text:
7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
Australian Army infantry battalion
For other uses, see 7th Battalion (Australia) and 2/7th Battalion (Australia).
Badge of the Royal Australian Regiment
Light infantry
1st Brigade
RAAF Base Edinburgh, Adelaide
Nickname(s)
The Pigs
Porky Seven[1]
Duty First
Quick – Australaise (band); Cock o' the North (pipes and drums)
Slow – My Home[2]
Mascot(s)
Pig (unofficial)[1]
Battle of Suoi Chau Pha
Operation Coburg
Lieutenant Colonel Paul Graham, DSM
Colonel-in-Chief
HM The Queen (Royal Australian Infantry Corps)
Unit Colour Patch
Gordon (pipes and drums)
The 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (7 RAR) is a regular infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally raised in 1965 as part of Australia's commitment to the Vietnam War and it eventually served two tours in Vietnam in 1967 and 1971. In 1973, following Australia's withdrawal from the conflict, the battalion was amalgamated with the 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment to form the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (5/7 RAR).
These two units remained linked until 2007, during which time they served together in the mechanised infantry role in East Timor and Iraq. In December 2006 – early January 2007, 5/7 RAR was delinked and 7 RAR was re-raised. In January 2009, 7 RAR achieved operational status, a year ahead of schedule; the battalion deployed to Afghanistan as part of Operation Slipper in 2008–09 and 2012–13. Following its return in 2013 it was converted into a standard infantry battalion, it currently forms part of the 1st Brigade and is based at RAAF Base Edinburgh in Adelaide.
1.2 Vietnam
1.2.1 First tour
1.2.2 Second tour
1.3 Linking with the 5th Battalion
1.4 Mechanisation
1.5 Re-raised
1.6 Afghanistan
1.6.1 Reconstruction Task Force – 1
1.6.2 Mentoring & Reconstruction Task Force – 1
1.6.3 Advisor Task Force – 1
1.7 Transition to Standard Infantry Battalion and current composition
1.8 Iraq
1.8.1 Task Group Taji – Rotation 3
2 Customs and traditions
2.1 The Pig
2.2 Pipes and Drums
2.3 The CO's Table
2.4 Graham Cornes Football Match
3 Battle honours
4 Alliances
6 Regimental Sergeant Majors
In late 1964, the South Vietnamese government requested increased military assistance from Australia to help stop the spread of communism in Vietnam.[3] Following talks with the United States in early 1965, the Australian government decided to increase its commitment to the war in Vietnam, offering to send an infantry battalion to bolster the team of advisors that had been in South Vietnam since 1962.[4] In order to meet this requirement, the decision was made to expand the Royal Australian Regiment, the Australian Army's regular infantry force, to nine battalions by 1965, using experienced regulars and national servicemen.[5]
As a part of this expansion, the 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, was raised on 1 September 1965 at Puckapunyal in Victoria, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Eric Smith;[6] the battalion drew the majority of its experienced personnel from the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR), which had been serving in Malaysia as part of Australia's involvement in the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation. The rest of 7 RAR's personnel were national serviceman from the second intake.[2] Due to the large numbers of national servicemen that the battalion received from the outset, upon formation 7 RAR's average age was estimated at only 22 years. A number of these national servicemen went on to command sections as non commissioned officers or platoons as newly commissioned subalterns.[7] At this time the battalion adopted a pig as its mascot, following an observation by the commanding officer about the state of the soldiers' mess at Puckapunyal.[7]
In June 1966, after the battalion had completed a series of intensive training exercises, 7 RAR was considered operationally deployable. At this time, 100 men were transferred from the battalion to units serving in Vietnam, to provide reinforcements.[6] After this, further training was undertaken at the Jungle Training Centre at Canungra, Queensland and later in the year, 7 RAR took part in "Exercise Barra Winga" around Shoalwater Bay.[7]
Vietnam[edit]
First tour[edit]
7 RAR soldiers preparing to board US Army helicopters at the conclusion of an operation in August 1967
In April 1967, 7 RAR embarked upon HMAS Sydney, bound for South Vietnam. Upon arrival they relieved the 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (5 RAR). By this time, the single Australian battalion that had originally been committed had been replaced by the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF), consisting of two infantry battalions and various supporting units, based in Phuoc Tuy Province.[8] Upon arrival the battalion joined the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (6 RAR) at 1 ATF's base at Nui Dat, however, the following month 6 RAR was replaced by the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (2 RAR) and it was with 2 RAR that the battalion served out its first year-long tour of duty in South Vietnam.[7]
Over the course of those 12 months, 7 RAR took part in 26 battalion-level operations, as well as numerous small unit actions.[9][Note 1] Initially, 7 RAR undertook security operations around Nui Dat as well as carrying out a few search and destroy taskings at a local level, however, their first major operation saw them take up a blocking position near Xuyen Moc in support of US and South Vietnamese forces who advanced through the May Tao mountains in an effort to locate the Viet Cong 275th Regiment and drive them towards 7 RAR's position. Ultimately, however, this operation failed as the VC unit was not located.[10] In August 1967 the battalion was tasked to undertake an independent search and destroy operation to the north-west of Nui Dat, in the Hat Dich area; this operation, codenamed Operation Ballarat, led to the Battle of Suoi Chau Pha when 'A' Company, under Major Ewart O'Donnell fought an encounter battle with a reinforced Viet Cong company from the 3rd Battalion, 274th Regiment. Five Australians were killed during the fighting, while another died of wounds later, and 19 others were wounded, it is believed that the Viet Cong suffered over 200 casualties in the battle, largely from supporting artillery and mortars.[11]
7 RAR tracker dogs and their handlers in South Vietnam, 1967
Throughout August and September 7 RAR took part in resettlement operations around Xa Bang. Later in September, the battalion lost a large number of its national servicemen who, having completed their two-year obligation, were rotated back to Australia for discharge; the following month they took part in an Australian, US and South Vietnamese operation called Santa Fe which was launched in the May Tao Secret Zone in an attempt to find the Viet Cong's 5th Division. After this they undertook search and destroy operations around Nui Dat, however contact with the Viet Cong during this time was limited.[12] In December 1967, 1 ATF was expanded to a brigade-group with the arrival of a third infantry battalion, 3 RAR, and a quantity of Centurion tanks.[13] Between 24 January and 1 March 1968, 7 RAR deployed to Bien Hoa–Long Khanh border along with 2 RAR and subsequently took part in Operation Coburg during the Tet Offensive.[14]
On 9 April 1968, 7 RAR was relieved by 1 RAR and subsequently rotated back to Australia. Upon arrival in Sydney, the battalion was welcomed home by a large crowd and conducted a march through the streets. Throughout their deployment over 1,180 men had served in the battalion's ranks, of whom 16 had been killed and 124 wounded.[9] Members of the battalion received the following decorations: one Distinguished Service Order (DSO), two Members of Order of the British Empire (MBEs), two Military Crosses (MCs), two Distinguished Conduct Medals (DCMs), three Military Medals (MMs) and 14 Mentions in Despatches (MIDs).[14]
Second tour[edit]
Following 7 RAR's return to Australia it was based at Finschhafen Lines, at Holsworthy, New South Wales, it was there, on 6 October 1968, that the battalion finally received its Queen's and Regimental Colours in a ceremony presided over by the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Roden Cutler.[2] Following this the battalion undertook further training in preparation for its second tour of duty in South Vietnam, which came in early 1970, they arrived in country in February under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Ronald Grey, replacing 5 RAR.[15] They arrived amidst an effort to pacify Phuoc Tuy; this effort involved 7 RAR in almost continuous operations, in an attempt to keep the Viet Cong off balance and separate them from the civilian population.[14] During April and May 1970, 7 RAR took part in the task force level Operation Concrete which took place around Xuyen Moc with the aim of destroying the Viet Cong's D445 Battalion.[16]
The battalion's role in Concrete was to operate in the Tan Ru region, carrying out a reconnaissance-in-force followed by ambush operations. Only three companies were available for wider operations, however, as 'C' Company was detached to provide training to the ARVN 18th Division, although it undertook local patrols and ambushes. Instead of being inserted by helicopter, the decision was made for the companies to deploy on foot and by Armoured Personnel Carrier.[17] On 20 April, one of 'B' Company's platoons contacted a small Viet Cong force and engaged them in a brief firefight that left one VC dead. Two days later, in concert with artillery and Centurion tanks, 'B' Company was involved in capturing a bunker complex.[17]
A memorial plaque for members of 7 RAR killed in Vietnam 1967–68 and 1970–71. Shown at Regimental Square, Sydney, New South Wales.
