DOCSLIB.ORG

Diversions in a Tented Field

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

DIVERSIONS IN A TENTED FIELD Theatricality and the images and perceptions of warfare in Sydney entertainments, 1879-1902 by Ailsa McPherson A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Theatre, Film and Dance University of New South Wales. October, 2001. Two vol ume s : vol . 1 . `Some seek diversion in the tented field, And make the sorrows of mankind their sport. But war’s a game, which, were their subjects wise, Kings would not play at’. The Poetical Works of William Cowper, ed. by H. S. Milford (London: Frowde, 1911), The Task V, `The Winter Morning Walk', p. 204. 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I should like to acknowledge my deep indebtedness to my supervisors, Associate Professor Jim Davis and Dr. M argaret Williams of the School of Theatre, Film and Dance at the University of New South Wales. This thesis could not have been written without the guidance, knowledge and insight, as well as the stimulating challenges, which they have brought to my endeavours. I am grateful also to Dr. John Golder, Dr. George Kouvaros and Mr. John M cCallum. They have been all unfailingly supportive and generous in their attitude. A special debt is owed to Professor Robert Jordan, for his interest in this work and for his role in opening my doors of the mind. My research has been aided and made pleasant by the efficiency and courtesy of the staff at the (now disbanded) audio-visual section of the library of Macquarie University. I also extend my gratitude to the staff of the State Library of New South Wales, both in the general reference section and in the Mitchell collection; the Archives Office of New South Wales; the archives of the Council of the City of Sydney; the archives of the Australian War Memorial; and those of the libraries of the University of New South Wales, Sydney University and the National Library of Australia. Lastly I am indebted to my valued friends who, with kindness, perception, humour and tolerance, have supported me throughout this project. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Volume Page Introduction 1 8 Chapter 1. Displaying 1 35 Part 1: The Encampments 1 36 Part 2: The Sham Fights 1 87 Chapter 2. Committing 1 149 Chapter 3. Informing 1 243 Chapter 4. Accommodating 2 361 Chapter 5. Desiring 2 482 Conclusion 2 596 Chronology 2 602 Maps 2 606 Tables and Appendices 2 609 Appendix A: Songwriters 2 612 Appendix B: Lyrics 2 618 Appendix C: Poems 2 646 Appendix D: Plays 2 650 Bibliography 2 658 3 ILLUSTRATIONS AND MAPS Volume Page 1. Montage view of the Easter Encampment, 1885 1 79 2. Torpedo experiments at Middle Head, 1880 1 80 3. Visitors to the encampment, c 1890 1 81 4. The Bulletin's solution for objections raised to the Commissariat arrangements at the encampment, 1898 1 82 5. Impressions of the annual encampments i. `The Encampment Specimen' ii. `After mess, sentry, what do you mean by appearing on duty with so many heads. Most unsatisfactory' 1 83 6. Press perceptions of civilian visitors to the encampments i. `Civilians are not allowed to pass the line' ii. `Visiting days in camp' 1 84 iii. `Visitors to the camp kitchen' and `Feminine Curiosity' iv. `Some of the Lady Applicants for positions on the Head Quarters (sic) Staff' 1 85 7. `Waking the Commander, 10.20 a.m.' 1 86 8. Sham fight at La Perouse, with the defenders of the bridge in action, Easter 1888 1 141 9. `The Battle of Double Bay' 1880, with spectators 1 142 10. Sham fight at Middle Head, 1888 i. The landing of the Naval Brigade ii. `The repulse of the invaders' 1 143 11. `The Naval and Military Demonstration on Easter Monday, [1885]. View from Hornby Light' 1 144 12. Impressions of the sham fight at South Head, Easter 1885 1 145 4 Volume Page 13. Spectators boarding craft at Circular Quay to watch the naval sham fight, 12 April 1881 1 146 14. Montage of the naval sham fight, 12 April 1881 1 147 15. The Fort used for the sham fight presented by with the Indian contingent at the celebrations for Federation 1 148 16. `The N.S.W. Mouse and the Lion'. The Bulletin's assessment of the value of the New South Wales contribution to the Soudan conflict 1 233 17. `A Birthday Offering'. A youthful New South Wales receives Bushmen citizen-soldiers, Anniversary Day 1900 1 234 18. The military review prior to the departure of the Soudan Contingent 1 235 19. `An Australian Bushman Off to the War' 1 236 20. `New South Wales Aids the Old Land'. The embarkation parade of the Soudan contingent, March 1885 1 237 21. The departure of the ships carrying the Soudan Contingent, 1885 1 238 22. The parade of the First Boer War Contingent