Australian Archives

From Captain Cook to the First Fleet: how Botany Bay was chosen over Africa as a new British penal colony

by History Guild | Sep 17, 2025 | Military History | 0

Reading time: 7 minutes
After Captain Cook’s Endeavour voyage in 1770, the east coast of Australia was drawn on European maps of the globe for the first time. Yet, in terms of European contact with the continent, there was an 18-year lull in between Cook’s 1770 landings and the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788.

How the Great War shaped the foundations of Australia’s future

by History Guild | Sep 10, 2025 | Military History, Political and Economic History, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 9 minutes
It is striking that 2015 is the 110th anniversary of the Gallipoli offensive, the 80th anniversary of end of the Second World War in the Pacific, and the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. This is a good time to reflect not only on the actions of those wars, but on their consequences and their enduring legacies.

World War I in Broken Hill: a Turkish-Inspired Attack on Australia’s Home Soil

by History Guild | Aug 27, 2025 | Military History | 0

Reading time: 14 minutes From August 1914 to November 1918, over 416,000 men served in Australian...

Full Program Announced! Fighting to the Finish: Australia in 1945 – Strategy, Victory and Legacy Conference, Melbourne. Book Now.

by History Guild | Aug 17, 2025 | Military History | 0

Military History & Heritage Victoria is excited to announce that tickets are now on sale for...

Open Letter to the Prime Minister: Restoring Equity in Higher Education

by History Guild | Aug 6, 2025 | Advocacy, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 10 minutes The following Open Letter was sent by the Australian Historical...

The story of Nancy Wake

by History Guild | Aug 4, 2025 | Military History, Political and Economic History | 0

Reading time: 7 minutes
Nancy Wake (1912–2011) was an agent for the Special Operations Executive and the most wanted woman in France during the Second World War. Dubbed the ‘White Mouse’ by the Nazis, she was the one who always got away.

On a Wing and a Prayer – Vimy to Australia 1919-2019

by History Guild | Jul 9, 2025 | Military History, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 4 minutes On this day 100 years ago, G-EAOU, a converted World War I...

Young people remain ill-equipped to participate in Australian democracy

by History Guild | Jun 30, 2025 | Political and Economic History | 0

Reading time: 5 minutes Despite many young Australians having a deep interest in political issues,...

Menzies’ call on Vietnam changed Australia’s course

by History Guild | Jun 23, 2025 | Military History, Political and Economic History | 0

Reading time: 4 minutes
In 1965, Australia was involved in two crises in Southeast Asia, one in Vietnam and the other in Indonesia. The connection between the two was vital to Menzies’ decision to increase our involvement in Vietnam. Having already committed a battalion to Malaysia to support resistance to the Konfrontasi policy of Indonesia’s Sukarno government, the logical next step for Menzies was to look to Vietnam. He did this with the support of his Cold War warrior and minister for external affairs, Paul Hasluck. They decided to send an Australian battalion to South Vietnam, partly to ensure continued American interest in the region.