Throughout June 1970 and February 1971, 1 ATF undertook a four-phased pacification operation known as Cung Chung in concert with South Vietnamese forces; this involved extensive patrolling, ambush and cordon and search operations.[2] During one such operation on the night of 30 December 1970 Headquarters 'B' Company, 7 RAR and four APCs from 3rd Cavalry Regiment were contacted by a large group of Viet Cong; the communists assaulted the Australians four times before being repelled by heavy fire from the M113s. The following morning a clearing patrol found 21 bodies and a large quantity of weapons and ammunition. Intelligence later assessed that a company from D445 Provincial Mobile Battalion had been destroyed.[18]
On 25 February 1971, 3 RAR relieved 7 RAR, and the battalion returned to Sydney, arriving there on 10 March 1971;[2] this was the battalion's last tour of Vietnam. For its second tour, members of 7 RAR received the following decorations: one DSO, two MBEs, two MCs, two MMs, 5 MIDs and one British Empire Medal.[14] Casualties included 17 killed and 89 wounded, many of them caused by mines lifted by the Viet Cong from the controversial barrier minefield laid previously by the Australians at Dat Do.[19] Over the course of its two deployments, over 2,400 men served with 7 RAR of which 33 were killed and 220 wounded.[1]
Linking with the 5th Battalion[edit]
Main article: 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
Upon return to Australia the battalion commenced the process of reforming under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Ian Mackay, in preparation for an expected third tour of South Vietnam in mid-1972.[20] However, in December 1971, 1 ATF was withdrawn from Vietnam as part of a phased withdrawal of Australian personnel from the country;[21] this decision, coupled with the subsequent abolition of conscription following the election of the Whitlam government and a shift in Australian defence policy towards an emphasis on the defence of mainland Australia, resulted in the need to reduce the size of the Australian Army. In order to implement this it was decided to amalgamate a number of infantry battalions. 7 RAR was one of these, and on 3 December 1973 the battalion was linked with 5 RAR to form the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment at a ceremony conducted at Tobruk Lines, Holsworthy.[2] The battalion's last commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Paul Greenhalgh, who had assumed command of 7 RAR on 19 March 1973, became the first commanding officer of the new battalion.[22]
Mechanisation[edit]
The M113 armoured personnel carrier was first introduced in 1976, and 5/7 RAR officially adopted the "mechanised" suffix in June 1984 and has been a significant part of the battalion's heritage ever since;[23] the unit deployed on operational service with the vehicles during INTERFET in East Timor in 1999 and maintained a QRF presence with M113s in Timor-Leste from 2006–09. The most recent M113AS4 Armoured Personnel Carriers were introduced on 15 November 2007; the ceremonial handover took place at Robertson Barracks, where one of the vehicles on display was fitted with extra armour, spall curtains and track shrouds.[24]
Re-raised[edit]
A 7RAR soldier on exercise at Shoalwater Bay 2011
In 2006, the Australian prime minister, John Howard, announced that there would be an expansion of the Australian regular infantry by two battalions, as part of the Hardened and Networked Army plan; as part of this, a second mechanised infantry battalion was raised by de-linking 5/7 RAR to become the 5th Battalion and 7th Battalion. On 5 December 2006, the 5th/7th Battalion was formally de-linked, restoring the 7th Battalion to the order of battle.[25]
The battalion contributed a mechanised platoon to two rotations of the ANZAC Battle Group deployment to Timor in 2007 and 2008 as part of Operation Astute.[26] In 2008–09, elements of the battalion deployed to Afghanistan as part of Operation Slipper, forming the basis for the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force (MRTF-1).[27] One member of the battalion was killed in action during an engagement near Kakarak on 16 March 2009.[28][29][30]
At the same time, in Australia, the battalion began receiving new intakes of soldiers and undertook an intensive training program which saw the battalion certified as "operationally deployable" in January 2009, well before the planned date of 2010.[31] 7 RAR subsequently relocated to Horseshoe Lines at RAAF Base Edinburgh near Adelaide in South Australia in 2010–11.[32][33]
Afghanistan[edit]
Reconstruction Task Force – 1[edit]
In late 2006, the Darwin-based 5/7 RAR deployed to Afghanistan as part of Reconstruction Task Force 1, with the 1st Combat Engineer Regiment with protective elements from the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment and 2nd Cavalry Regiment;[34] the addition this infantry based combat team provided by the newly re-raised 7 RAR allowed the influence of RTF 1 to expand into key areas significant distances away from Forward Operating Base (FOB) Davis. With Bushmaster PMVs and Light Armoured Vehicles, 1 RTF was able to secure the job sites incorporated into its expanded role;[35] the Reconstruction Task Force was tasked with reconstruction and the improvement of provincial infrastructure (schools, hospitals, bridges etc.) and community-based projects to assist the Afghan Government in securing a future for its people.[35] The task force also provided trade training to the local population and military engineering training to the Afghan National Army.[36]
Mentoring & Reconstruction Task Force – 1[edit]
Prior to October 2008, the Australian Defence Force's commitment to Operation Slipper in Afghanistan was purely focused on the rebuilding efforts of the reconstruction force and the combat role of the Special Operations Task Group (SOTG). However, with the deployment of MRTF-1 in 2008–09 it saw a change in mission focus to the infantry's previous role during the RTF. MRTF-1 saw the role of the infantry in Afghanistan expand with the inclusion of a mentoring component provided by the first Operational and Mentor Liaison Team (OMLT); the focus of the OMLT during 7 RAR's deployment for MRTF-1 was similar to that of the Australian Army Training Team (AATT-V) in Vietnam, with a focus on mentoring the ANA 2nd Kandak, and also enhancing the tactical employment of the battalion against the Taliban. The MRTF-1 battle group (BG) was composed of a variety of different elements, however the core of the BG and its hierarchy were members from 7 RAR; the 7 RAR BG consisted of Combat Team Tusk (B Company from 7 RAR), 1st Field Squadron and a Combat Service Support Team (CSST).[37] Combat Team Tusk consisted of 7 RAR infantrymen, Combat Engineers, ASLAVs, Mortars (5 RAR) and Snipers (1 RAR).[38] During the course of its deployment to Afghanistan, members of 7 RAR received the following decorations: one Distinguished Service Cross, three Medals for Gallantry, four Distinguished Service Medals, one Conspicuous Service Medal, three Commendations for Gallantry, one Medal of the Order of Australia, two Commendations for Distinguished Service, and one United States Army Commendation Medal.[39]
Advisor Task Force – 1[edit]
The 7th Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment Task Group (7 RAR Task Group) handed over the role of advising the Afghan National Army's (ANA) 4th Brigade to the 2nd Cavalry Regiment Task Group (2 CAV Task Group) on 15 June 2013. 7 RAR had been deployed from November 2012 to June 2013.[40]
Through the Afghan winter and into the traditional summer fighting season, 7 RAR Task Group supported the 4th ANA Brigade in its conduct of more than 13 independent brigade-level operations, maintaining pressure on the insurgency. Throughout the deployment ATF 1 continued to provide force protection support to Australian and International Security Assistance Force elements in Uruzgan. ATF 1 also supported the transition of responsibility for security to Afghan forces in the province.[41]
A further 7 RAR contingent provided the infantry element to Advisor Task Group – 2. ATF-2 was commanded by Commanding Officer 2 CAV Task Group Lieutenant Colonel Michael Bye. Taking over in June 2013, ATF-2 continued to provide force protection support to Australian and International Security Assistance Force elements in Uruzgan and supported the process of security transition in the province, which saw governance and security transition to the Afghan people. 7 RAR personnel were primarily responsible for force protection, including quick reaction forces. ATF-2 shifted its mission focus, gradually reducing advisory support as the Afghan National Army transitioned to independence in their Brigade Headquarters, the Combat Service Support Kandak (Battalion) and the Garrison Support Unit. ATF-2 served with the last formed body of Australian Defence Force personnel to serve in Uruzgan province, returning to Australia in February 2014.[42]
Transition to Standard Infantry Battalion and current composition[edit]
The battalion was de-mechanised in 2013 to become a dismounted infantry battalion under Plan Beersheba;[43] this involved the loss of all M113 AS4 APCs and the Battalion is now reliant on 1 Brigade assets for transport. The battalions' composition is referred to as the Standard Infantry Battalion (SIB) format and is currently:[44]
Battalion Headquarters.
Three Rifle Companies (Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie).
Support Company.
Administration Company.
Iraq[edit]
Task Group Taji – Rotation 3[edit]
During May 2016, elements of 7 RAR deployed to Iraq as part of Task Group Taji – Rotation 3 (TGT-3), taking over from 8/9 RAR.[45] TGT-3 was a combined Australian-New Zealand force located at the Taji Military Complex northwest of Baghdad. TG Taji supports an international effort to train and build the capacity of regular Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) to defeat Islamic State and secure Iraq; the Task Group consisted of around 300 ADF personnel, alongside around 110 New Zealand Defence Force personnel, comprising trainers, force protection, support and command elements.[46] The bulk of Australian personnel were from 7 RAR.[45]
TGT-3 delivered combat training, focusing on basic warfighting skills like training on US weapons and equipment, marksmanship, urban TTPs, explosive hazards awareness, care of the battle casualty and fire and movement. Specialist training included mortars, signals, snipers and reconnaissance; as of October 2016, TGT-3 had trained approximately 6,000 Iraqi Army soldiers, many of whom took part in the Battle of Mosul. During TGT-3's rotation, the Australian Government changed its policy regarding where and whom Australian forces are authorised to train in Iraq. Not only are Australian forces permitted to train Iraqi Army, but Iraqi Security Forces in general, including Federal Police at various sites including the Taji Military Complex and other secure Coalition bases in Iraq.[47]
Customs and traditions[edit]
7 RAR has developed many unique customs and traditions throughout its history. Some aspects of this identity are presented below.
