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16th Battalion (Australia)
The 16th Battalion, Royal Western Australia Regiment (16 RWAR) is an Australian Army reserve infantry battalion located in Western Australia and one of the two battalions of the Royal Western Australia Regiment. The battalion was first formed during the First World War, during which it fought during the Gallipoli Campaign and on the Western Front in France and Belgium as part of the Australian Imperial Force. It was re-formed as a part-time unit in Western Australia during the inter-war years, and served in the New Britain Campaign against the Japanese during the Second World War. In the post war years, the battalion became part of the Royal Western Australia Regiment and currently forms part of the 13th Brigade. History First World War The 16th Battalion was originally raised in September 1914 as part of the all volunteer Australian Imperial Force (AIF), which was raised for overseas service during the First World War. Assigned to the 4th Brigade, the battalion drew the ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Australia), Chief of Army (CA), who is subordinate to the Chief of the Defence Force (Australia), Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) who commands the ADF. The CA is also directly responsible to the Minister of Defence (Australia), Minister for Defence, with the Department of Defence (Australia), Department of Defence administering the ADF and the Army. Formed in 1901, as the Commonwealth Military Forces, through the amalgamation of the colonial forces of Australia following the Federation of Australia. Although Australian soldiers have been involved in a number of minor and major conflicts throughout Australia's history, only during the Second World War has Australian territory come under direct attack. The Australian Army was initially composed a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
48th Battalion (Australia)
The 48th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally raised in 1916 for service during World War I and took part in the fighting in the trenches of the Western Front in France and Belgium, before being disbanded in early 1919. After the war, the battalion was re-raised as a part-time unit based initially in Victoria and later in South Australia. In 1930 it was amalgamated with the 43rd Battalion and remained so until late 1939, subsequently being linked with the 10th Battalion in 1942. The battalion did not see combat during World War II, and after the war was re-raised as an amalgamated unit, again with the 43rd Battalion, in 1952. They remained linked until 1960 when the 43rd/48th Battalion was subsumed by the Royal South Australia Regiment. History World War I The 48th Battalion was raised in Egypt on 16 March 1916 as part of the reorganisation and expansion of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) following the Gallipoli campaign. This wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Conscription In Australia
Conscription in Australia, also called mandatory military service or National Service, has a controversial history dating back to the first years of nationhood. Military conscription was abolished by Australian law in 1972. Australia currently has provisions for conscription, only during times of war if it is authorised by the governor-general and approved within 90 days by both houses of Parliament, as outlined in Part IV of the Defence Act 1903. Therefore, given the Governor-General acts upon advice of the federal government, conscription could be enacted by parliament even without bipartisan support, as long as the Bill is not blocked by the Senate. Universal Training Scheme In 1909, the government of Prime Minister Alfred Deakin introduced legislation for a form of conscription for boys from 12 to 14 years of age and for youths from 18 to 20 years of age for home defence. The legislation, which passed with the combined support of the Protectionist Party and the Australian La ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Axford
Thomas Leslie "Jack" Axford, (18 June 1894 – 11 October 1983) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Early life Thomas Axford was born on 18 June 1894 at Carrieton in South Australia. His father was an auctioneer, originally from Tasmania. When Axford was two years old, the family moved to Western Australia, settling in Coolgardie. Educated at Coolgardie Primary School, he worked at the Boulder City Brewery after completing his schooling.Edgar, 2007, pp. 45–46 In 1912, he enlisted in the 84th Infantry (Goldfields Regiment) of the Citizen Military Forces.The AIF Project www.aif.adfa.edu.au. Retrieved on 9 September 2009. First World War In July 1915, at the age of 21, Axford joine ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dominic McCarthy
Lawrence Dominic McCarthy, VC (21 January 1892 – 25 May 1975) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Early life Lawrence Dominic McCarthy was born in York, Western Australia, on 21 January 1892. The son of Florence McCarthy of Cork, Ireland, and his wife Anne (née Sherry), he was orphaned at a young age and was brought up in Clontarf Orphanage in Perth and educated in Catholic schools. After completing his schooling, from the age of 13 he worked on a farm as an apprentice at Jennacubbine, near Northam. Later, he served with the 18th Light Horse, a Militia unit, for two and a half years before moving to Lion Mill, Perth. He subsequently worked as a contractor sawmiller, losing three fingers on his left hand in an accident. First World War Gallipoli and the Western Front McCarthy was initially rejected due to his injuries when he attempted to join ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Axford
