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Abstract With this account of his time in Afghanistan, the author describes some of the challenges of ‘contested nation-building’ in that country. This article explores the difficulties of developing civilian capacity while also participating in a counterinsurgency campaign. The author contends that Coalition military forces in Afghanistan must remain responsive to the needs and directions of the fledgling national government while developing the infrastructure required for law and order. Peace will come …
Abstract While a tactical defeat for the Communists, the Tet Offensive is acknowledged as the turning point of the Vietnam War that ultimately led to the fall of South Vietnam. Forty years on, this article examines why the Tet Offensive was such an important event, and reassesses its legacy, especially as it relates to the use of military force today. January marked the fortieth anniversary of the 1968 Tet Offensive. This event proved to be the turning point of the Vietnam War and its effects were …
To the Editors It’s a pity that Brigadier John Essex-Clark did not read Paul Hams Vietnam — The Australian War with a more critical eye (Australian Army Journal, Summer 2007). The book holds too many errors that range from the silly to the serious for it to be classified as a ‘history students textbook’. There is no doubt that Paul Ham can write well and what he has written is easy to read. One expects, however, that the narrative and its references be reliable. This is where Vietnam fails the test. The …
The Artist and the Warrior: Military History through the Eyes of the Masters Written by: Theodore K. Raab, Yale University Press, 2011, ISBN: 9780300126372, 228 pp Reviewed by: Dr Claire Baddeley, Senior Curator of Art, Australian War Memorial The preoccupation with war and its representation has long been the subject matter of artists. Whether recording battles or the heroism and suffering of war’s protagonists, artists have depicted conflict in its many forms over the centuries. From early images in …
Anzacs in the Middle East: Australian soldiers, their allies and the local people in World War II Written by: Mark Johnston, Cambridge University Press, Melbourne, 2013, ISBN: 9781107030961, 255 pp Reviewed by: Tristan Moss, PhD student, Australian National University During the first half of the Second World War, three Australian divisions and thousands of support troops played an important role in the war against Italy and Germany. Over a period of three years, Australian soldiers campaigned or were …
Defense Acquisition Reform 1960–2009: An Elusive Goal Written by: J. Ronald Fox, Center of Military History United States Army, Washington, D.C., 2011, ISBN: 9780160866975, 268 pp.1 Reviewed by: Scott Richardson, Land Warfare Studies Centre As may be expected, a book entitled Defence Acquisition Reform 1960–2009: An Elusive Goal is unlikely to attract a wide audience of avid readers. An account of United States (US) Department of Defense efforts at procure-ment reform compiled by J. Ronald Fox, a …
The Battle for Lone Pine: Four Days of Hell at the Heart of Gallipoli Written by: David W. Cameron, Viking, 2012, ISBN: 9780143572114, 386 pp Reviewed by: Dr Karl James, Australian War Memorial Built on the heart of the old battlefield, Lone Pine Cemetery on Gallipoli Peninsula is today a place of contemplation and reflection. It contains the remains of over 1100 Commonwealth servicemen including 182 Australians killed in the area, mostly during August 1915, and who are known or believed to be buried …
Hell’s Battlefield: The Australians in New Guinea in World War II Written by: Phillip Bradley, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2012, ISBN: 9781743317556, 506 pp Reviewed by: John Moremon, Centre for Defence and Security Studies, Massey University Close to 20 years ago, Peter Stanley, the respected and industrious historian who nowadays heads the Centre for Historical Research at the National Museum of Australia, declared that there was a ‘green hole’ in Australian military historiography. He noted that the …
Exit Wounds: One Australian’s War on Terror Written by: Major General John Cantwell (Retd) with Greg Bearup, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 2012, ISBN: 9780522861785, 374 pp Reviewed by: Dr John Blaxland, Senior Fellow, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre Wow! This book is hard to put down. At first I was a bit reluctant to purchase a copy, assuming from the cover that the book was a little self-indulgent. After all, Major General John Cantwell had a dream career and one that many others …