The Pig[edit]
The 7 RAR mascot and nickname, "the Pigs", has a long and celebrated history within the battalion. According to Corporal Roy Savage:
The single men of 3 RAR were sent to Puckapunyal to form a new battalion, 7 RAR. I arrived there on 11th November 1965. At first there were only regular soldiers. We used to keep the boozer open all weekend having the cooks bring our meals there. Anyway, on my second week there the new CO (Colonel Eric Smith) decided to inspect his new battalion area on a Sunday, he immediately closed the boozer. The next day he called a muster parade of the whole battalion and commenced to tell us what he thought of us. Half way through his speech he said and I quote, 'You are nothing but a mob of pigs'. Then from the back rank someone called out 'oink oink'. From that time onwards we became the Pig Battalion.[48]
Pipes and Drums[edit]
In 1969, following the formation of the Australian Army Band Corps, infantry units serving in Vietnam found themselves without stretcher bearers, who tended to come from unit bands. To solve this problem, the Army directed the regular battalions of the Royal Australian Regiment to form new bands; to avoid competing directly with the new band corps, it was decided that these new bands would be either pipes and drums, bugle and drums or fife and drums; the 7th Battalion decided to form a pipe band. This was then passed to the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment on its formation in 1973;[49] the marches of each sub-unit are as follows:[2]
Battalion quick march – "Australaise"
Battalion slow march – "Cock o' The North"
Battalion Headquarters – "Steamboat"
A Company – "The Black Bear"
B Company – "Nut Brown Maiden"
C Company – "The Glendarvel Highlanders"
Support Company – "Bonnie Dundee"
Administration Company – "the Muckin O' Geordie's Brye"
The CO's Table[edit]
During Operation Santa Fe in October and November 1967, 7th Battalion conducted a search and destroy task in the north east of Phouc Tuy Province. During the reorganisation of one part of the battle, a VC bed was discovered by members of the Battalion. Subsequently, the CO, Lieutenant Colonel Eric Smith, decided that the bed would be best put to use as a map table on which to plot his callsigns from his command post.[50][page needed] The table currently resides on the ground floor of 7RAR battalion headquarters, in Adelaide.[citation needed]
Graham Cornes Football Match[edit]
Graham Cornes OAM (born 31 March 1948 in Melbourne, Victoria) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach, as well as a media personality. Graham Cornes is also a Vietnam veteran, having served in Vietnam as a soldier with 7 RAR in 1968. An annual football match is played between 7 RAR and 16th Air Land Regiment for the Graham Cornes trophy, in recognition of his service to the battalion, AFL, and the nation.[51]
Battle honours[edit]
7 RAR currently holds the following battle honours:
Bien-Hoa, Vietnam (1967–68) and Vietnam (1970–71).[14]
Alliances[edit]
United Kingdom – The Highlanders.[2]
The following officers commanded 7 RAR:[52]
Lieutenant Colonel E.H. Smith, DSO (1 September 1965 – 24 November 1968)
Lieutenant Colonel R.A. Grey, DSO (25 November 1968 – 14 May 1971)
Major J.J. Farry (15 May 1971 – 18 July 1971)
Lieutenant Colonel I.B. Mackay (19 July 1971 – 18 March 1973)
Lieutenant Colonel P.N. Greenhalgh, AM (19 March 1973 – 2 December 1973)
Lieutenant Colonel S. Gabriel, DSC (3 December 2006 – December 2009)
Lieutenant Colonel M. Garraway, AM (December 2009 – December 2012)
Lieutenant Colonel M. Wells, DSC (December 2012 – 8 December 2014)
Lieutenant Colonel D. McCammon, DSM (8 December 2014 – January 2017)
Lieutenant Colonel P.W. Graham, DSM (January 2017 – Present)
Regimental Sergeant Majors[edit]
The following soldiers served as RSM of 7 RAR:[53]
Warrant Officer Class One H.B. Clively (10 September 1965 – 21 August 1966)
Warrant Officer Class One A.P. Thompson, MBE (1966–1968)
Warrant Officer Class One R.A. Bandy, MBE (1968–1970)
Warrant Officer Class One D. Muir (1970–1973)
Warrant Officer Class Two B.H. Cox (22 September 1973 – 2 December 1973)
Warrant Officer Class One D.J. Allen (2007–2009)
Warrant Officer Class One R. Verrall, OAM (2010–2013)
Warrant Officer Class One M. Landy, OAM (2013–2015)
Warrant Officer Class One M. Bold (January 2016– January 2018)
Warrant Officer Class One B.F. Fawcett (January 2018 – Present)
^ There is some discrepancy about this figure amongst the sources. The Annex G to Chapter 6 of the Royal Australian Regiment Standing Orders provides the figure of 30 battalion-level operations.
^ a b c "7 RAR". Digger History. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
^ a b c d e f g h "Annex G to Chapter 6: 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment: A Brief History" (PDF). Royal Australian Regiment Standing Orders. Royal Australian Regiment. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 February 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
^ Grey 2008, p. 237
^ Grey 2008, pp. 236–237
^ a b Horner & Bou 2008, p. 152
^ a b c d Horner & Bou 2008, p. 153
^ Horner & Bou 2008, p. 191
^ a b c d e "7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment". Vietnam, 1962–1972 units. Australian War Memorial. Archived from the original on 12 March 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
^ Horner & Bou 2008, pp. 229–230
^ O'Brien 1995, pp. 233–234
^ O'Brien 1995, p. 242
^ "5th/7th Battalion (Mechanized), The Royal Australian Regiment: A Brief History". 5/7 RAR Association. Archived from the original on 26 February 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
^ "Army's latest fighting vehicle arrives at 1 Brigade" (Press release). Department of Defence. 15 November 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
^ "ANZAC Battle Group". Nautilus Institute. 24 August 2009. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
^ Ashby-Cliffe, Jane (4 September 2008). "Afghan Mentors Fired Up" (PDF). Army: The Soldiers' Newspaper (1197 ed.). p. 5. ISSN 0729-5685.
^ "Australian soldier dies in firefight with Taliban in Afghanistan". The Sydney Morning Herald. 17 March 2009. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2009.
^ Pearlman, Jonathan (18 March 2009). "Just four days with new son: soldier, 21, killed". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2009.
^ Coulthard-Clark 2010, p. 299.
^ "7 RAR Operationally Deployable Ahead of Schedule" (Press release). Department of Defence. 2 January 2009. Archived from the original on 10 May 2009. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
^ Clarke, D. (2010). "Battalion on the Move". SA Defence Business. Defence Teaming Centre. pp. 10–12.
^ Reid, Khama (21 January 2011). "Soldiers move from Darwin into Adelaide's Base Edinburgh". ABC Adelaide. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
^ Horner & Bou 2008, pp. 338–339.
^ a b "1st Reconstruction Task Force returns home". Image Gallery: April 2007. Department of Defence. 24 April 2007. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
^ Blaxland 2013, p. 261.
^ Australian Army 2012, p. xi
^ Australian Army 2012, p. 41
^ "Afghanistan Awards". 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment Association. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
^ "Defence completes multi-million dollar Uruzgan road project". Department of Defence. 18 June 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
^ "New Australian Task Group takes the lead in Afghanistan" (Press release). Department of Defence. 17 June 2013. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
^ "Darwin welcomes home last formed contingent of Defence personnel to serve in Uruzgan". Department of Defence. Commonwealth of Australia. 1 March 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
^ Informa Australia. "Lieutenant Colonel Darryl Bridgeman, Australian Army". slideshare.net. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
^ Bulletin of the Royal Australian Regiment Foundation, Issue 31 Oct 2013
^ a b "Operations Okra and Highroad Farewell Parade". Video. Department of Defence. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
^ "Task Group TAJI". Department of Defence. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
^ Faulkner, Andrew (6 September 2016). "Australian troops let off the leash in Iraq". The Australian. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
^ O'Brien 1995, p. 7
^ O'Brien 1995
^ "Porky Seven – Graham Cornes Football Match". 7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment Association. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
^ "7 RAR Association Website". Retrieved 17 March 2016.
Australian Army (2012). War in the Valleys – 7th Battalion Battle Group (MRTF-1) Afghanistan October 2008 to June 2009. Wilsonton, Queensland: Mesh Publishing. ISBN 9780646564111.
Blaxland, John (2013). The Australian Army from Whitlam to Howard. Port Melbourne: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781316284339.
Coulthard-Clark, Chris (2010). The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles (Third ed.). Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74237-335-5.
Grey, Jeffrey (2008). A Military History of Australia (3rd ed.). Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-69791-0.
Horner, David; Bou, Jean (2008). Duty First: A History of the Royal Australian Regiment (2nd ed.). Crows Nest, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74175-374-5.
O'Brien, Michael (1995). Conscripts and Regulars: With the Seventh Battalion in Vietnam. St Leonards, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86373-967-X.
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The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of the Defence Force commands the ADF, the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army; the CA is therefore subordinate to the CDF, but is directly responsible to the Minister for Defence. Although Australian soldiers have been involved in a number of minor and major conflicts throughout its history, only in World War II has Australian territory come under direct attack. Formed in March 1901, with the amalgamation of the six separate colonial military forces, the history of the Australian Army can be divided into two periods: 1901–47, when limits were set on the size of the regular Army, the vast majority of peacetime soldiers were in reserve units of the Citizens Military Force, expeditionary forces were formed to serve overseas, Post-1947, when a standing peacetime regular infantry force was formed and the CMF began to decline in importance.
During its history the Australian Army has fought in a number of major wars, including: Second Boer War, First World War, the Second World War, Korean War, Malayan Emergency, Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, Vietnam War, more in Afghanistan and Iraq. Since 1947 the Australian Army has been involved in many peacekeeping operations under the auspices of the United Nations, however the non-United Nations sponsored Multinational Force and Observers in the Sinai is a notable exception. Australia's largest peacekeeping deployment began in 1999 in East Timor, while other ongoing operations include peacekeeping on Bougainville, in the Sinai, in the Solomon Islands. Humanitarian relief after 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake in Aceh Province, Operation Sumatra Assist, ended on 24 March 2005; the 1st Division comprises a deployable headquarters, while 2nd Division under the command of Forces Command is the main home-defence formation, containing Army Reserve units. 2nd Division's headquarters only performs administrative functions.
The Australian Army has not deployed a divisional-sized formation since 1945 and does not expect to do so in the future. 1st Division carries out high-level training activities and deploys to command large-scale ground operations. It has few combat units permanently assigned to it, although it does command the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment as part of Australia's amphibious task group. Forces Command controls for administrative purposes all non-special-forces assets of the Australian Army, it is neither an a deployable command. 1 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Darwin and Adelaide. 3 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Townsville. 6 Brigade – Mixed brigade based in Sydney. 7 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Brisbane. 16 Aviation Brigade – Army Aviation brigade based in Enoggera, Brisbane. 17 Combat Service Support Brigade – Logistic brigade based in Sydney. 2nd Division administers the reserve forces from its headquarters located in Sydney. 4 Brigade – based in Victoria.
