Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force
Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force | |
---|---|
Active | 1914 |
Country | Australia |
Allegiance | British Empire |
Branch | Australian Army |
Type | Infantry |
Size | 2,000 men |
Engagements | World War I |
Commanders | |
Commander | Colonel William Holmes |
The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (AN&MEF) was a small volunteer force of approximately 2,000 men, raised in Australia shortly after the outbreak of World War I to seize and destroy German wireless stations in German New Guinea in the south-west Pacific. The German wireless installations were ordered to be destroyed because they were used by Vizeadmiral (Vice Admiral) Maximilian von Spee's East Asia Squadron of the Imperial German Navy, which threatened merchant shipping in the region. Following the capture of German possessions in the region, the AN&MEF provided occupation forces for the duration of the war. New Zealand provided a similar force for the occupation of German Samoa.
History
Formation
The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (AN&MEF) began forming following a request by the British government on 6 August 1914.
Under the overall command of Colonel
Landing at Rabaul
Off the eastern tip of New Guinea, the Berrima rendezvoused with Australia and the light cruiser HMAS Sydney plus some destroyers. Melbourne had been detached to destroy the wireless station on Nauru. The task force reached Rabaul on 11 September, finding the port free of German forces. Sydney and the destroyer HMAS Warrego landed small parties of naval reservists at the settlements of Kabakaul and the German gubernatorial capital Herbertshöhe (now Kokopo) on Neu-Pommern (now New Britain), south-east of Rabaul. These parties were reinforced firstly by sailors from Warrego and later by infantry from Berrima. A small 25-man force of naval reservists was subsequently landed at Kabakaul Bay and proceeded inland to capture the radio station believed to be in operation at Bita Paka, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) to the south.[10]
The Australians were resisted by a mixed force of German reservists and Melanesian native police, who forced them to fight their way to the objective. By nightfall the radio station was reached, and it was found to have been abandoned. The mast had been dropped but its instruments and machinery were still intact. During the fighting at Bita Paka seven Australians were killed and five wounded, while the defenders lost one German NCO and about 30 Melanesians killed, and one German and 10 Melanesians wounded. Later it was alleged that the heavy losses among the Melanesian troops was the result of the Australians bayoneting all those they had captured during the fighting.[11] As a result of this engagement Seaman W.G.V. Williams became the first Australian fatality of the war.[12]
At nightfall on 12 September, Berrima landed the AN&MEF infantry battalion at Rabaul. The following afternoon, despite the fact that the German governor had not surrendered the territory, a ceremony was carried out to signal the British occupation of New Britain. The German administration had withdrawn inland to Toma and at dawn on 14 September, HMAS Encounter bombarded a ridge near the town, while half a battalion advanced towards the town, supported by a field gun.[13]
German surrender
The show of Australian firepower was sufficient to start negotiations, ending the Siege of Toma. Terms were signed on 17 September and all military resistance ceased, with the remaining 40 German soldiers and 110 natives surrendering on 21 September.[14] The German colony at Madang on Kaiser-Wilhelmsland (the New Guinea mainland) was occupied on 24 September but the German auxiliary cruiser SMS Cormoran, which was lurking nearby, escaped undetected.[15] Over the next two months the remaining outposts were occupied. The terms of the surrender allowed the colony's governor, Dr Eduard Haber, to return to Germany while German civilians were allowed to remain as long as they swore an oath of neutrality. Those who refused were transported to Australia from where they could freely travel back to Germany.[16]
Although successful, the operation was not well managed, and the Australians had been effectively delayed by a half-trained force.[11] Regardless, the Australians had prevailed not least of all because of their unexpected ability to fight close terrain, while the outflanking of the German positions had unnerved their opponents.[17] The losses of the AN&MEF were light in the context of later operations but were sufficiently heavy given the relatively modest gain. These losses were further compounded by the disappearance of the Australian submarine HMAS AE1 during a patrol off Rabaul on 14 September, with 35 men aboard.[16]
Occupation
Following the capture of German possessions in the region, the AN&MEF provided occupation forces for the duration of the war.
Following the end of hostilities in November 1918 the role of the AN&MEF in the former German colonies in New Guinea had become primarily one of civil administration, although it continued to provide a garrison for the next two and a half years.[26] The military government continued until 1921 when Australia received a mandate from the League of Nations to govern the territory.[20] Although the AN&MEF had seen no further action following the initial seizure of the colony, in the years that followed the climate and a range of tropical diseases, such as malaria, had resulted in dozens of fatalities before the deployment concluded.[27][28] A total of 3,011 men served in the AN&MEF.[29] Although interrupted by Japanese occupation between 1942–45, Australian administration lasted until 1975 when Papua New Guinea gained its independence.[17]
Gallery
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The raising of the Australian flag on 16 December 1914 in Angoram, New Guinea.
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The submarine AE1 with other Australian ships off Rossel Island on 9 September 1914. On 14 September it disappeared during a patrol off Rabaul.