at Victoria Barracks prior to their embarkation for South Africa 1 239 23. `One Man One Nurse'. The Bulletin's comment on the engagement of nurses with the Second Contingent for the Boer War 1 240 24. One interpretation of the anticipated role of the Bushmen in the Boer War 1 241 25. The statue of the Right Hon. W.B. Dalley, P.C. in Hyde Park, decorated at the departure of the First Boer War Contingent 1 242 26. George Augustus Sala, 1885 1 349 5 Volume Page 27. Archibald Forbes `the War Correspondent', 1882 1 350 28. `Mr. Frederic Villiers, The Famous War Correspondent' 1 351 29. An evocation of the lecturing style of Donald Macdonald 1 352 30. Frederic Villiers' sketch of his encounter in South Africa with British troops who mistook him for a Boer 1 353 31. `N.S.W. Lancers acting as mounted infantry, covering the retirement of the 9th Lancers at the Battle of Belmont, November 1899. Sketched by Frederic Villiers' 1 354 32. `Colonial Troops commandeering a Boer Dinner', drawn from a sketch by Frederic Villiers 1 355 33. Advertisement for W. H. Thompson's `Mirror of the Zulu war', 1880 1 356 34. `Recovery of the Colors (sic) of 24th Regiment, Zulu wars, 1879'. A sketch by Lieutenant Henry Harford 1 357 35. Part of Paul Philippoteaux's painting of Pickett's Charge displayed as the Gettysburg cyclorama 1 358 36. `Bombardment of Alexandria. Fort Pharos Fighting the Fleet (From a sketch made by our artist on the spot - the right spot - his studio)', Bulletin 1882. 1 359 37. G. H. Snazelle 1 360 38. Nelson Illingworth's sculpture of a `Trooper in the Mounted Rifles' titled `When the Empire Calls', 1899 2 475 39. Illustration on the sheet music of `To the Front' 2 476 40. Illustration on the sheet music of `Bushmen to the Front' 2 477 41. Certificate acknowledging a contribution to the N.S.W. Patriotic Fund, May 1900 2 478 42. A proposed solution to the problem of targeting during performances of `The Absent Minded Beggar' 2 479 43. Impressions of the pantomime Little Red Riding Hood, Jan. 1900 2 480 6 Volume Page 44. The building on which Rider Haggard was supposed to have based `Jess's Cottage, Pretoria, Transvaal' 2 481 45. Returned soldiers at `South Africa Day' March 1902 2 586 46. The Bulletin's suggestions for a colonial Soudan medal, 1885 2 587 47. `New South Wales and the Soudan - Presenting Medals from the Imperial Government', 1886 2 588 48. The Duke of York presenting medals for service in South Africa, Sydney 1901 2 589 49. Montage of the `Combined Public Schools Patriotic Display', June 1900 2 590 50. `The Massed Bands at the Queen's Statue … Mafeking Celebrations in Sydney', June 1900 2 591 51. `Ye Olde Englishe Fayre', Garden Palace, April 1882 2 592 52. The Bulletin's comment on the rumour that Archbishop Moran had objected to a fund-raising ball for the Sisters of Charity on moral grounds, 1885 2 593 53. The Australian Ambulance Association's Bazaar, Sydney Town Hall, 1900 2 594 54. Detail of the tableaux vivant `Britannia and Her Dependencies', Lyceum Theatre, July 1900 2 595 Map i. Egypt and the Soudan 2 606 Map. ii. Southern Africa during the Boer War 2 607 M ap. iii. Sydney: from Paddington to the harbour, 1889 2 608 7 INTRODUCTION 8 This thesis explores the theatricality which accompanied the establishment, development and deployment of the colonial army in New South Wales during the last two decades of the nineteenth century. It investigates the transplantation to the colony of the military ethos existing in nineteenth century Britain. It then inquires into the ways both public performances accompanying the British institutions, conventions and traditions, and those demonstrating colonial commitment to Imperial wars in the Soudan and South Africa, were reinterpreted by the colonists. 1 It will be argued that, through this process of reinterpretation, there was a defining of the differences between colonial and Imperial perceptions, rather than a reinforcement of their similarities. It is proposed that this evolved to reflect two colonial cultural concepts. These generally ran in parallel, though on occasion they were intersecting. One of these perceptions was the ideal of service to the Imperial power. The other was that of national identity as defined by the relationship with Britain. Accompanying these perceptions, was a strand of colonial irreverence and self-deprecation toward both concepts. The ceremonies accompanying formal military training and engagement acted as a symbolic focus for national perceptions and Imperial commitment. They were also an outlet for the expression of the colonists’ idealisation of both perceptions.
Recommended publications
  • Bruce Beresford's Breaker Morant Re-Viewed