5 Brigade – based in New South Wales. 8 Brigade – training brigade with units around Australia 9 Brigade – based in South Australia and Tasmania. 11 Brigade – based in Queensland. 13 Brigade – based in Western Australia. Additionally, Forces Command includes the following training establishments: Army Recruit Training Centre at Kapooka, NSW. Special Operations Command comprises a command formation of equal status to the other commands in the ADF, it includes all of Army's special forces assets. Under a restructuring program known as Plan Beersheba announced in late 2011, the 1st, 3rd and 7th Brigades will be re-formed as combined-arms multi-role manoeuvre brigades with the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment forming the core of a future amphibious force; the force will be known as the Amphibious Ready Element and will be embarked on the Navy's new Canberra-class amphibious assault ships. Infantry, some other combat units of the Australian Army carry flags called the Queen's Colour and the Regimental Colour, known as "the Colours".
Armoured units carry Standards and Guidons – flags smaller than Colours and traditionally carried by Cavalry, Light Horse and Mounted Infantry units. The 1st Armoured Regiment is the only unit in the Australian Army to carry a Standard, in the tradition of heavy armoured units. Artillery units' guns are considered to be their Colours, on parade are provided with the same respect. Non-combat units do not have Colours, as Colours are battle flags and so are only available to combat units; as a substitute, many have Banners. Units awarded battle honours have them emblazoned on their Colours and Guidons, they are a memorial to the fallen. Artillery do not have Battle Honours – their single Honour is "Ubique" which means "Everywhere" – although they can receive Honour Titles; the Army is the guardian of the National Flag and as such, unlike the Royal Australian Air Force, does not have a flag or Colours. The Army, has a banner, known as the Army Banner. To commemorate the centenary of the Army, the Governor General Sir William Deane, presented the Army with a new Banner at a parade in front of the Australian War Memorial on 10 March 2001.
The Banner was
A platoon is a military unit composed of two or more squads/sections/patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but per the official tables of organization as published in U. S. military documents. S. infantry rifle platoon consists of 43 Marines. There are other types of infantry platoons, depending upon service and type of infantry company/battalion to which the platoon is assigned, these platoons may range from as few as 18 to 69. Non-infantry platoons may range from as small as a nine-man communications platoon to a 102-man maintenance platoon. A platoon leader or commander is the officer in command of a platoon; this person is a junior officer—a second or first lieutenant or an equivalent rank. The officer is assisted by a platoon sergeant. A platoon is the smallest military unit led by a commissioned officer. Rifle platoons consist of a small platoon headquarters and three or four sections or squads. In some armies, platoon is used throughout the branches of the army.
In a few armies, such as the French Army, a platoon is a cavalry unit, the infantry use "section" as the equivalent unit. A unit consisting of several platoons is called a company/battery/troop. According to Merriam-Webster, "The term was first used in the 17th century to refer to a small body of musketeers who fired together in a volley alternately with another platoon." The word came from pelote meaning a small ball. The suffix "-on" can be an augmentative suffix in French, but on the other hand is a diminutive suffix in relationship to animals, so the original intention in forming peloton from pelote is not clear. Nonetheless it is documented that it took the meaning of a group of soldiers firing a volley together, while a different platoon reloaded; this implies an augmentative intention in the etymology. Since soldiers were organized in two or three lines, which were supposed to fire volleys together, this would have meant platoons organised with the intention of a half or a third of the company firing at once.
The modern French word peloton, when not meaning platoon, can refer to the main body of riders in a bicycle race. Pelote itself comes from the low Latin "pilotta" from Latin "pila", meaning "ball", the French suffix "-on" derives from the Latin suffix "-onus"; the platoon was a firing unit rather than an organization. The system was said to have been invented by Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden in 1618. In the French Army in the 1670s, a battalion was divided into 18 platoons who were grouped into three "firings"; the system was used in the British, Austrian and Dutch armies. On 1 October 1913, under a scheme by General Sir Ivor Maxse, the regular battalions of the British Army were reorganised from the previous eight companies to a four company structure, with each company having four platoons as separate units each commanded by a lieutenant with a platoon sergeant as his deputy; each platoon was divided into four sections, each commanded by a corporal. Due to a shortage of officers, a non commissioned officer rank of Platoon Sergeant Major was introduced from 1938 to 1940 for experienced non-commissioned officers who were given command of platoons.
In the Australian Army, an infantry platoon has thirty-six soldiers organized into three eight-man sections and a twelve-man maneuver support section. A lieutenant as platoon commander and a sergeant as platoon sergeant, accompanied by a platoon signaller and sometimes a platoon medic. A section comprises eight soldiers led by a corporal with a lance corporal as second in command; each section has two fireteams of four men, one led by the corporal and the other by the lance corporal. Each fireteam has one soldier with a 7.62mm Maximi GSMG and the other three armed with F88 Steyr assault rifles. One rifle per fireteam has an attached 40mm grenade launcher. Fireteam bravo has a HK417 7.62mm for the designated marksman role. More the designated marksman of each Australian fireteam has been issued the HK417 in Afghanistan and afterwards; the platoon may have three MAG 58 general-purpose machine guns, one M2 Browning heavy machine gun or a Mk 19 grenade launcher at its disposal. In the British Army, a rifle platoon from an infantry company consists of three sections of eight men, plus a signaller, a platoon sergeant, the platoon commander and a mortar man operating a light mortar.
This may not be the case for all British Infantry units, since the 51mm mortars are not part of the TOE post-Afghanistan. Under Army 2020, a platoon in the Heavy Protected Mobility Regiments will consist of around 30 soldiers in four Mastiff/FRES UV vehicles; as of March 2016, the British Army is reviewing whether to retain the FN Herstal Para Minimi 5.56×45mm light machine gun and the M6-640 Commando 60 mm mortar at platoon level in dismounted units. Each section is commanded by a corporal, with a lance corporal as second-in-command and s
In political and social sciences, communism is the philosophical, social and economic ideology and movement whose ultimate goal is the establishment of the communist society, a socioeconomic order structured upon the common ownership of the means of production and the absence of social classes and the state. Communism includes a variety of schools of thought, which broadly include Marxism and anarchism, as well as the political ideologies grouped around both. All of these share the analysis that the current order of society stems from its economic system, capitalism; the two classes are the working class—who must work to survive and who make up the majority within society—and the capitalist class—a minority who derives profit from employing the working class through private ownership of the means of production. The revolution will put the working class in power and in turn establish social ownership of the means of production, which according to this analysis is the primary element in the transformation of society towards communism.
Critics of communism can be divided into those concerning themselves with the practical aspects of 20th century communist states and those concerning themselves with communist principles and theory. Marxism-Leninism and democratic socialism were the two dominant forms of socialism in the 20th century; the term "communism" was first coined and defined in its modern definition by the French philosopher and writer Victor d'Hupay. In his 1777 book Projet de communauté philosophe, d'Hupay pushes the philosophy of the Enlightenment to principles which he lived up to during most of his life in his bastide of Fuveau; this book can be seen as the cornerstone of communist philosophy as d'Hupay defines this lifestyle as a "commune" and advises to "share all economic and material products between inhabitants of the commune, so that all may benefit from everybody's work". According to Richard Pipes, the idea of a classless, egalitarian society first emerged in Ancient Greece; the 5th-century Mazdak movement in Persia has been described as "communistic" for challenging the enormous privileges of the noble classes and the clergy, for criticizing the institution of private property and for striving to create an egalitarian society.
At one time or another, various small communist communities existed under the inspiration of Scripture. For example, in the medieval Christian Church some monastic communities and religious orders shared their land and their other property. Communist thought has been traced back to the works of the 16th-century English writer Thomas More. In his treatise Utopia, More portrayed a society based on common ownership of property, whose rulers administered it through the application of reason. In the 17th century, communist thought surfaced again in England, where a Puritan religious group known as the "Diggers" advocated the abolition of private ownership of land. In his 1895 Cromwell and Communism, Eduard Bernstein argued that several groups during the English Civil War espoused clear communistic, agrarian ideals and that Oliver Cromwell's attitude towards these groups was at best ambivalent and hostile. Criticism of the idea of private property continued into the Age of Enlightenment of the 18th century through such thinkers as Jean Jacques Rousseau in France.
Following the upheaval of the French Revolution communism emerged as a political doctrine. In the early 19th century, various social reformers founded communities based on common ownership. However, unlike many previous communist communities they replaced the religious emphasis with a rational and philanthropic basis. Notable among them were Robert Owen, who founded New Harmony in Indiana, as well as Charles Fourier, whose followers organized other settlements in the United States such as Brook Farm. In its modern form, communism grew out of the socialist movement in 19th-century Europe; as the Industrial Revolution advanced, socialist critics blamed capitalism for the misery of the proletariat—a new class of urban factory workers who labored under often-hazardous conditions. Foremost among these critics were his associate Friedrich Engels. In 1848, Marx and Engels offered a new definition of communism and popularized the term in their famous pamphlet The Communist Manifesto; the 1917 October Revolution in Russia set the conditions for the rise to state power of Vladimir Lenin's Bolsheviks, the first time any avowedly communist party reached that position.
