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  5. Australia under attack: Australia bombed, strafed ...
  6. Australia under attack: Curtin’s call to action

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Australia under attack: Curtin’s call to action

  • Introduction
  • Under attack
  • Mobilisation
  • The End in sight

 

The Australian Labor Party under Prime Minister John Curtin took government in October 1941. Soon after Japan entered the Pacific war, the Curtin government declared that Australians faced “the gravest hour of our history”. Curtin asked “every Australian, man and woman, to go about their allotted task with full vigor and courage.”

As Japanese forces attacked northern Australia, the government encouraged the belief that the country was in imminent danger of invasion, as a means of encouraging all Australians, even those in the cities of the south, to embrace civil defence. But even while encouraging the threat of invasion, the government imposed strict censorship on the details of the attacks, as they felt the public might panic if they knew the truth.

Collection Item C276246

Accession Number: SUK12097

Prime Minister John Curtin

Collection Item C167149

Accession Number: ART22195

Barbed wire entanglements

Under attack

  • Darwin, 19 February 1942
    • Citations for bravery
    • A family tragedy
  • Australia reacts
  • Broome, 3 March 1942
  • Sydney, June 1942
    • Midget submarines on tour
  • Townsville, July 1942
  • Attacks in Australian waters
  • Internees and prisoners of war

Last updated: 2 December 2019

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The Australian War Memorial acknowledges the traditional custodians of country throughout Australia. We recognise their continuing connection to land, sea and waters. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
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Fairbairn Avenue
Campbell ACT 2612
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The Australian War Memorial

Fairbairn Avenue

Campbell ACT 2612

Australia

 

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In preparation for the daily Last Post Ceremony,

galleries are progressively closed from 3:40 pm.

 

Public entrance via Fairbairn Avenue, Campbell ACT 2612

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