    Bruce Beresford's Breaker Morant Re-Viewed

    FILMHISTORIA Online Vol. 30, núm. 1 (2020) · ISSN: 2014-668X The Boers and the Breaker: Bruce Beresford’s Breaker Morant Re-Viewed ROBERT J. CARDULLO University of Michigan Abstract This essay is a re-viewing of Breaker Morant in the contexts of New Australian Cinema, the Boer War, Australian Federation, the genre of the military courtroom drama, and the directing career of Bruce Beresford. The author argues that the film is no simple platitudinous melodrama about military injustice—as it is still widely regarded by many—but instead a sterling dramatization of one of the most controversial episodes in Australian colonial history. The author argues, further, that Breaker Morant is also a sterling instance of “telescoping,” in which the film’s action, set in the past, is intended as a comment upon the world of the present—the present in this case being that of a twentieth-century guerrilla war known as the Vietnam “conflict.” Keywords: Breaker Morant; Bruce Beresford; New Australian Cinema; Boer War; Australian Federation; military courtroom drama. Resumen Este ensayo es una revisión del film Consejo de guerra (Breaker Morant, 1980) desde perspectivas como la del Nuevo Cine Australiano, la guerra de los boers, la Federación Australiana, el género del drama en una corte marcial y la trayectoria del realizador Bruce Beresford. El autor argumenta que la película no es un simple melodrama sobre la injusticia militar, como todavía es ampliamente considerado por muchos, sino una dramatización excelente de uno de los episodios más controvertidos en la historia colonial australiana. El director afirma, además, que Breaker Morant es también una excelente instancia de "telescopio", en el que la acción de la película, ambientada en el pasado, pretende ser una referencia al mundo del presente, en este caso es el de una guerra de guerrillas del siglo XX conocida como el "conflicto" de Vietnam.
  • British Regiments in Van Diemen's Land 1803 – 1870

    British Regiments in Van Diemen's Land 1803 – 1870

    Army Museum of Tasmania Anglesea Barracks HOBART Information Sheet No 11 British Regiments in Van Diemen’s Land 1803 – 1870 Initially settlements in Van Diemen’s Land (VDL) and New South Wales (NSW) were made with two objectives in mind, to deprive other countries, particularly France, of the land known as New Holland and to develop a penal colony. The role of protector of the new colony, administrator, judge, jury, architect, turnkey and works supervisor fell on 5the British soldier. During this period the number of soldiers stationed in VDL varied from a mere handful of the below listed regiments to a full regiment of about 400 all ranks. Regiment Territorial Titles Period of Service 102nd Regt. New South Wales Corps 1803 – 1810 Royal Marines 1804 – 1812 73rd Regt. 2nd Bn. Royal Highlanders 1810 – 1814 46th Regt. 2nd Bn. Duke of Cornwall’s Light Inf. 1814 – 1818 48th Regt. 1st Bn. Northampton Regt. 1817 – 1824 3rd Regt. East Kent Regt. 1823 – 1825 40th Regt. 2nd Bn. South Lancashire Regt. 1825 – 1830 57th Regt. 1st Bn. Middlesex Regt. 1825 – 1831 39th Regt. 1st Bn. Dorset Regt. 1828 – 1829 Royal Staff Corps 1826 – 1829 Royal Veterans Company 1826 – 1829 63rd Regt. 1st Bn. Manchester Regiment 1830 – 1834 17th Regt. Royal Leicestershire Regt. 1830 – 1832 4th Regt. Royal Lancashire Regt. 1831 – 1832 21st Regt. Royal Scots Fusiliers 1832 – 1840 50th Regt. 1st Bn. Royal West Kent Regt. 1834 – 1839 Royal Engineers 1837 – 1870 51st Regt. 1st Bn. Kings Owen Yorkshire Light Inf. 1838 – 1847 96th Regt. 2nd Bn. Manchester Regt. 1840 – 1849 11th Regt.
  • Canada Rebellion 1837 Mss

