavily on facilities for remembering the war, focused on the site of the battle rather than on the hometowns of those who grieve, and…
May, Catriona: War and trauma: learning the lessons
Catriona May ‘War and trauma: learning the lessons‘, Pursuit (University of Melbourne), 19 April 2018 An apposite post for the Anzac season, the article examines developments in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in armed forces, from diagnosis of ‘shell-shock’…
Heiss, Anita, ed.: Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia
Anita Heiss, ed. Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2018 What is it like to grow up Aboriginal in Australia? This anthology, compiled by award-winning author Anita Heiss, showcases many diverse voices, experiences and stories in order to…
Keating, Michael: Why Australia needs a stronger revenue base
Michael Keating ‘Why Australia needs a stronger revenue base‘, Pearls and Irritations, 19 April 2018 Former senior public servant stresses the importance of boosting the revenue base through taxation. Fundamentally the reason for taxation is to pay for the services…
Flanagan, Richard: ‘Our politics is a dreadful black comedy’ – press club speech in full
Richard Flanagan ‘”Our politics is a dreadful black comedy” – press club speech in full’, Guardian Australia, 19 April 2018 Man Booker Prize winner considers the possibilities for authoritarian politics around the world, before moving on to look at whether…
Stanley, Peter, ed.: Victory on Gallipoli and Other What-ifs of Australian History
Peter Stanley, ed. Victory on Gallipoli and Other What-ifs of Australian History, National Library of Australia, Canberra, 2018 With a twist of fate – and of historical fact – Gallipoli was a military success, Australia had a female prime minister…
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Winton, Tim: About the boys: Tim Winton on how toxic masculinity is shackling men to misogyny [with some related stuff]
Tim Winton ‘About the boys: Tim Winton on how toxic masculinity is shackling men to misogyny‘ [with some related stuff], Guardian Australia, 9 April 2018 updated An extract from the novelist’s speech about his new book The Shepherd’s Hut. (The…
Reynolds, Henry: Brendan Nelson and the War Memorial – what about the frontier wars?
Henry Reynolds ‘Brendan Nelson and the War Memorial – what about the frontier wars?‘ Pearls and Irritations, 10 April 2018 Historian of invader-Indigenous relations in Australia considers the proposed extension to the Australian War Memorial and the Memorial’s inadequate recognition…
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Waller, Mike: The real problem with our banks – “it’s leverage, stupid”
Mike Waller ‘The real problem with our banks – “it’s leverage, stupid”‘, Pearls and Irritations, 10 April 2018 Former Australian Public Service senior official and BHP economist writes about banking issues. We are more than a decade on from the…
McKenna, Mark: Quarterly Essay 69: Moment of Truth: History and Australia’s Future
Mark McKenna Quarterly Essay 69: Moment of Truth: History and Australia’s Future, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2018; electronic version available Australia is on the brink of momentous change, but only if its citizens and politicians can come to new terms with…
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Griffiths, Billy: Deep Time Dreaming: Uncovering Ancient Australia
Billy Griffiths Deep Time Dreaming: Uncovering Ancient Australia, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2018; electronic version available Soon after Billy Griffiths joins his first archaeological dig as camp manager and cook, he is hooked. Equipped with a historian’s inquiring mind, he embarks…
Daley, Paul: A $500m expansion of the war memorial is a reckless waste of money
Paul Daley ‘A $500m expansion of the war memorial is a reckless waste of money‘, Guardian Australia, 9 April 2018 Picks up the issue also canvassed by David Stephens of Honest History. Having spent more than half a billion dollars…
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Daley, Paul: Uluru, reconciliation and republic: a chance to reimagine Australia?
Paul Daley ‘Uluru, reconciliation and republic: a chance to reimagine Australia?‘ Guardian Australia, 4 April 2018 There is an awakening among constitutional progressives that perhaps the Australian republic ought not be so divorced from the cry out of Uluru last…
Mills, Stephen: Dick Casey’s Forgotten People
Stephen Mills ‘Dick Casey’s Forgotten People‘, Inside Story, 25 February 2018 updated We missed this piece when it first came round but it is worth drawing attention to for its careful study of a notable piece of election year propaganda,…
Kearney, Robert & Sharon Cleary: Valour and Violets: South Australia in the Great War
Robert Kearney & Sharon Cleary Valour and Violets: South Australia in the Great War, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2018 Close to 35,000 South Australians enlisted for service overseas during the Great War. Around 5500 never came back. Countless more returned with…
Jones, Benjamin T.: This Time: Australia’s Republican Past and Future
Benjamin T. Jones This Time: Australia’s Republican Past and Future, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2018; e-book available In This Time, Benjamin T. Jones charts a path to an independent future. He reveals the fascinating early history of the Australian republican movement of…
Bowern, Claire: The origins of Pama-Nyungan, Australia’s largest family of Aboriginal languages
Claire Bowern ‘The origins of Pama-Nyungan, Australia’s largest family of Aboriginal languages‘, The Conversation, 13 March 2018 The approximately 400 languages of Aboriginal Australia can be grouped into 27 different families. To put that diversity in context, Europe has just four…
Twomey, Christina: The Battle Within: POWs in Postwar Australia
Christina Twomey The Battle Within: POWs in Postwar Australia, NewSouth, Sydney, 2018 This landmark and compelling book follows the stories of 15,000 Australian prisoners of war from the moment they were released by the Japanese at the end of World…
Robison, Richard: Why the Coalition, conservatives and big business are terrified by Emma Alberici
Richard Robison ‘Why the Coalition, conservatives and big business are terrified by Emma Alberici‘, Independent Australia, 2 March 2018 update A further contribution to the debate on ABC economics correspondent Emma Alberici’s analysis of Australia’s corporate tax system. (Our post…
Taflaga, Marija: The end of the era of mass politics?