The revolution transferred power to the All-Russian Congress of Soviets, in which the Bolsheviks had a majority. The event generated a great deal of theoretical debate within the Marxist movement. Marx predicted that socialism and communism would be built upon foundations laid by the most advanced capitalist development. However, Russia was one of the poorest countries in Europe with an enormous illiterate peasantry and a minority of industrial workers. Marx had explicitly stated; the moderate Mensheviks opposed Lenin's Bolshevik plan for socialist revolution before capitalism was more developed. The Bolsheviks' successful rise to power was based upon the slogans such as "Peace and land" which tapp
The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict that began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that overthrew the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the next decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces and the post-invasion Iraqi government. An estimated 151,000 to 600,000 or more Iraqis were killed in the first three to four years of conflict. In 2009, official US troops were withdrawn, but American soldiers continued to remain on the ground fighting in Iraq, hired by defence contractors and private military companies; the U. S. became re-involved in 2014 at the head of a new coalition. The invasion occurred as part of a declared war against international terrorism and its sponsors under the administration of U. S. President George W. Bush following the unrelated September 11 terrorist attacks. In October 2002, President Bush obtained congressional approval from a Democrat-led Senate and Republican-led House authorizing war-making powers.
The Iraq war began on 19 March 2003, when the U. S. joined by the U. K. and several coalition allies, launched a "awe" bombing campaign. Iraqi forces were overwhelmed as U. S. forces swept through the country. The invasion led to the collapse of the Ba'athist government. However, the power vacuum following Saddam's demise and the mismanagement of the occupation led to widespread sectarian violence between Shias and Sunnis, as well as a lengthy insurgency against U. S. and coalition forces. Many violent insurgent groups were supported by al-Qaeda in Iraq; the United States responded with a troop surge in 2007, a build up of 170,000 troops. The surge in troops gave greater security to Iraq's government and military, was a success; the winding down of U. S. involvement in Iraq accelerated under President Barack Obama. The U. S. formally withdrew all combat troops from Iraq by December 2011. However, with no stay-behind agreement or advisers left in Iraq, a new power vacuum was created and led to the rise of ISIS.
Nine months after President Trump was elected, U. S.-backed forces captured Raqqa. The Bush administration based its rationale for the war principally on the assertion that Iraq, viewed by the U. S. as a rogue state since the 1990–1991 Gulf War, possessed weapons of mass destruction and that there was concern about an active WMD program, that the Iraqi government posed a threat to the United States and its coalition allies. Select U. S. officials accused Saddam of harbouring and supporting al-Qaeda, while others cited the desire to end a repressive dictatorship and bring democracy to the people of Iraq. Hundreds of chemical weapons were found in Iraq, which were determined to be produced before the 1991 Gulf War, intelligence officials determined they were "so old they couldn't be used as designed." From 2004 to 2011, US troops and American-trained Iraqi troops encountered, on six reported occasions were wounded by, chemical weapons from years earlier in Saddam Hussein's rule. 5,000 chemical warheads, shells or aviation bombs were discovered.
The rationale of U. S. pre-war intelligence faced heavy criticism both domestically and internationally. From 2009 to 2011, the UK conducted a broad inquiry into its decision to go to war chaired by Sir John Chilcot; the Chilcot Report, published in 2016, concluded military action may have been necessary but was not the last resort at the time and that the consequences of invasion were underestimated. In the aftermath of the invasion, Iraq held multi-party elections in 2005. Nouri al-Maliki became Prime Minister in 2006 and remained in office until 2014; the al-Maliki government enacted policies that were seen as having the effect of alienating the country's Sunni minority and worsening sectarian tensions. In the summer of 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant launched a military offensive in Northern Iraq and declared a worldwide Islamic caliphate, eliciting another military response from the United States and its allies; the Iraq War caused over a hundred thousand civilian deaths and tens of thousands of military deaths.
The majority of deaths occurred as a result of the insurgency and civil conflicts between 2004 and 2007. Strong international opposition to the Saddam Hussein regime began after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990; the international community condemned the invasion, in 1991 a military coalition led by the United States launched the Gulf War to expel Iraq from Kuwait. Following the Gulf War, the US and its allies tried to keep Saddam in check with a policy of containment; this policy involved numerous economic sanctions by the UN Security Council. The inspections were carried out by the United Nations Special Commission. UNSCOM, in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, worked to ensure that Iraq destroyed its chemical and nuclear weapons and facilities. In the decade following the Gulf War, the United Nations passed 16 Security Council resolutions calling for the complete elimination of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. Member states communicated their frustration over the years that Iraq was impeding the work of the special commission and failing to take its disarmament obligations.
Iraqi officials harass
A battalion is a military unit. The use of the term "battalion" varies by branch of service. A battalion consists of 300 to 800 soldiers and is divided into a number of companies. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel. In some countries, the word "battalion" is associated with the infantry; the term was first used in Italian as battaglione no than the 16th century. It derived from the Italian word for battaglia; the first use of battalion in English was in the 1580s, the first use to mean "part of a regiment" is from 1708. A battalion is the smallest military unit capable of "limited independent operations", meaning it includes an executive, staff with a support and services unit; the battalion must have a source of re-supply to enable it to sustain operations for more than a few days. This is because a battalion's complement of ammunition, expendable weapons, rations, lubricants, replacement parts and medical supplies consists of only what the battalion's soldiers and the battalion's vehicles can carry.
In addition to sufficient personnel and equipment to conduct operations, as well as a limited administrative and logistics capability, the commander's staff coordinates and plans operations. A battalion's subordinate companies and their platoons are dependent upon the battalion headquarters for command, control and intelligence, the battalion's service and support structure; the battalion is part of a brigade, or group, depending on the branch of service. A battalion's companies are of one type, although there are exceptions such as combined arms battalions in the U. S. Army. A battalion includes a headquarters company and some sort of combat service support, combined in a combat support company; the term battalion is used in the British Army Infantry and some corps including the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, intelligence corps. It was used in the Royal Engineers, was used in the now defunct Royal Army Ordnance Corps and Royal Pioneer Corps. Other corps use the term "regiment" instead.
An infantry battalion is numbered ordinarily within its regiment. It has a headquarters company, support company, three rifle companies; each company is commanded by a major, the officer commanding, with a captain or senior lieutenant as second-in-command. The HQ company contains signals, catering, administration, training and medical elements; the support company contains anti-tank, machine gun, mortar and reconnaissance platoons. Mechanised units have an attached light aid detachment of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers to perform field repairs on vehicles and equipment. A British battalion in theatre during World War II had around 845 men, whereas, as of 2012, a British battalion had around 650 soldiers. With successive rounds of cutbacks after the war, many infantry regiments were reduced to a single battalion. Important figures in a battalion headquarters include: Commanding officer Second-in-command Adjutant Quartermaster Quartermaster Medical officer Administrative officer Padre Operations officer Regimental sergeant major Regimental quartermaster sergeant Regimental quartermaster sergeant Battalions of other corps are given separate cardinal numbers within their corps.
A battle group consists of an infantry battalion or armoured regiment with sub-units detached from other military units acting under the command of the battalion commander. In the Canadian Forces, most battalions are reserve units of between 100–200 soldiers that include an operationally ready, field-deployable component of a half-company apiece; the nine regular force infantry battalions each contain three or four rifle companies and one or two support companies. Canadian battalions are commanded by lieutenant-colonels, though smaller reserve battalions may be commanded by majors; those regiments consisting of more than one battalion are: The Royal Canadian Regiment Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Royal 22e Régiment The Royal Newfoundland Regiment Tactically, the Canadian battalion forms the core of the infantry battle group, which includes various supporting elements such as armour, combat engineers and combat service support. An infantry battle group will be commanded by the commander of the core infantry battalion around which it is formed and can range in size from 300 to 1,500 or more soldiers, depending on the nature of the mission assigned.
In the Royal Netherlands Army, a mechanised infantry battalion consists of one command- and medical company, three mechanised infantry companies, one support company
Conscription in Australia
Conscription in Australia, or mandatory military service known as national service, has a controversial history dating back to the first years of nationhood. Australia only has provision for conscription during times of war. In 1909, the federal government of the 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 the purposes of home defence; the legislation did not allow soldiers to be conscripted for overseas service. This legislation was passed through the combined support of the Protectionist Party and the Australian Labor Party. Following a visit and a report on Australia's defence readiness by Field Marshal Kitchener, the Australian Labor Party government instituted a system of compulsory military training for all males aged between 12 and 26 from 1 January 1911. John Barrett, in his study of boyhood conscription, Falling In, noted: In 1911 there were 350,000 boys of an age to register for compulsory training up to the end of 1915.
Since'universal' was a misnomer, about half that number were exempted from training, or never registered, reducing the group to 175,000. There was extensive opposition to boyhood conscription resulting in, by July 1915, some 34,000 prosecutions and 7,000 detentions of trainees, employers or other persons required to register. Under Labor prime minister Billy Hughes, full conscription for overseas service was attempted during WWI through two plebiscites; the first plebiscite was held on 28 October 1916 and narrowly rejected conscription with a margin of 49% for and 51% against. The plebiscite of 28 October 1916 asked Australians: Are you in favour of the Government having, in this grave emergency, the same compulsory powers over citizens in regard to requiring their military service, for the term of this War, outside the Commonwealth, as it now has in regard to military service within the Commonwealth? A second plebiscite was defeated by a greater margin; the question put to Australians was: Are you in favour of the proposal of the Commonwealth Government for reinforcing the Commonwealth Forces overseas?
After the failure of the first plebiscite, Billy Hughes left the Australian Labor Party parliamentary caucus, taking with him most of the parliamentary party's talent. He promptly crossed the floor with about half of the parliamentary party, creating a new National Labor Party and surviving as prime minister by forming a conservative Nationalist government dependent for support on the Commonwealth Liberal Party; the remainder of the Labor Party, under their new leader Frank Tudor expelled Hughes and all who had followed him. Following the split, Labor stayed out of office for ten years. After the first plebiscite the government used the War Precautions Act and the Unlawful Associations Act to arrest and prosecute anti-conscriptionists such as Tom Barker, editor of Direct Action and many other members of the Industrial Workers of the World and E. H. Coombe of the Daily Herald; the young John Curtin, at the time a member of the Victorian Socialist Party, was arrested. Anti-conscriptionist publications, were seized by government censors in police raids.