    Canada Rebellion 1837 Mss

    Canada Rebellion 1837 Mss. Coll. No. 55 .5 linear feet Historical note The Canadian Rebellion of 1837 was a movement in Lower Canada toward establishing a French Republic on the St. Lawrence River that was led by Louis Joseph Papineau. During the same year William Lyon MacKenzie led a similar armed revolt in Upper Canada which failed, he then fled to the United States and established headquarters on Navy Island on the Canadian side of the Niagara river and tried to continue the rebellion with the aid of sympathizers from the United States. Among the battles fought during the “Patriot War” was the 1838 Battle of the Windmill, November 12-16. Fought near Prescott, Ontario, across the St. Lawrence River from Ogdensburg, NY, some 300 ragtag, mostly U.S. invaders, attempted to cut off the communication lines of British troops by overtaking Fort Wellington in Prescott. The invasion was a complete failure, with only about 200 landing at Windmill Point. The insurgents were repelled by British regular troops, navy ships and local militia over the four day fight. 159 of the invading force were taken prisoner. The leader of the invaders, Nils Von Schoultz, was executed a few weeks later. Scope & contents This collection (formerly known as Patriots War Collection) consists of several original letters relating to the Battle of the Windmill plus photocopies of other letters, clippings, a list of Americans captured and photos of Windmill Point, Prescott, Ontario. Also included is an article "Mackenzies 1837 Rebellion" as well as copies of The New Yorker from 1838 and The Albion from 1835 to 1844 that contain relevant articles about the rebellion.
  • LAYING CLIO's GHOSTS on the SHORES of NEW HOLLAND* the Title Does Not Foreshadow an Ex

    LAYING CLIO's GHOSTS on the SHORES of NEW HOLLAND* the Title Does Not Foreshadow an Ex

    EMPTY HISTORICAL BOXES OF THE EARLY DAYS: LAYING CLIO'S GHOSTS ON THE SHORES OF NEW HOLLAND* By DUNCAN ~T ACC.ALU'M HE title does not foreshadow an exhumation of the village Hampdens, as Webb T called them,! buried on the shores of Botany Bay. In fact, they were probably thieves, but let their ;-emains rest in peace. No, the metaphor in the title is from an analogy from a memorable controversy in value theory in Economics. 2 The title was meant to suggest the need for giving some historical content to the emotions that have accompanied discussions of the early period. Some of the figures which seem to have been conjured up by historical writers have been given malignancy but 110t identity. Yet these faceless men of the past, and the roles for which they have been cast, seem to distort the play of life. And indeed, it is perhaps because the historical boxes have remained unfilled, and because the background-the rest of the play and action-has not been fully explored, that some people of the early period, well known to us by name, have been interpreted in the light of twentieth-century prejudice and political controversy. We know all too little about the quality of day-to-day life in early Australia, the spiritual and material existence of the early Europeans, their energies, their activities and outlook. In the first stage of an inquiry I have been pursuing into our early social history, I am concerned not with these more elusive yet in a way more interesting questions, but in what sort of colony it was with the officers, the gaol and the port.
  • The British Concentration Camp Policy During the Anglo-Boer War

    The British Concentration Camp Policy During the Anglo-Boer War

    Barbaric methods in the Anglo-Boer War Using Barbaric Methods in South Africa: The British Concentration Camp Policy during the Anglo-Boer War James Robbins Jewell. The Boer War, which is frequently referred to as Britain's Vietnam or Afghanistan, was marked by gross miscalculations on the part of both British military and political leaders. In their efforts to subdue the Boers, Britain used more troops, spent more money, and buried more soldiers than anytime between the Napoleonic wars and World War I - a century during which it had been busy expanding its empire. Despite the miscalculations, lapses in judgement, and blatant stupidity demonstrated throughout the war by the British leaders, historically speaking, one policy remains far more notorious than any other. Unable to bring the war to a conclusion through traditional fighting, the British military, and in particular the two men who were in command, Frederick, Baron Roberts and Herbert, Baron Kitchener, responded to the Boer use of guerilla warfare by instituting a scorched earth combined with a concentration camp policy.! Nearly forty years later, Lord Kitchener's decision to institute a full-scale concentration camp strategy came back to haunt the British. On the eve of the Second World War, when a British ambassador to Gernlany protested Nazi camps, Herman Goering rebuffed the criticism by pulling out an encyclopedia and looking up the entry for concentration camps, which credited the British with being the first to use them in the Boer War.2 Under the scrutiny that comes with the passage of time, the concentration camp policy has rightfully been viewed as not only inhumane, but hopelessly flawed.
  • In the Lands of the Romanovs: an Annotated Bibliography of First-Hand English-Language Accounts of the Russian Empire

