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Essay On Australia's Involvement In Ww2

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In World War II (1939-1942), Australia was increasingly threatened by Japan’s advance towards its Homefront. Australia’s involvement in World War II as Britain’s colonial state was significant and the fall of Singapore is a moment that has been frozen in history for its sheer adversity. Japanese aggression towards western countries escalated in World War II and the fall of Singapore in 1942, led to the capture of 15,000 Australians who became prisoners of war of the Japanese. Australian troops were imprisoned within Asia in places such as Sandakan in Borneo, Changi in Singapore and camps along the Thai-Burma railway. The experiences of these prisoners and the qualities they exhibited have become a vital part of Australian history, however, …show more content…

Japan had been humiliated by its allies at the Treaty of Versailles as The United States had vetoed any discussion about racial equality. The United States had also forced Japan to sign an unfair treaty in 1853, controlling their trade and resources. When Japan suffered economic depression in the 1930’s, Japan attacked China for resources. The United States and Britain were against the expansion of Japan, angering the once-reclusive country (Sczcepanski, 2017, online). Japan turned to new countries for resources including countries in the Pacific and Australia. Australia, however, had little confidence in Japan’s military capability as Australians saw Asians as inferior. This belief carried on throughout World War II (Smith, n.d, online). Stan Arneil, an Australian prisoner of war, …show more content…

Without the ANZACs, most soldiers in World War II would not have enlisted and they would not have been perceived internationally as brave (Morgan, 2017, online). Majority of the prisoners, through traumatized, returned safely home, unlike the Gallipoli campaign. Australians were also more worried about defending the Homefront due to the threatening advance of the Japanese, and Australia was facing hardships concerning its allies, turning to the U.S for guidance and abandoning Britain (Anzac Portal, n.d., online). This international and domestic turmoil caused Australians to worry less about their captured soldiers. Australian prisoners, though integral to the Australian history, their legacy will always be associated with the legacy that created Australia; the ANZAC

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