Other notable opponents to Conscription included the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne Daniel Mannix, the Queensland Labor Premier Thomas Ryan, Vida Goldstein and the Women's Peace Army. Most trade unions opposed conscription; the County Cork born Archbishop Mannix stated that Ireland had been more wronged by Great Britain than Belgium had been by Germany. Many people thought positively of conscription as a sign of loyalty to Britain and thought that it would support those men who were fighting. However, trade unions feared that their members might be replaced by cheaper foreign or female labour and opposed conscription; some groups argued that the whole war was immoral, it was unjust to force people to fight. South Africa and India were the only other participating countries not to introduce conscription during the First World War; the conscription issue divided Australia with large meetings held both for and against. The women's vote was seen as important, with large women's meetings and campaign information from both sides aimed at women voters.
The campaigning for the first plebiscite was launched by Hughes at a huge overflow meeting at the Sydney Town Hall where he outlined the Government's proposals. This was followed by a huge pro-conscription meeting at the Melbourne Town Hall on 21 September. Anti-conscriptionists in Melbourne, were able to mobilise large crowds with a meeting filling the Exhibition Building on 20 September 1916. An anti-conscription stop work meeting called by five trade unions held on the Yarra Bank mid-week on 4 October attracted 15,000 people, it was passed on 21 September 1916 and mandatory registration and enrolment commenced while the first plebiscite campaign was underway. By 5 October The Age reported that of 11607 men examined, 4581 were found fit 40 percent; the Age noted, in the article "Influence of the IWW", that "the great bulk of the opposition to conscription is centred in Victoria". Many meetings in inner Melbourne and Sydney were disrupted by anti-conscriptionists with speakers being howled down from the audience in what The Age described as "disgraceful exhibition" and "disorderl
2/7th Battalion (Australia)
The 2/7th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army raised for service during World War II. Formed as part of the 6th Division shortly after the outbreak of the war as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force, the 2/7th Battalion's initial personnel were recruited from the state of Victoria, although reinforcements were drawn from most other Australian states. Basic training was completed in Australia, after which the battalion embarked for the Middle East as part of the first batch of Australian troops to deploy overseas. Further training was undertaken in Palestine before the battalion went into action against the Italians in January 1941. After participating in the successful capture of Bardia and Tobruk, it was committed to the disastrous Battles of Greece and Crete, where the battalion was destroyed after the majority of its personnel were captured. Rebuilt in Palestine, the 2/7th undertook garrison duties in Syria and Ceylon before being transported back to Australia in August 1942.
In January 1943, the battalion was deployed to New Guinea, taking part in the fighting against the Japanese in the Salamaua–Lae campaign until October 1943. Following a period of over a year training in northern Queensland, the battalion's final campaign began in the Aitape–Wewak area of New Guinea in 1944–1945 during which it was used in a mopping-up role; the battalion was disbanded in Australia in early 1946 after the conclusion of hostilities. The 2/7th Battalion was established on 25 October 1939 at Puckapunyal, Victoria, as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force, raised for service during World War II; the battalion consisted of four rifle companies – designated'A' to'D' – under a headquarters company and a battalion headquarters, had an authorised strength of around 900 personnel. Within the headquarters company there were six specialist platoons to provide organic combat and service support to the four rifle companies; the colours chosen for the battalion's Unit Colour Patch were the same as those of the 7th Battalion, raised for service during World War I as part of the First Australian Imperial Force, had been re-raised as a Militia battalion.
These colours were brown over red, in a horizontal rectangular shape, although a border of grey was added to the UCP to distinguish the battalion from its Militia counterpart. The troops of the 2/7th gave themselves the nickname "Mud over Blood", in reference to the brown over red of their insignia, to the original 7th Battalion. Attached to the 17th Brigade, the second brigade of the 6th Division, recruits were drawn from several areas in Victoria including rural areas around Mildura, Robinvale and Maffra, metropolitan Melbourne; these included those who had no previous military experience. After its personnel had reported for duty, the battalion undertook training at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds and Puckapunyal before departing for the Middle East in mid-April 1940, aboard the troopship Strathallan; the battalion's first commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Walker, a former Militia officer who had commanded the 24th/39th Battalion. Reaching their destination in May 1940, the battalion joined the 17th Brigade's two other infantry battalions – the 2/5th and 2/6th – at Beit Jirja, in the Julius–Gaza area.
From there, the battalion engaged in further training in Palestine and Egypt until the Australians went into battle for the first time in early January 1941 as the British went on the offensive against the Italians in North Africa. The 2/7th saw action at Bardia, where it formed the divisional reserve in the initial phase before attacking south through the gap established by the 2/5th towards the railway switchline, Tobruk, where the 2/7th attacked the eastern sector; the battalion undertook garrison duties in Libya, establishing itself around Marsa Brega. The fighting in Libya cost the battalion 20 dead, including 15 killed in action, 75 wounded and one captured. Following this, the battalion was committed to the fighting in Greece in early April. Landing at Athens, moving to Larissa by train, the battalion established themselves around Thessaly, but their involvement in the fighting was short-lived as the Germans advanced against the hastily established Allied defensive positions, forcing the British and Commonwealth troops to withdraw.
Embarking from Kalamata upon the transport Costa Rica on 26 April, the battalion endured heavy air attack as the Germans attacked the ship, forcing it to be abandoned. The men from the 2/7th were taken off the stricken ship and transferred to several Royal Navy destroyers, landed on the island of Crete, where an Axis invasion was expected imminently. Missing most of their equipment, lost on the Costa Rica, the battalion was re-armed with weapons re-allocated from two Australian artillery regiments. Following the German airborne assault on 20 May, the 2/7th became engaged fighting German parachute troops around Canea, it undertook a local counter-attack at 42nd Street during which the 2/7th launched a ferocious bayonet charge in concert with the New Zealand Maori Battalion that resulted in heavy German casualties. The 2/7th covered the withdrawal to Sphakia where the Royal Navy attempted to evacuate the garrison by the sea, undertaking a three-day stand in the hills, before they were ordered down to the evacuation beaches.
As Allied naval losses mounted. As a result, most of the battalion – over 400 personnel – was taken prisoner. Several 2/7th soldiers escaped captivity.
Australian Army [videos]
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of the Defence Force commands the ADF, the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army. The CA is …
Soldiers of the Australian 39th Battalion in September 1942
Two Australian soldiers during the Shah Wali Kot Offensive in Afghanistan
Light infantry [videos]
Light infantry is a designation applied to certain types of foot soldiers throughout history, typically having lighter equipment or armament or a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought …
Portuguese Army light infantryman (caçador) of the Peninsular War, with earth-tone uniform aiding concealment, compared to bright uniforms of line infantry
French light infantry in the woods during the Napoleonic era, by Victor Huen.
Chasseurs from a light infantry regiment of Napoléon's Grande Armée
Chasseurs à pied bugler, full dress, 1885.
Adelaide [videos]
Adelaide is the capital city of the state of South Australia, and the fifth-most populous city of Australia. In June 2017, Adelaide had an estimated resident population of 1,333,927. Adelaide is home to more than 75 percent of the South Australian population, making it the …
From top to bottom, left to right: Central Adelaide from Mount Lofty, the UniSA Building on North Terrace, St Peter's Cathedral, the beachside suburb of Glenelg, a rotunda in Elder Park, and Victoria Square illuminated in the evening
Queen Adelaide, after whom the city was named
North Terrace in 1841
Intersection of North Terrace and King William Street viewed from Parliament House, 1938.
Operation Coburg [videos]
Operation Coburg was an Australian and New Zealand military action during the Vietnam War. The operation saw heavy fighting between the 1st Australian Task Force and North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong during the wider fighting around Long Binh and Bien Hoa …
An Australian digger searching the body of a dead Viet Cong soldier following an ambush
Australian Iroquois helicopter from No. 9 Squadron RAAF inserting troops during the battle
New Zealanders from W Coy, 2 RAR/NZ patrolling during Operation Coburg
An Australian SASR patrol
War in Afghanistan (2001–present) [videos]
The War in Afghanistan, code named Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan and Operation Freedom's Sentinel, followed the United States invasion of Afghanistan of 7 October 2001. The U.S. was initially supported by the United Kingdom …
Soviet troops in 1986, during the Soviet–Afghan War
Ground Zero in New York following the attacks of 11 September 2001
Curtis Scaparrotti, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, and Kay Bailey Hutchison with Brig. Gen. Wolf-Jürgen Stahl in Afghanistan in February 2018
Victims of the Narang night raid that killed at least 10 Afghan civilians, December 2009
Elizabeth II [videos]
Elizabeth II is Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms.Elizabeth was born in London as the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and she was educated privately at home. Her father …
On the cover of Time magazine, April 1929
Portrait by Philip de László, 1933
Elizabeth (far left) on the balcony of Buckingham Palace with her family and Winston Churchill on 8 May 1945, Victory in Europe Day
Elizabeth II and Commonwealth leaders at the 1960 Commonwealth Conference
Infantry [videos]
Infantry is the branch of an army that engages in military combat on foot, distinguished from cavalry, artillery, and tank forces. Also known as foot soldiers, infantry traditionally relies on moving by foot between combats as well, but may also use mounts, military vehicles, or other transport …
Infantrymen of the US 6th Marine Division search the ruins of Naha, Okinawa for Japanese snipers, Spring 1945
Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles at the Battle of the Somme (July–November 1916) during the First World War
Various infantry of the 17th through 18th century (halberdier, arquebusier, pikeman, and mix of musketeers and grenadiers) of Duchy of Württemberg
Infantry of the US 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment enter their M2 Bradley IFV during a combat patrol, Tall Afar, Iraq, 2006
Battalion [videos]
A battalion is a military unit. The use of the term "battalion" varies by nationality and branch of service. Typically a battalion consists of 300 to 800 soldiers and is divided into a number of companies. A battalion is typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. In some countries, the word …
Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO military graphic symbols
Australian 11th (Western Australia) Battalion, 3rd Infantry Brigade, Australian Imperial Force posing on the Great Pyramid of Giza on 10 January 1915
1980s Soviet tank battalion and company
1980s Soviet 122mm artillery battalion
Military history of Australia during the Vietnam War [videos]
Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War began with a small commitment of 30 military advisors in 1962, and increased over the following decade to a peak of 7,672 Australian personnel following the Menzies Government's April 1965 decision to upgrade its military commitment to South Vietnam's …
Australian soldiers from 7 RAR waiting to be picked up by US Army helicopters following a cordon and search operation near Phước Hải on 26 August 1967. This image is etched on the Vietnam Forces National Memorial, Canberra.