    In the Lands of the Romanovs: an Annotated Bibliography of First-Hand English-Language Accounts of the Russian Empire

    ANTHONY CROSS In the Lands of the Romanovs An Annotated Bibliography of First-hand English-language Accounts of The Russian Empire (1613-1917) OpenBook Publishers To access digital resources including: blog posts videos online appendices and to purchase copies of this book in: hardback paperback ebook editions Go to: https://www.openbookpublishers.com/product/268 Open Book Publishers is a non-profit independent initiative. We rely on sales and donations to continue publishing high-quality academic works. In the Lands of the Romanovs An Annotated Bibliography of First-hand English-language Accounts of the Russian Empire (1613-1917) Anthony Cross http://www.openbookpublishers.com © 2014 Anthony Cross The text of this book is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license (CC BY 4.0). This license allows you to share, copy, distribute and transmit the text; to adapt it and to make commercial use of it providing that attribution is made to the author (but not in any way that suggests that he endorses you or your use of the work). Attribution should include the following information: Cross, Anthony, In the Land of the Romanovs: An Annotated Bibliography of First-hand English-language Accounts of the Russian Empire (1613-1917), Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers, 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.11647/ OBP.0042 Please see the list of illustrations for attribution relating to individual images. Every effort has been made to identify and contact copyright holders and any omissions or errors will be corrected if notification is made to the publisher. As for the rights of the images from Wikimedia Commons, please refer to the Wikimedia website (for each image, the link to the relevant page can be found in the list of illustrations).
  • The Making of White Australia

    The Making of White Australia

    The making of White Australia: Ruling class agendas, 1876-1888 Philip Gavin Griffiths A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of The Australian National University December 2006 I declare that the material contained in this thesis is entirely my own work, except where due and accurate acknowledgement of another source has been made. Philip Gavin Griffiths Page v Contents Acknowledgements ix Abbreviations xiii Abstract xv Chapter 1 Introduction 1 A review of the literature 4 A ruling class policy? 27 Methodology 35 Summary of thesis argument 41 Organisation of the thesis 47 A note on words and comparisons 50 Chapter 2 Class analysis and colonial Australia 53 Marxism and class analysis 54 An Australian ruling class? 61 Challenges to Marxism 76 A Marxist theory of racism 87 Chapter 3 Chinese people as a strategic threat 97 Gold as a lever for colonisation 105 The Queensland anti-Chinese laws of 1876-77 110 The ‘dangers’ of a relatively unsettled colonial settler state 126 The Queensland ruling class galvanised behind restrictive legislation 131 Conclusion 135 Page vi Chapter 4 The spectre of slavery, or, who will do ‘our’ work in the tropics? 137 The political economy of anti-slavery 142 Indentured labour: The new slavery? 149 The controversy over Pacific Islander ‘slavery’ 152 A racially-divided working class: The real spectre of slavery 166 Chinese people as carriers of slavery 171 The ruling class dilemma: Who will do ‘our’ work in the tropics? 176 A divided continent? Parkes proposes to unite the south 183 Conclusion
  • Iv: the Allan Wilkie Shakespearean Company, 1920-1926

    Iv: the Allan Wilkie Shakespearean Company, 1920-1926

    IV: THE ALLAN WILKIE SHAKESPEAREAN COMPANY, 1920-1926 "Our True Intent is all for Your Delight." In September 1920, Allan Wilkie announced his plans to establish Australia's first permanent Shakespearean company, drawing a parallel to Frank Benson's Company in England. The inaugural production by the new Allan Wilkie Shakespearean Company was to be a "new arrangement" of Macbeth, and Wilkie gave it as his fixed intention to produce all thirty-seven of Shakespeare's plays, some of which had never previously been staged in Australia." Advance publicity emphasized the potentially historic nature of the occasion: When in future years this company will be counted one of the institutions of which Australia is proud, those who attend on the opening night will tell with satisfaction how they were present during the enthusiastic hours which saw the inception of the company [Argus, 9 September 1920]. Many cynics were quick to point out the unlikelihood of Wilkie's venture surviving for long, or even getting off the ground, in view of the history of Shakespeare production in Australia. His was by no means the first proposal to establish a permanent company, but lack of demand had ended all previous efforts. In order to arouse audience curiosity, Wilkie advertised, as mentioned above, a "new arrangement" of Macbeth. His presentation was to have two novel aspects, which were to form the basis of his production methods in the years to come. They were interdependent: first, a new method of scenic arrangement, and second, a new organisation of the play, made possible by simplified scenery.
  • Intercolonial Convention, 1883

