Australian International History - Essay Example

Australian International History The first decade of the twentieth century heralded a sea of changes is the political and economical face of the world. Chief among these were the weakening of Britain's world dominance in imperialist strength and the rise of industrial nations like Germany, Japan and America that started to pose a challenge to Britain, not only in the fields of industry and political might but more importantly in the sphere of military might as well. Australia had been dependent on Great Britain in the period before these changes, however, the policies of the Australian government too soon changed o adapt to the changing world around it. Although in the last two decades of the nineteenth century which saw the rise of Australian nationalism as an ideology, it had seemed that the social and political atmosphere in Australia would lead to a point where Britain would cease to have a presence in the pacific and Australia would cease to recognize itself as a part of the imperial empire, but, by the dawn of the twentieth century it was apparent that as long as Britain possessed the military strength to protect it's European and pacific interests, Australia would still be under the umbrella of the empire and not completely control it's own foreign policy. In the words of B.R. Wise, "I certainly did not anticipate at the time (1888), that in such short a period of twelve years, the then prevalent indifference on the part of Great Britain and suspicion on ours would have given place to the mutual confidence which is now so significant of the relations between the two countries."[1] In short, the Australian masses no longer felt a need for separation from the empire, but rather wanted to be allied with it rather than completely dependent on it. Australians shared what the [1].Grimshaw, Charles, 1958, Australian nationalism and the imperial connection 1900-1914. The Australian journal of politics and history, Vol III no.1, May1958 pp161-182 called "the crimson thread of kinship"[2] with the British, this basically meant that most Australians could trace their roots to the United Kingdom, be it England, Ireland or New Wales, however, in Australia, developed a mix of nationalism and imperialism. The militarizations of Europe posed many threats to Australia and slowly lead to the rise of Australian Nationalism and in time to the formation of a navy under the command of the Commonwealth government in 1909. These events mainly shaped the Australian foreign policy in the period of 1900-1914. According to Paul Kelly, the early commonwealth period saw the establishment of 'The Australian Settlement' comprising five planks: 1. White Australia 2. Industry Protection 3. Wage Arbitration 4. State Paternalism 5. Imperial Benevolences[3] It aimed to create an environment that would be a modified version of capitalism which would function under the already existing imperial machine. The empire was to be responsible to ensure that racial purity (the concept of White Australia) would be protected and enforced and also provide the Commonwealth with the markets and work force for it to establish its presence and develop its resources. However, this goal was easier set than achieved, for Japan allied with Britain in 1902 and even though the British Forces provided the main defences for Australia, [2]. Paul Kelly, The Elf Certainty: The Story of the 19805, Allen & Unwin, St. Leonards (NSW), 1992, pp. 1-2 [3]. Paul Kelly, The Elf Certainty: The Story of the 19805, Allen & Unwin, St. Leonards (NSW), 1992, pp. 1-2 Britain itself was being challenged by Germany in the northern hemisphere, which left it weak in the pacific and the Commonwealth government anticipated that it may be left dependent on Japan for its defence. This in itself proved to be a challenge to the concept of White Australia as this policy aimed to exclude coloured people from Australia and that included the Asians. Even in being dependent on solely the British Empire, the White Australia policy faced many challenges as the majority of the empire was made up of coloured races and the empire did not wish to sour it's relations with Japan, which as has been already been mentioned, was an ally of the Empire. The first key event in the period came in the form of the Naval Agreement of 1903 which was made between the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth of Australia, and New Zealand. This Agreement established a single navy under one authority, mainly that of the United Kingdom. This naval force was to be based at the naval stations of Australia and New Zealand and to operate in the waters of Australia, China and the East-Indies, however, it did allow for other naval reserves to be called into action should the need arise. The officers manning the naval ships too were instated as officers of the Royal Navy. Although the Australian government did have a say in it's functioning, the real power still lay with the Empire as is clear from this extract from the agreement: "The branches of the Royal Naval Reserve established in Australia and New Zealand shall be called into actual service by His Majesty in Council, acting on the advice of his Governments of the Commonwealth of Australia and New Zealand respectively."