Remembering 1942

The Battle of El Alamein, 23 October 1942

El Alamein was one of the great battles of the Second World War, and is frequently described as a turning-point of that conflict.

• Roll of Honour talk, presented by Dr Mark Johnston on 23 October 2002 in the Courtyard Gallery at the Memorial. Dr Mark Johnston is Head of History at Scotch College, Melbourne. An authority on the Australian army in the Second World War, he has previously published At the Front Line, Fighting the Enemy and That Magnificent 9th. With Dr Peter Stanley, the Memorial's Principal Historian, he has co-written Alamein: the Australian Story , which was launched at the Memorial on 23 October 2002, the 60th anniversary of the opening of the battle. (transcript and audio)

• Documents from the collection: An entry from the war diary of 2/48th Battalion, casualty report for AIF units, brief account of the service of Private Jackson, 2/15th Battalion AIF, a report on the planning and execution of the Battle of El Alamein, Map from the 2/32nd unit war diary, a speech delivered by the Commander-in-Chief Middle East, General Sir Harold Alexander and a map of allied and enemy dispositions on the night of 23–24 October 1942.

• Education Activity: Learn about the living conditions of soldiers at El Alamein by examining a photo taken in the forward area on the El Alamein front.