HMAS Hobart refueling from a United States Navy tanker while operating off Vietnam in 1967
An Australian soldier armed with an M60 machine gun
Members of an Australian civic action team confer with Vietnamese village officials on plans for local improvements
Mechanized infantry [videos]
Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles for transport and combat. — Mechanized infantry is distinguished from motorized infantry in that its vehicles provide a degree of protection from …
U.S. Army mechanized infantry dismount from an M113 armored personnel carrier during training in 1985.
21 March 1918: German A7V tanks in Roye, Somme during Operation Michael.
U.S. M3 halftracks and infantry on exercises, Fort Knox, June 1942
Stryker vehicle and dismounted infantry of the US Army's 1st Brigade Combat Team in Mosul, Iraq 2004.
Iraq War [videos]
The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict that began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that overthrew the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the next decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces and the …
A UN weapons inspector in Iraq, 2002
United States Secretary of State Colin Powell holding a model vial of anthrax while giving a presentation to the United Nations Security Council
From the left: French President Jacques Chirac, U.S. President George W. Bush, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Chirac was against the invasion, the other three leaders were in favor.
Anti-war protest in London, September 2002. Organised by the British Stop the War Coalition, up to 400,000 took part in the protest.
Military history of Australia during the War in Afghanistan [videos]
The Australian contribution to the war in Afghanistan has been known as Operation Slipper and Operation Highroad. — Australian Defence Force operations and the size of the forces deployed have varied and ADF involvement has included two major areas of activity …
Infantry from 3 RAR patrol Tarin Kowt in August 2008 as part of Reconstruction Task Force 4
A No. 33 Squadron Boeing 707 refuelling a US Navy F/A-18 in 2002
Australian and US Army engineers working on a bridge in Afghanistan in August 2008
A Special Operations Task Group patrol in October 2009
Communism [videos]
In political and social sciences, communism is the philosophical, social, political, and economic ideology and movement whose ultimate goal is the establishment of the communist society, which is a socioeconomic order structured upon the common ownership …
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, theoretician of libertarian socialism
A monument dedicated to Karl Marx (left) and Friedrich Engels (right) in Shanghai, China
Vladimir Lenin's statue in Kolkata, West Bengal
Joseph Stalin, 1942
Royal Australian Regiment [videos]
The Royal Australian Regiment is the parent administrative regiment for regular infantry battalions of the Australian Army and is the senior infantry regiment of the Royal Australian Infantry Corps. It was originally formed in 1948 as a three battalion regiment; however, since then its size …
Troops from the 66th Battalion march through Saijo, Japan in 1946
Soldiers from 3 RAR occupying Chinese trenches on 'Salmon', 16 April 1951.
An Australian soldier manning a machine gun position in Borneo, 1965
Australian soldiers from the Royal Australian Regiment arrive at Tan Son Nhut Airport, Saigon.
Conscription in Australia [videos]
Conscription in Australia, or mandatory military service also known as national service, has a controversial history dating back to the first years of nationhood. Australia currently only has provision for conscription during times of war. — Universal Service Scheme — In 1909, the federal …
Supporters of conscription campaigning at Mingenew, Western Australia in 1917
Industrial Workers of the World anti-conscription poster, 1916
Cartoons such as this one, by artist Norman Lindsay, were used both for recruitment and to promote conscription
1917 Handbill – The Blood Vote
Victoria (Australia) [videos]
Victoria is a state in south-eastern Australia. Victoria is Australia's smallest mainland state and its second-most populous state overall, thus making it the most densely populated state overall. Most of its population lives concentrated in the area …
Swearing Allegiance to the Southern Cross at the Eureka Stockade on 1 December 1854 – watercolour by Charles Doudiet
The Victorian Parliament House, built in 1856, stands in Spring Street, Melbourne. The building was intended to be finished with a dome, but was not completed due to budget constraints.
The Legislative Council Chamber, as photographed in 1878
One of many local government seats, Geelong Town Hall
Malaysia [videos]
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of 13 states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two similarly sized regions, Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia (Malaysian …
A Famosa is a fort in Melaka built by the Portuguese in the 16th century
Statue of Francis Light in the Fort Cornwallis of Penang, the first British colony in what was to become Malaysia
The Parliament of Malaysia, the building that houses the members of the Dewan Rakyat
Mahathir meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the Prime Minister's Office in Putrajaya, 2018
Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation [videos]
The Indonesian–Malaysian confrontation or Borneo confrontation was a violent conflict from 1963–66 that stemmed from Indonesia's opposition to the creation of Malaysia. The creation of Malaysia was the amalgamation of the Federation of Malaya …
Members of the Sarawak People's Guerilla Force (SPGF), North Kalimantan National Army (NKNA) and Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) taking photograph together marking the close relations between them during Indonesia under the rule of Sukarno.
Sarawak Rangers (present-day part of Malaysian Rangers) comprising Ibans leap from a Royal Australian Air Force Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter to guard the Malay–Thai border.
Queen's Own Highlanders 1st Battalion conduct a patrol to search for enemy positions in the jungle of Brunei.
Officer (armed forces) [videos]
An officer is a member of an armed forces or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. — In its broadest sense, the term "officer" refers to commissioned officers, non-commissioned officers, and warrant officers. However, when used without further detail, the term almost always refers to …
A commissioned officer and a non-commissioned officer of the British Army prepare for a mission in Afghanistan.
An Indonesian army officer serving as a ceremonial field commander
The Royal Navy officer training academy Britannia Royal Naval College at Dartmouth
Newly commissioned U.S. Navy and Marine Corps officers celebrate their new positions by throwing their midshipmen covers into the air as part of the U.S. Naval Academy class of 2005 graduation and commissioning ceremony.
Centurion (tank) [videos]
The Centurion was the primary British main battle tank of the post-Second World War period. Introduced in 1945, it is widely considered to be one of the most successful post-war tank designs, remaining in production into the 1960s, and seeing combat in the front lines into the 1980s. The chassis …
Centurion Mk3
Centurion Mk 3 at Eastbourne Redoubt
Troops of the 1st Armoured Regiment during a briefing at Vung Tau
Israeli Sho't variant
2/7th Battalion (Australia) [videos]
The 2/7th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army raised for service during World War II. Formed as part of the 6th Division shortly after the outbreak of the war as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force, the 2/7th Battalion's initial personnel were recruited …
Members of the 2/7th Battalion with a Bren carrier in October 1940
A 2/7th Battalion patrol, New Guinea, 17 August 1945
Unit Colour Patch [videos]
Unit Colour Patches are currently worn on the slouch hat in the Australian Army to identify the wearer's unit. Unit colour patches are approximately 40 millimetres x 40 millimetres in size and have a large variety of colours and shapes to …
Marchers in World War II Australian uniforms, wearing the colour patch of the 2/8th Battalion.
Australian Sanitary Section
Image: UNSWR UCP
International Force East Timor [videos]
The International Force East Timor was a multinational non-United Nations peacemaking taskforce, organised and led by Australia in accordance with United Nations resolutions to address the humanitarian and security crisis that took place in East Timor from 1999–2000 until the arrival of …
Australian members of International Force East Timor (INTERFET), talk to a citizen in Dili, East Timor, in February 2000.
Return of Xanana Gusmão from Indonesian prison (1999).
Commander INTERFET, Major General Cosgrove, joins hands with the new East Timor leadership during a celebration to mark the official handover to UNTAET.
Canungra, Queensland [videos]
Canungra is a small rural town and locality in the Scenic Rim Region local government area of South East Queensland, Australia. Its economy depends on tourism, being a popular destination for short drives from the Gold Coast and Brisbane. Canungra, also called the "Valley of the Owls", is situated …
The historic Canungra Hotel
Honour Board at the School of Arts, Anzac Day 1937
Canungra War Memorial, 2008
6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment [videos]
6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is a mechanised infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally raised in Brisbane, Queensland, on 6 June 1965 and has since then served in a number of overseas deployments and conflicts including South Vietnam, East Timor, Iraq and …
Five national servicemen assigned to 6 RAR photographed shortly before they and the battalion were deployed to South Vietnam in 1966
Part of the site of the Battle of Long Tan in 2005
Soldiers from 'B' Company during an exercise in South Korea in 2016
3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment [videos]
The 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment is a mechanised infantry battalion of the Australian Army, based in Townsville as part of the 3rd Brigade. 3 RAR was initially formed in 1945 as the 67th Battalion and has seen active service in Japan, Korea, Malaya, South Vietnam, East …
Members of 3 RAR move forward during the Korean War in 1951
U.S. General James Van Fleet inspects members of 3 RAR after awarding a Presidential Unit Citation to the Battalion in December 1952
The 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is a regular motorised infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally established in 1965 it would serve two tours of South Vietnam before it was linked with the 7th Battalion to form the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in …
Soldiers from 5 RAR disembarking a US Army helicopter during Operation Toledo in September 1966
A 5 RAR soldier during Exercise Talisman Sabre 2009
Non-commissioned officer [videos]
A non-commissioned officer is a military officer who has not earned a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually obtain their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. In contrast, commissioned officers hold higher ranks than NCOs, have more legal responsibilities, are …
A sergeant of the Coldstream Guards addressing through the ranks during the rehearsal for the Trooping the Colour ceremony
Sergeant, Royal Artillery, on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle, firing the One o'Clock Gun
Platoon [videos]
A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads/sections/patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but typically, per the official tables of organization as published in U.S. military documents; a full-strength U.S. infantry rifle platoon …
Platoon of Marines of the United States Marine Corps.