[4] [4].G.Greenwood, C.grimshaw, Documents on Australian International Affairs, 1901-1918, Melbourne 1997, pp119-122. In the month of May in the year 1905, the Japanese forces won a landmark victory against Russia At Tsushima and soon became the chief cause of concern for Australian defences. This resulted in an increased expenditure by the Australian government to strengthen its military and navy. The threat of German forces coming to a standoff against the British fleet would leave Australia susceptible and poorly defended in the pacific against the Japanese forces should they choose to simultaneously challenge the imperial navy. These concerns lead to the formation of the National Defence League which pushed for compulsory military training for all men in the Commonwealth of Australia. It was William Morris Hughes, who was a leading Labour politician at the time who was mainly active in promoting this policy. This policy was brought into effect in 1908 when the Deakin Government made a three year military training compulsory for all men who were 18 years old. [5] In 1907 the Imperial Conference was held and Britain asked it's dominions to unite and create a single Imperial general staff which would be located in London, it was also suggested that the Australian government allow soldiers to volunteer to serve oversees in the event of a war involving the Empire. The conference also laid the foundation for the establishment of the Royal Australian Navy. The First Lord Of the Admiralty, Baron Tweedmouth in his speech at the conference, recognised the need felt by the self-governing colonies like Australia and South Africa to start their own naval defence systems and suggested that the smaller vessels required by the Royal Navy could be made locally available and also suggested that vessels like submarines and other small vessels could prove to be helpful to the Royal Navy in the event of War. [5]. G.Greenwood, C.grimshaw, Documents on Australian International Affairs, 1901-1918, Melbourne 1997, pp247-249. In the year 1908, the Australian Prime minister Alfred Deakin, through the efforts of the American ambassador in London, Whitelaw Reid, invited the US Great White Fleet to visit Australian ports as a part of their journey around the world in n attempt to arouse an interest in the idea of an Australian navy. The fleet of 16 US Navy warships that visited Australia further promoted the idea of an Australian Navy and it gathered public opinion for the cause as the fleet was enthusiastically received by over half a million Australians at the port of Melbourne itself. In doing so, Deakin sent a message to the British regarding it's displeasure over the neglect of its marine defences and also of its fear of the Japanese naval might. It was indicated to the British that if they could not defend their Pacific colony, then Australia would have to turn elsewhere for protection. Although this self-assertion by a colony against the wishes of the imperial government was not well received in Britain, it proved to be another step towards the establishment of the Royal Australian Navy in 1909.[6] The year 1909 saw the enforcement of the Defence Act, which made it compulsory for all British subjects residing in Australia to undergo compulsory military training. Under the act, all male inhabitants of Australia who had been residents of the nation for six months or more had to undergo training. Those between twelve and fourteen years of age were to be trained as Junior Cadets, between fourteen and eighteen years of age in the Senior Cadets and between eighteen and twenty six years of age in the Citizen Forces. In the year 1910, the Field Marshall Viscount Kitchner, suggested the establishment of a Military College at Duntroon. He proposed that all [6]. Gordon, Donald C, 1961, The Admiralty and Dominion Navies, 1902-1914, The Journal of modern History, Vol.XXXIII, pp.407-422 Cadets who were to be promoted above the rank of captain would have to pass through the academy for further training, the same would apply to promotion above the post of Major. He also recommended that for the nation's defence in the case of war and a situation wherein the British forces would not be able to respond t this threat immediately or effectively, a force of 80,000 Troops would be needed for national defence. He aimed to raise these troops through the compulsory military training enacted by the Defence Act of 1909 and through the military college to be established. He wanted to organize the forces into 21 brigades of 4 battalions each i.e. 84 battalions of infantry, 28 regiments of light horse, 49 four-gun field batteries, 7 four-gun heavy and howitzer batteries(a total of 224 guns) and 7 communication companies and 14 field companies of engineers.