    Intercolonial Convention, 1883

    (No. 3.) . 1883. SESSION II. TASMAN I A. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. INTERCOLONIAL CONVENTION, 1883: REPORT OF THE PROCEEDINGS. Laid upon the Table by Mr. Moore, and ordered by the Council to be printed,. _18 December, l 883. - • I 1888. NEW SOUTH WALES. INTERCOLONIAL CONVENTION, 1883. REPQRT OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE INTERCOLONIAL. CONVENTION, . HELD IN SYDNEY, IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER, 1883. 1. MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS. 2. CORRESPONDENCE LAID BEFORE THE CONVENTION. 3. P .A.PERS LAID BEFORE THE CONVENTION. f:lYDNEY : THO~AS RICHARDS, GOVERN~1ENT PRINTElt. 1883. * 831- ,_ MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS OF TIIE INTERCOLONIAL c·oNVENTION, 1'883) HELD IN SYDNEY, NOVEMBEBr-DEOEMBER, 1883. At the Colonial Secretary's Office, Sydney. 28th NOVEMBER, 1883 . .(First Day.) THE undermentioned_ Gentlemen, Representatives of the Colonies of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, New Zealand, Tasmania, and Western Australia were present, and handed in their Commissions, which having been read, it was resolved that their substance should be published. New Sontli Wales: THE HoNORABLE ALEXANDER STUART, M.P., Premier ancl I Colonial Secretary. THE HoNORABLE GEORGE RICHARD DrnBs, M.P., Colonial Treasurer. THE HoNORABLE WILLIAM BEDE DALLEY, Q.C., M.L.C., A ttorney-_General. New Zeceland : THE HoNORABLE MAJOR HARRY ALmmT ATKINSON, M.P., Premier and Colonial Treasurer. THE HoNoRABLE ]'mmERICK WrrrTAKER, M.L.C., late Premier and Attorney-General. 'Queensland: TrrE HoNORABLE SAllIUEL WALKER GRIFr'ITIT, Q.C., M.P., Premier and Colonial Secretary. _ T1rn HoNORABLE JAMES FRANCIS GARRICK, Q.C., nf.L.C., Postmaster General. Soutli Australia : THE HoNoRABLE JOHN Cox BRAY, M.P., Premier and Chief Secretary.
  • RECONNAISSANCE Autumn 2021 Final

    RECONNAISSANCE Autumn 2021 Final

    Number 45 | Autumn 2021 RECONNAISSANCE The Magazine of the Military History Society of New South Wales Inc ISSN 2208-6234 BREAKER MORANT: The Case for A Pardon Battle of Isandlwana Women’s Wartime Service Reviews: Soviet Sniper, Villers-Bretonneux, Tragedy at Evian, Atom Bomb RECONNAISSANCE | AUTUMN 2021 RECONNAISSANCE Contents ISSN 2208-6234 Number 45 | Autumn 2021 Page The Magazine of the Military History Society of NSW Incorporated President’s Message 1 Number 45 | Autumn 2021 (June 2021) Notice of Next Lecture 3 PATRON: Major General the Honourable Military History Calendar 4 Justice Paul Brereton AM RFD PRESIDENT: Robert Muscat From the Editor 6 VICE PRESIDENT: Seumas Tan COVER FEATURE Breaker Morant: The Case for a Pardon 7 TREASURER: Robert Muscat By James Unkles COUNCIL MEMBERS: Danesh Bamji, RETROSPECTIVE Frances Cairns 16 The Battle of Isandlwana PUBLIC OFFICER/EDITOR: John Muscat By Steve Hart Cover image: Breaker Morant IN FOCUS Women’s Wartime Service Part 1: Military Address: PO Box 929, Rozelle NSW 2039 26 Service By Dr JK Haken Telephone: 0419 698 783 Email: [email protected] BOOK REVIEWS Yulia Zhukova’s Girl With A Sniper Rifle, review 28 Website: militaryhistorynsw.com.au by Joe Poprzeczny Peter Edgar’s Counter Attack: Villers- 31 Blog: militaryhistorysocietynsw.blogspot.com Bretonneux, review by John Muscat Facebook: fb.me/MHSNSW Tony Matthews’ Tragedy at Evian, review by 37 David Martin Twitter: https://twitter.com/MHS_NSW Tom Lewis’ Atomic Salvation, review by Mark 38 Moore. Trove: https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-532012013 © All material appearing in Reconnaissance is copyright. President’s Message Vice President, Danesh Bamji and Frances Cairns on their election as Council Members and John Dear Members, Muscat on his election as Public Officer.
  • Sydney Is Singularly Fortunate in That, Unlike Other Australian Cities, Its Newspaper History Has Been Well Documented

