Australia is at War - 839 Words

‘Australia is at War’ is a primary source from the year 1939 and is a speech by renowned Prime Minister Robert Gordon Menzies (1894 – 1978). This speech was delivered at the beginning of World War II declaring Australia’s participation and assistance to its â€Å"Mother Land†, Great Britain. World War II was developed and initiated by the infamous Adolf Hitler, a notorious German leader and the head of the Nazis. German’s invasion of Poland initiated Great Britain’s move towards force rather than their original approach of negotiations and peace, as stated in Prime Minister Menzies’ speech, â€Å"they [Great Britain] have kept the door of negotiations open; they have given no cause for provocation.† So the purpose of this source, Menzies speech,†¦show more content†¦As this primary source originated from an Australian it excludes what the speaker would foresee as ‘irrelevant’ information from the pers pective of how Hitler saw his actions and believed he was doing a great good to the world rather than evil. Menzies biased views cloud this source from being completely accurate. For instance this source does not describe that happenings of what is occurring in Germany or the reason why Germany invaded Poland. Therefore this source could be classified as trustworthy only to an extent, because of the biased views of Prime Minister Gordon Menzies. A biography of Robert Menzies life, Robert Menzies: A Life, written by valid Australian historian Allan Martin, assists to verify Menzies speech ‘Australia is at War’. This biography of his life corroborates with his speech allowing readers to have an insight into his life and character and revealing the trustworthiness of his speech. This biography goes into great depths of what the Australian Government and Menzies were dealing with and the measures they took to assist Great Britain in the war, supporting Menzies broadcast in 1939. Another memorable and well-founded Australian author, Joan Beaumont, edited the book, Australia’s War, which also exhibits a perception of Australia and its participation in World War II.Show MoreRelatedAustralia in the Vietnam War Essay692 Words   |  3 PagesThe only time Australia has come under direct attack from another country, was when Japan bombed Darwin and sunk a number of ships in Sydney, during World War 2. 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