Platoon ("Zug" in German) of the German Bundeswehr
2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment [videos]
The 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is an amphibious light infantry battalion of the Australian Army part of the 1st Division Amphibious Task Group based at Lavarack Barracks in Townsville. — 2 RAR was first formed as the Australian 66th Battalion in 1945 and since then it has seen …
2 RAR soldiers during Exercise Talisman Sabre in 2007
2 RAR soldiers using a combat rubber raiding craft during an exercise in 2017
Brigade [videos]
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. — Brigades formed into divisions are usually infantry or …
A U.S. infantry brigade of around 3,200 personnel, formed into eight battalion-sized groups
Standard NATO symbol for an infantry brigade
Biên Hòa [videos]
Biên Hòa is a city in Đồng Nai Province, Vietnam, about 30 kilometres east of Hồ Chí Minh City, to which Biên Hòa is linked by Vietnam Highway 1. — Administrative divisions — Demographics — In 1989 the estimated …
Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh temple in Cù Lao Phố.
Trấn Biên Temple of Literature, a Vietnamese Confucian temple.
7th Battalion (Australia) [videos]
The 7th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Raised in 1914 as part of the Australian Imperial Force during the First World War, the battalion was completely recruited from the state of Victoria and formed the 2nd Brigade, 1st Division. The battalion served during the …
Members of the 7th Battalion in a trench at Lone Pine, 6 August 1915


Today September 16 th takes places the first meeting of the European project HEIRRI (Higher Education Institutions & Responsible Research and Innovation). The project aims to integrate the concept of " Responsible Research and Innovation" (RRI) in university careers in science and technology, so that research and innovation meets societal needs, values and expectations. The European Commission promotes the practical application of RRI through six key areas: public engagement, ethics, science education, gender equality, open access and scientific governance.
The kick-off meeting will connect all participants and provide an extensive and comprehensive overview of the three years of the initiative. Throughout the meeting, located in the Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB), the key concepts and the different phases of the project will be discussed.
HEIRRI is led by the Studies Centre on Science, Communication and Society of Pompeu Fabra University (CCS-UPF); specifically, the project is led by a multidisciplinary team consisting of members of the Department of Experimental and Health Sciences (DCEXS, UPF) and the Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC, UPF). The rest of the Consortium of the project are the University of Aarhus (Denmark), the University of Bergen (Norway), the University of Split (Croatia), the Institute for Advanced Studies (Austria), "la Caixa" Foundation (Barcelona) , the company Innovatec (Madrid), the European network of museums and science centres Ecsite, and the Catalan Association of Public Universities (ACUP), who chairs GUNi, the Global University Network for Innovation, with 208 universities in 78 countries.


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This Dam is Your Dam, This Dam is My Dam, Part 3: Dismantling the Democratic
by Greg Hewlett
"Revisiting these events reveals a true blackout in the integrity of our elected leaders."
In Newfoundland and Labrador, as in most of the so-called developed world, the gulf between the ideal of democracy and the reality of its functioning is widening. We continue to elect representatives to government, but that's about the extent of it, and the choice between the two dominant parties is increasingly no choice at all.
Bouncing from blue to red, we vote not for those looking to take power, whose promises we know to be false, but against those currently in power, whose promises are the most recently broken.
Exacerbating the matter is a first-past-the-post system prone to giving us majority governments whose politicians owe their obligation not to the electorate who voted them in, nor to the neutral departments they minister, but to the party. And buddy you'd better toe that party line, as the recent scandal revealing the dysfunction of the Liberal Party has forced us to confront. Of course, exploit it though they try, the PCs are a pea in the same petty pod. You could liken provincial party dynamics to those of high school, but you wouldn't want to insult the kids like that.
It is in this context, newly exposed but deeply entrenched and a surprise to no one, that we take a look back at the sanctioning of the Lower Churchill Project, a process characterized by repeated disregard for democratic due process.
Early in 2012, retired senior civil servant David Vardy, along with Ron Penney, a former deputy minister of justice, co-authored a letter to the Telegram raising a series of red flags as to the handling of the Public Utility Board's review process of Muskrat Falls by Nalcor and the PCs, then headed by a Dunderdale government, groomed by its predecessor to see through the sanctioning and construction of its legacy-to-be. Said predecessor, a certain Danny Williams, had a few choice remarks for Vardy in particular who, in addition to questioning the review process, indicated in a subsequent interview that he knew of many people who strongly objected to the Muskrat Falls development plan, but were afraid to speak out for fear of putting at risk their relatives employed by government.
Danny's response included the following: "What kind of garbage is that?" "I'm very disappointed in Dave Vardy's comments, and the kind of nonsense that he's getting on with." The typical dismissive bluster, serving to make Vardy's point for him with exactly the sort of patronizing response — devoid of logical backing as was and is so often the case in government's response to legitimate criticism — that exemplified why potential critics of the project might choose to remain silent. If this was the public response, imagine the private one.
The red flags then planted were, as we now know, thoroughly warranted. The following is a summarization of the other major review process of Muskrat Falls by Consumer Advocate Dennis Browne, "The 2011 Federal-Provincial Joint Review Panel held 30 days of public hearings on Muskrat Falls in nine locations. The panel concluded that there were no known markets for that power, the need to bring that power to the island was not established, and there were alternate, economically viable and responsible ways to meet electricity demands. Government ignored its own expert panel."
These findings by the Joint Review Panel plainly contradicted the bulk of the argument put forth to justify the project. Needless to say, such findings would give any rational and responsible enterprise considerable pause. The enterprise in question, however, constituted the biggest capital works project in the history of the province, to be paid for and executed by Nalcor, "the people's energy company," with the people's money. Fair to say the stakes resting on responsible, rational due diligence could not possibly have been higher?
The only other body standing between the Project and its sanctioning was the aforementioned Public Utilities Board, whose task it was to assess whether Muskrat Falls was indeed, as claimed, the lowest-cost alternative. Their mandate more broadly was to oversee the setting of electricity rates, but as covered in part two of this series, this was legislatively overwritten in a bill exempting Muskrat Falls from the jurisdiction of the PUB; its sibling bill, equally draconian, completed the one-two punch by consolidating an electricity monopoly under Nalcor by forbidding commercial competition in renewable energy. The combined consequence is that NL ratepayers alone — without the help of promised but non-existent external markets — are on the hook for paying back the billions. To their credit (even if playing politics), the two opposition parties prompted a marathon filibuster to delay the passage of what Lorraine Michael called "two of the most dangerous bills ever presented in the provincial legislature," but alas, the Tory majority inevitably closed further debate.
As the PUB's deadline to submit their final report approached, it surfaced that Nalcor was in some cases withholding key information, and in others, releasing information without ample time for review. "It's been a torturous process," PUB chairman Andy Wells told CBC at the time. Their final report deemed the information supplied by Nalcor "inadequate," and on those grounds, adhering to their mandate to represent the public interest, refused to endorse the Project as the least-cost alternative. Premier Dunderdale responded by deriding the PUB in the House of Assembly, as if this quasi-judicial body was a mere partisan hack.
On December 15, 2012, with the urgent findings of the Joint Review Panel unresolved and the PUB to be legislated into irrelevance the following week, Muskrat Falls went to the legislature. Both opposition parties requested experts to testify and both were constrained. The government then sanctioned the largest expenditure in provincial history — though even as such, at an estimate that has since doubled, and whose real cost is utterly untold.
Revisiting these events reveals a true blackout in the integrity of our elected (and in the case of Nalcor, non-elected) leaders. At every step, the informed critiques and impartial evidence issuing from the democratic mechanisms which exist to protect the public were ignored, denied, or attacked, as a seemingly possessed government thwarted every check and balance to force this project into being by any means necessary.
The arrogance and irresponsibility of the sanctioning process is matched only by the depravity of its consequences: the massive indebting of a shrinking, aging population with very few economic prospects, and next month's subject, the majority indigenous Labradorians downstream whose ancestral culture and livelihood are under very real threat.
Greg Hewlett
More from Greg Hewlett
The Dam is Your Dam, This Dam is My Dam, Part 4: Justice Versus the Law
True, if methylmercury bioaccumulates to unsafe levels in the food chain, government...
This Dam is Your Dam, This Dam is My Dam; Part 6 of 6: Batten Down the Hatches
This Dam is Your Dam, This Dam Is My Dam, Part 5: Courting Catastrophe at North Spur
This Dam is Your Dam, This Dam is My Dam, Part 1: Unpacking Muskrat Falls
Complain about FPTP democracy all you like but Europe is essentially paralyzed by proportional representation and that alternative paves the way for all manner of far left and right fringe parties including Nazis and hard line Communists. Western democracy is an abject failure because it operates on a 4 year election cycle rather than the long term view, and because it is full of politicians who are only in it for themselves and the fat juicy pension for life they draw from it. Nobody in the system is obligated to be accountable for their vote or their actions and politicians know that in order to secure the maximum number of voters, they simply pitch the most average ideas to the most average people. There are no enlightened ideas amongst them, just more status quo. If politicians were made accountable for their actions, the crooked half would be in jail and the other half would see it for the liability it rightly is and want nothing to do with it.
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