    Sydney Is Singularly Fortunate in That, Unlike Other Australian Cities, Its Newspaper History Has Been Well Documented

    Two hundred years of Sydney newspapers: A SHORT HISTORY By Victor Isaacs and Rod Kirkpatrick 1 This booklet, Two Hundreds Years of Sydney Newspapers: A Short History, has been produced to mark the bicentenary of publication of the first Australian newspaper, the Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, on 5 March 1803 and to provide a souvenir for those attending the Australian Newspaper Press Bicentenary Symposium at the State Library of New South Wales, Sydney, on 1 March 2003. The Australian Newspaper History Group convened the symposium and records it gratitude to the following sponsors: • John Fairfax Holdings Ltd, publisher of Australia’s oldest newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald • Paper World Pty Ltd, of Melbourne, suppliers of original newspapers from the past • RMIT University’s School of Applied Communication, Melbourne • The Printing Industries Association of Australia • The Graphic Arts Merchants Association of Australia • Rural Press Ltd, the major publisher of regional newspapers throughout Australia • The State Library of New South Wales Printed in February 2003 by Rural Press Ltd, North Richmond, New South Wales, with the assistance of the Printing Industries Association of Australia. 2 Introduction Sydney is singularly fortunate in that, unlike other Australian cities, its newspaper history has been well documented. Hence, most of this short history of Sydney’s newspapers is derived from secondary sources, not from original research. Through the comprehensive listing of relevant books at the end of this booklet, grateful acknowledgement is made to the writers, and especially to Robin Walker, Gavin Souter and Bridget Griffen-Foley whose work has been used extensively.
  • AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER HISTORY GROUP NEWSLETTER ISSN 1443-4962 No

    AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER HISTORY GROUP NEWSLETTER ISSN 1443-4962 No

    AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER HISTORY GROUP NEWSLETTER ISSN 1443-4962 No. 49 October 2008 Compiled for the ANHG by Rod Kirkpatrick, 59 Emperor Drive, Andergrove, Qld, 4740, and Victor Isaacs, of Canberra. Ph. 61-7-4955 7838. Email: [email protected] The publication is independent. COPY DEADLINE AND WEBSITE ADDRESS Deadline for the next Newsletter: 5 December 2008. Subscription details appear at end of Newsletter. [Number 1 appeared October 1999.] The Newsletter is online through the “Publications” link of the University of Queensland’s School of Journalism & Communication Website at www.uq.edu.au/sjc/ and through the ePrint Archives at the University of Queensland at http://espace.uq.edu.au/) 1 – CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS: NATIONAL & METROPOLITAN 49.1.1 THE BIG PURGE AT FAIRFAX Fairfax Media Ltd announced on 26 August that it planned to shed 550 jobs, 180 of them belonging to journalists (390 of the jobs are Australian and 160 are New Zealand jobs). Fairfax did not announce it quite as bluntly as that, instead describing its action within the context of a “business improvement plan”. It sent an email to all its employees, announcing “a major restructure of corporate and group services and significant initiatives to improve the overall productivity and performance of many of our businesses”. John Lyons, a former Fairfax editor, and Caroline Overington reported (Australian, 27 August 2008, pp.1-2): “Fairfax Media is abandoning quality journalism at its flagship newspapers, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age, according to staff who yesterday rejected a company plan to shed 550 jobs. Chief executive David Kirk and his deputy Brian McCarthy told the Australian Stock Exchange and newspaper staff via email yesterday that Fairfax hoped to save $50 million by cutting the jobs in Sydney, Melbourne and New Zealand – 5 per cent of its full- time workforce.” The company‟s metropolitan newspapers recorded a 9 per cent drop in profit in 2007-08.