Marija Taflaga ‘The end of the era of mass politics?‘, Inside Story, 26 February 2018 Historical look at the trajectory of the major parties in Australia. Healthy or not, our parties are here to stay. The combination of the preferential…
Schultz, Julianne & Jane Camens, ed.: Griffith Review 59: Commonwealth Now
Julianne Schultz & Jane Camens, ed. Griffith Review 59: Commonwealth Now, January 2018 At the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast in April athletes from countries that were once a part of the British Empire will battle for gold –…
Reynolds, Henry: A hundred years of mateship?
Henry Reynolds ‘A hundred years of mateship?‘ Pearls and Irritations, 27 February 2018 updated A passionate piece from veteran historian Henry Reynolds. I was astonished! An SBS news report about the Turnbull visit to Washington declared that the two countries…
Abjorensen, Norman: Keeping the country in the coalition
Norman Abjorensen ‘Keeping the country in the coalition‘, Inside Story, 23 February 2018 Useful background to the current upheavals within and beyond the National Party. Regardless of how this latest conflict plays out, it is just another chapter in a…
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Brock, Peggy & Tom Gara, ed.: Colonialism and its Aftermath: A History of Aboriginal South Australia
Peggy Brock & Tom Gara, ed. Colonialism and its Aftermath: A History of Aboriginal South Australia, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, 2017 The colonial process in South Australia began decades before formal annexation with unregulated interactions between coastal Aboriginal people and European…
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Latimore, Jack: The stolen generations apology anniversary should stand as a day of shame
Jack Latimore ‘The stolen generations apology anniversary should stand as a day of shame‘, Guardian Australia, 13 February 2018 The difficulty and reluctance in recognising the way this intergenerational trauma impacts upon the lives of First Nations people says a…
Broinowski, Alison: The trust deficit in Canberra
Alison Broinowski ‘The trust deficit in Canberra‘, Pearls and Irritations, 13 February 2018 Looks at the implications of the appointment of Admiral Harry B. Harris as United States Ambassador to Australia. The Prime Minister has said we are joined at…
Menadue, John: We are in denial about the risks in our relationship with the United States. Part 1 of 2
John Menadue ‘We are in denial about the risks in our relationship with the United States. Part 1 of 2′, Pearls and Irritations, 8 February 2018 updated We are a nation in denial that we are “joined at the hip”…
Broinowski, Alison: Is militarism in Australia’s DNA?
Alison Broinowski ‘Is militarism in Australia’s DNA?’ Pearls and Irritations, 6 February 2018 updated Australians who don’t live in other countries don’t realise how our self-image differs from the perception, particularly in Asia, that we were militarists from the start.…
Daley, Paul: Beating the khaki drum: how Australian identity was militarised
Paul Daley ‘Beating the khaki drum: how Australian identity was militarised‘, Guardian Australia, 1 February 2018 Pulls together the themes of Anzackery, arms manufacturers inflicting advertising on Canberra airport users, and the same manufacturers donating to the Australian War Memorial…
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Attwood, Bain: The Good Country: The Djadja Wurrung, The Settlers and the Protectors
Bain Attwood The Good Country: The Djadja Wurrung, the Settlers and the Protectors, Monash University Publishing, Melbourne, 2017 A local history of the Djadja Wurrung people of Central Victoria, looking at the relationship between the people of this Aboriginal nation,…
Broinowski, Alison: Murky wars and missions unaccomplished
Alison Broinowski ‘Murky wars and missions unaccomplished‘, Pearls and Irritations, 25 January 2018 This [Syria] longest war in Australia’s history is the latest in the list of foreign conflicts in which we have joined Americans, supposedly fighting communists or terrorists,…
Miller, Geoff: White Paper versus White’s paper: some questions about Australian policies
Geoff Miller ‘White Paper versus White’s paper: some questions about Australian policies‘, Pearls and Irritations, 23 January 2018 Former senior Australian diplomat compares the official government publication with the recent Quarterly Essay by Professor Hugh White. The former is essentially…
Broinowski, Alison: Incorrigible Optimist review: Gareth Evans’ account of his public life
Alison Broinowski ‘Incorrigible Optimist review: Gareth Evans’ account of his public life‘, Sydney Morning Herald, 12 January 2018 This book was launched by Bob Hawke and has been widely reviewed. (See especially Norman Abjorensen in the Canberra Times and Jock…
Grishin, Sasha: Arthur Streeton: The art of war at the National Gallery of Australia combines beauty and barbarity
Sasha Grishin ‘Arthur Streeton: The art of war at the National Gallery of Australia combines beauty and barbarity’, Canberra Times, 10 January 2018 Review of an exhibition at the National Gallery, Canberra, until 29 April, just after Anzac Day. Reminds…
Bongiorno, Frank: An Iced Vovo and a broken heart
Frank Bongiorno ‘An Iced Vovo and a broken heart‘, Inside Story, 5 January 2018 Honest History president and ANU professor, Frank Bongiorno, reviews volume I of former PM Kevin Rudd’s autobiography. The two Rudd prime ministerships were probably not the…
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Hyland, Tom: What have I become?