Thomas Leslie "Jack" Axford, (18 June 1894 – 11 October 1983) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Early life Thomas Axford was born on 18 June 1894 at Carrieton in South Australia. His father was an auctioneer, originally from Tasmania. When Axford was two years old, the family moved to Western Australia, settling in Coolgardie. Educated at Coolgardie Primary School, he worked at the Boulder City Brewery after completing his schooling.Edgar, 2007, pp. 45–46 In 1912, he enlisted in the 84th Infantry (Goldfields Regiment) of the Citizen Military Forces.The AIF Project www.aif.adfa.edu.au. Retrieved on 9 September 2009. First World War In July 1915, at the age of 21, Axford join ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martin O'Meara
Martin O'Meara, VC (6 November 1885 – 20 December 1935) was an Irish-born Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Early life O'Meara was born at Lorrha, County Tipperary. He spent his early years in County Tipperary and by 1911 had moved to County Kilkenny where he was working as a wood cutter. He arrived in South Australia in 1912, where he initially worked as a labourer at Wild Horse Plains. He then travelled to Port Augusta where he worked as a labourer on railway construction projects, and then to the McLaren Vale area south of Adelaide where he was, again, a railway construction worker. He travelled to Western Australia in 1914 and worked as a labourer in the Pinjarra area before making his way to the Collie area. He was working as a sleeper cutter near Collie before enlisting in the Australian Imperial Force on 19 August 1915. First World War Assign ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously awarded by countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, most of which have established their own honours systems and no longer recommend British honours. It may be awarded to a person of any military rank in any service and to civilians under military command. No civilian has received the award since 1879. Since the first awards were presented by Queen Victoria in 1857, two-thirds of all awards have been personally presented by the British monarch. The investitures are usually held at Buckingham Palace. The VC was introduced on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to honour acts of valour during the Crimean War. Since then, the medal has been awarded 1,358 times to 1,355 individual recipients. Only 15 medals, of which 11 to members of the Britis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hundred Days Offensive
The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, the Allies pushed the Central Powers back, undoing their gains from the German spring offensive. The Germans retreated to the Hindenburg Line, but the Allies broke through the line with a series of victories, starting with the Battle of St Quentin Canal on 29 September. The offensive, together with a German Revolution of 1918–19, revolution breaking out in Germany, led to the Armistice of 11 November 1918 which ended the war with an Allied victory. The term "Hundred Days Offensive" does not refer to a battle or strategy, but rather the rapid series of Allied victories against which the German Army (German Empire), German Army had no reply. Background The German spring offensive of the German Army (Ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Hamel
The Battle of Hamel was a successful attack by Australian Army and US Army infantry, supported by British tanks, against German positions in and around the town of Le Hamel, in northern France, during World War I. The attack was planned and commanded by Lieutenant General John Monash, commander of the Australian Corps, and took place on 4 July 1918. Many of the tactics employed, such as the use of combined arms, illustrated the evolution of military tactics, from the massed attacks mounted earlier in the war. All of the Allies' objectives were achieved within 93 minutes, just three minutes longer than Monash's calculated battle time. To give the newly arrived American Expeditionary Force (AEF) combat experience, the five Australian infantry brigades involved were augmented by 10 companies from US Army battalions. However, six of these US infantry companies were withdrawn from the front line before seeing action. Hamel was the first time during World War I that elements of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Bullecourt
The Battle of Arras (also known as the Second Battle of Arras) was a British offensive on the Western Front during the First World War. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British troops attacked German defences near the French city of Arras on the Western Front. The British achieved the longest advance since trench warfare had begun, surpassing the record set by the French Sixth Army on 1 July 1916. The British advance slowed in the next few days and the German defence recovered. The battle became a costly stalemate for both sides and by the end of the battle, the British Third Army and the First Army had suffered about 160,000 casualties and the German 6th Army about 125,000. For much of the war, the opposing armies on the Western Front were at stalemate, with a continuous line of trenches from the Belgian coast to the Swiss border. The Allied objective from early 1915 was to break through the German defences into the open ground beyond and engage the numerically inferior Germa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
