The Australian New Guinea Administrative Unit (ANGAU) was a civil administration of

Territory of Papua The Territory of Papua comprised the southeastern quarter of the island of New Guinea from 1883 to 1975. In 1883, the Government of Queensland annexed this territory for the British Empire. The United Kingdom Government refused to ratify the a ...

and the Mandated

Territory of New Guinea The Territory of New Guinea was an Australian-administered United Nations trust territory on the island of New Guinea from 1914 until 1975. In 1949, the Territory and the Territory of Papua were established in an administrative union by the na ...

formed on 21 March 1942 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The civil administration of both Papua and the Mandated Territory of New Guinea were replaced by an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal 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 (CA), wh ...

military government and came under the control of ANGAU from February 1942 until the end of World War II. Civil officers from both Papua and the Mandated Territory of New Guinea were posted to ANGAU based in

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...

. ANGAU undertook civil tasks of maintaining law and medical services in areas not occupied by the

Imperial Japanese The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...

and was responsible to

New Guinea Force New Guinea Force was a military command unit for Australian, United States and native troops from the Territories of Papua and New Guinea serving in the New Guinea campaign during World War II. Formed in April 1942, when the Australian First Arm ...

. The major responsibility of the unit was to organize the resources of land and labour for the war effort. ANGAU was also responsible for recruiting, organising and supervising local labour for the Australian and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

armed forces in New Guinea included rehabilitation of the local inhabitants in reoccupied areas. It was also responsible for the administration of the

Pacific Islands Regiment The Royal Pacific Islands Regiment (RPIR) is an infantry regiment of the Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF). The regiment is descended from the Australian Army infantry battalions formed from native soldiers and Australian officers and non-c ...

. The ANGAU officers and their New Guinean carriers, labourers, scouts, guides and police were highly regarded by the

and

Australian military The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of the Commonwealth of Australia and its national interests. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Forc ...

. After the end of World War II, ANGAU was abolished and was replaced under the Papua New Guinea Provisional Administration Act (1945–46) by the combined government of Papua and Australian New Guinea.

External links

{{Commons category, Australian New Guinea Administrative Unit
Australian New Guinea Administrative Unit

The Royal Papua and New Guinea Constabulary: A Pictorial History Web Page 1885-1975
Australia–Papua New Guinea relations History of Papua New Guinea Government of Papua New Guinea Territory of Papua Territory of New Guinea Papua New Guinea in World War II Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 1942 in Papua New Guinea 1948 in Papua New Guinea

Further reading

External links