Introduction
World War 1 (1914-1918) is commonly known as The Great War or The War to End All Wars. The war was triggered on 28 June 1914, when a Slav nationalist assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and his wife. By Austria-Hungary, this murder was seen as a great excuse to attack their neighbour Serbia, so they declared war exactly one month later (July 28, 1914). In reality, these two nations were the only ones involved within this dispute, but it did not stop there. Prior to the incident, Austria-Hungary had formed an alliance with Germany and Italy (the 1882 Triple Alliance). There was also the 1907 Triple Entente consisting of Britain, France and Russia. All British colonies and dominions including India, Australia and New Zealand were automatically a part of the Triple Entente. As a result of these global alliances, the relatively small conflict between Serbia and Austria-Hungary had become a worldwide battle between numerous countries.
Although Australia was geographically isolated from the conflicts between the European countries, it was still a crucial part of the war. This was because of its connection to the British Empire, resulting in Australia promising to do whatever possible to help its mother country. At the time Australia was only 13 years old and had a population of less than 5 million. As Australia had not been greatly involved in war prior to WW1, the population had little understanding of what war meant. Consequently, war was perceived to be glorious, exciting and heroic, especially to young boys who had grown up with military stories that rarely included death or despair. So, thousands of men had hurried to enlist in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), worrying only that the war may end before they had a chance to participate.
This website focuses on how the women of Australia were involved in Australia’s war effort, both on the home front and in the middle of the action overseas.
Although Australia was geographically isolated from the conflicts between the European countries, it was still a crucial part of the war. This was because of its connection to the British Empire, resulting in Australia promising to do whatever possible to help its mother country. At the time Australia was only 13 years old and had a population of less than 5 million. As Australia had not been greatly involved in war prior to WW1, the population had little understanding of what war meant. Consequently, war was perceived to be glorious, exciting and heroic, especially to young boys who had grown up with military stories that rarely included death or despair. So, thousands of men had hurried to enlist in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), worrying only that the war may end before they had a chance to participate.
This website focuses on how the women of Australia were involved in Australia’s war effort, both on the home front and in the middle of the action overseas.