[7] Thus the Australian nation started to build it's own armed forces independent of the Imperial defence systems. When Deakin left office he was replaced by Andrew Fisher who headed the Labour party ministry and also supported the formation of an Australian Navy as much as his predecessor. In 1909, there was widespread concern over the growing Germany naval fleet across Britain and all its colonies and there was a furore over dreadnought construction. In Australia, many newspapers devoted their main pages to the issues and public opinion shifted in favour of Australia offering a dreadnought to the imperial navy, however, the government stood by its decision to build and man a force of ocean going destroyers as a beginning of an Australian navy, and also as a contribution to the imperial defence. The Imperial Defence Conference of 1909 reconciled admiralty and nationalistic issues and devised a program under which the dominions would construct and maintain fleet units. Each fleet would form its dominions navy. [7]. G.Greenwood, C.grimshaw, Documents on Australian International Affairs, 1901-1918, Melbourne 1997, pp248-253. and be under the dominions command but, trained so that it would be compatible with the royal navy.[8] The construction of the Australian fleet went ahead without further roadblocks It was to be under the sole command of the Australian government, but would be provided to the Royal Navy in times of war with the permission of the Australian government. At the 1911 Imperial Conference, the matter that took centre stage was the role of the dominions in deciding Imperial Foreign Policy. It was heatedly debated whether or not the dominions would have a say in foreign policy or whether they would be free to pursue their own foreign policies. The Australian viewpoint on the subject can be summarised in the words of the then Australian prime minister, Andrew Fisher "We do not desire in any way to restrict the final arbitrary powers of the Mother Country; but, we do think and shall press upon you, that it would be advisable wherever possible, at any rate in important matters which concern us, such as this [the Declaration of London], to take us into your confidence prior to committing us"6 The naval discussions started on the 26th of May and the dominions agreed to allow their ships to be placed under Admiralty supervision in international waters and at the Empire's disposal during war.7(Hancock). Fisher also agreed for civilian forces to be mobilized for imperial service during times of war although, the scale of commitment remained under the Australian government and the decision to serve overseas rested with the people. To summarize, the Australian policy from 1901-1914 changed drastically from one of being a subjugate colony of the British to one of alliance with and not dependence on the Empire. This period saw the rise of Australian nationalism in full force and an increase in autonomy in terms [8]. Gordon, Donald C, 1961, The Admiralty and Dominion Navies, 1902-1914, The Journal of modern History, Vol.XXXIII, pp.407-422 Of politics and governance. Australia stopped being completely dependent on Britain for it's defence and realised the threat of Europe's militarization and the rise of Japan as a military and imperialist state even though Japan was allied with Britain at the time. Also, most importantly, the concept of central defence for the entire British Empire gave way to autonomous defence for the colonies which would contribute personnel and equipment during war time. This would play a great part in the allied victory later during the Second World War when Australian intelligence about the Japanese navy proved indispensable. Thus, the first fourteen years saw the rise of Australia as a nation and not just a dominion, a nation with a strong military and naval presence in the Pacific, which could now defend itself and didn't rely completely and utterly on the Empire for protection in the seas or on land. Bibliography The following references were utilized during the writing of this report: [1]. Grimshaw, Charles, 1958, Australian nationalism and the imperial connection 1900-1914. The Australian journal of politics and history, Vol III no.1, May1958 [2]. Paul Kelly, The Elf Certainty: The Story of the 19805, Allen & Unwin, St. Leonards (NSW), 1992 [3]. Gordon, Donald C, 1961, The Admiralty and Dominion Navies, 1902-1914 [4]. Briggs, Mark. 1988, 'Genesis of a navy', Journal of the Australian War Memorial no.12, April 1988 Read More