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The fleet, headed by the flagship Australia, entering Rabaul's Simpson Harbour on 12 September 1914.
Notes
Footnotes
- ^ The Kennedy Regiment had been under orders that in the event of war they were to reinforce the garrison on Thursday Island to prevent German military action there. Thus on the outbreak of the war, the regiment's officers had hastily mobilised it and requisitioned Kanowa under the Defence Act. Once they had arrived on the island, a call for volunteers for overseas service had been made and 500 men had responded. As such it was decided to retain the Kanowa to transport this force wherever it needed to go. The crew of the ship had not been consulted about whether or not they wished to participate in possible military action and as a result there was considerable discontentment amongst the crew on board. The force finally sailed on 7 September 1914, but shortly after leaving Port Moresby, Kanowa dropped out of the convoy when the stokers on board refused to work, stopping the ship dead in the water.[7]
Citations
- ^ Grey 2008, p. 86.
- ^ a b c d Grey 2008, p. 87.
- ^ Grey 2008, pp. 87–88.
- ^ MacKenzie 1941, pp. 25–28.
- ^ a b Kuring 2004, p. 44.
- ^ Mackenzie 1941, pp. 23–35.
- ^ Mackenzie 1941, pp. 31–32.
- ^ Mackenzie 1941, p. 32.
- ^ Mackenzie 1941, p. 31.
- ^ Coulthard-Clark 1998, p. 96.
- ^ a b Coulthard-Clark 1998, p. 97.
- ^ Calkins 2005, p. 881.
- ^ Bean 1946, p. 36.
- ^ Odgers 1994, p.42.
- ^ Bean 1946, p. 38.
- ^ a b Bean 1946, p. 37.
- ^ a b Grey 1999, p. 83.
- ^ Mackenzie 1941, pp. 105–126.
- ^ Harris 2017, p. 3
- ^ a b Dennis et al 2008, p. 235.
- ^ a b MacKenzie 1941, p. 189.
- ^ a b MacKenzie 1941, pp. 154–155.
- ^ Beaumont 1995, p. 8.
- ^ MacKenzie 1941, p. 24.
- ^ Rowley 1958, p. 18.
- ^ Rowley 1958, p. 30.
- ^ Threlfall 2008, p. 22.
- ^ Piggott 1988, p. 8.
- ^ "Enlistment statistics, First World War". Encyclopedia. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
References
- OCLC 220477286.
- ISBN 1-86373-461-9.
- Calkins, Laura (2005). "Pacific Islands Campaign". In Tucker, Spencer (ed.). World War I: A–D. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. pp. 881–882. ISBN 978-1-851-09420-2.
- Coulthard-Clark, Chris (1998). Where Australians Fought: The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles (1st ed.). St Leonards, New South Wales: Allen and Unwin. ISBN 978-1-86448-611-7.
- Dennis, Peter; Grey, Jeffrey; Morris, Ewan; Prior, Robin; Bou, Jean (2008). The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History (2nd ed.). Melbourne, Victoria: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-551784-2.
- ISBN 0-521-64483-6.
- Grey, Jeffrey (2008). A Military History of Australia (3rd ed.). Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-69791-0.
- Harris, Kirsty (2017). More than Bombs and Bandages: Australian Army Nurses at work in World War One. Sydney, New South Wales: Read How You Want. ISBN 978-1-45873-858-5.
- Kuring, Ian (2004). Redcoats to Cams: A History of Australian Infantry 1788–2001. Loftus, New South Wales: Australian Military History Publications. ISBN 1-876439-99-8.
- MacKenzie, Seaforth (1941). The Australians at Rabaul: The Capture and Administration of the German Possessions in the South Pacific. Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918. Vol. X (10th ed.). Sydney, New South Wales: Angus and Robertson. OCLC 12752502.
- ISBN 1-86302-669-X.
- Piggott, Michael (April 1988). "Stonewalling in German New Guinea". The Journal of the Australian War Memorial. 12. Canberra: Australian War Memorial: 3–15. ISSN 1327-0141.
- Rowley, Charles (1958). The Australians in German New Guinea 1914–1921. Carlton, Victoria: Melbourne University Press. OCLC 378150.
- Threlfall, Adrian (2008). The Development of Australian Army Jungle Warfare Doctrine and Training, 1941–1945 (PDF) (PhD thesis). Victoria University. OCLC 428961444.
Further reading
- OCLC 8029681.
- Fleming, Robert (2012). The Australian Army in World War I. Men at Arms. Oxford, United Kingdom: Osprey. ISBN 978-1849086325.
- Jose, Arthur (1941) [1928]. The Royal Australian Navy, 1914–1918. Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918. Vol. IX (9th ed.). Canberra: Australian War Memorial. OCLC 271462423.
- Steel, John (2015). "'Gavman bilong jerman I pinis! Taim bilong ol ostrelya em kamap na': The Australian Military Administration of German New Guinea, 1914–1921". Sabretache. LVI (1, March). Military Historical Society of Australia: 23–30. ISSN 0048-8933.