Tom Hyland ‘“What have I become?”‘ Inside Story, 14 December 2017 A review of – and a look at the politics behind – Chris Masters’ just published book No Front Line: Australian Special Forces at War in Afghanistan. Hyland notes…
Patience, Allan: Confecting a new China hysteria
Allan Patience ‘Confecting a new China hysteria‘, Pearls and Irritations, 12 December 2017 Australia’s diplomacy with its Asian neighbours and contenders has always been awkward. In a similar manner to Britain’s awkward partnering with Europe, so Australia is Asia’s awkward…
Bongiorno, Frank: A nursery of unconventional ideas – sex radicalism in Australia
Frank Bongiorno ‘A nursery of unconventional ideas – sex radicalism in Australia‘, The Conversation, 11 December 2017 Honest History’s president and ANU professor, Frank Bongiorno, presents a historical smorgasbord of sex pioneers from William Chidley to Benjamin Law, via Germaine…
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Molony, John: Captain James Cook: Claiming the Great South Land
John Molony Captain James Cook: Claiming the Great South Land, Connor Court, Brisbane, 2016 In a unique and compelling matching of Cook’s journal entries with the journals of others on the voyage, including Joseph Banks, Sydney Parkinson and James Matra,…
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Troughton, Geoffrey, ed.: Saints and Stirrers: Christianity, Conflict and Peacemaking in New Zealand, 1814-1945
Geoffrey Troughton, ed. Saints and Stirrers: Christianity, Conflict and Peacemaking in New Zealand, 1814-1945, Victoria University Press, Wellington, 2017 New Zealanders, while generally peaceable and tolerant people, have seldom shied away from war. Even in the current era, Anzac Day…
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Newton, Douglas: First World War centenaries that really matter are looming
Douglas Newton ‘First World War Centenaries that really matter are looming‘, Pearls and Irritations, 30 November 2017 Centenary moments of huge significance are upon us: the centenary of the so-called “Lansdowne Peace Letter” of 29 November 1917, and the centenary…
Bolton, Geoffrey: The Gluckman Affair 1960: a bystander’s view
Geoffrey Bolton ‘The Gluckman Affair 1960: a bystander’s view‘, Labour History Canberra, 16 November 2017 Max Gluckman (makinganthropologypublic) John Myrtle, Honest History volunteer, author of our Online Gems, retired librarian and facilitator of this article’s republication explains its provenance: In…
Farhart, Claudia: Give Peace a Chance
Claudia Farhart Give Peace a Chance, YouTube, 6 November 2017 A 50 minute documentary featuring interviews with Australian protesters against conscription and against the Vietnam War, interspersed with comments from academics and archival film. The interviews were collected by Larry…
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Black Inc.: The Wisdom of Oz: Australian Aphorisms from the Profound to the Profane
Black Inc. The Wisdom of Oz: Australian Aphorisms from the Profound to the Profane, Black Inc., Melbourne, 2017 A little book about truth, in a world defined by insidious lies. The Wisdom of Oz presents the finest pearls of wisdom from…
Bongiorno, Frank: Historical constructions of knowledge: Pymble Ladies College address
Frank Bongiorno ‘Historical constructions of knowledge: Pymble Ladies College address, 12 September 2017‘ This address was delivered to History Extension students from Pymble and other schools. (Honest History representatives do these engagements frequently: contact admin@honesthistory.net.au to discuss possibilities.) All documents,…
McCormack, Matthew: Historians and Twitter
Matthew McCormack ‘Historians and Twitter‘, Twitter/History at Northampton blog, 20 November 2017 This is a first for Honest History – turning a Tweet into a post – but it is done gladly because Matthew McCormack up there at the University…
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