australian soldiers fought in the territory of papua after the kokoda campaign.
australian soldiers fought in the territory of papua after the kokoda campaign.
where did australian soldiers fight after the kokoda campaign?
territory of papua
the papuan infantry battalion (pib) was a unit of the australian army raised in the territory of papua for service during the second world war. formed in early 1940 in port moresby to help defend the territory in the event of a japanese invasion, its soldiers were primarily papuan natives led by australian officers and non-commissioned officers. following the outbreak of the pacific war, the pib served in many of the allied campaigns in new guinea; however, due to the nature of its role its sub-units mainly operated separately, attached to larger australian and us army units and formations. slow in forming, the first members of the pib were not officially posted in until march 1941. by 1942 it consisted of only three companies, all of which were under-strength and poorly equipped. it was subsequently employed on scouting, reconnaissance and surveillance patrols against the japanese, where the natural bushcraft of its native soldiers could be used to their advantage. the pib was sent forward in june 1942 to patrol the northern coast of papua and was dispersed over a wide area. these small parties were the first to make contact with the imperial japanese forces upon their landing in papua, before participating in the kokoda track campaign. as part of maroubra force, the pib fought alongside the australian 39th battalion at kokoda, deniki, and isurava as the japanese forced them back along the kokoda track, but was withdrawn before the campaign finally turned in favour of the australians.
papuan infantry battalion
while the gallipoli campaign of world war i was australia's first military test as a new nation, the fighting during the kokoda campaign represents the first time in the nation's history that its security was directly threatened. the 1942 newsreel documentary, "kokoda front line!" documented the australian fighting during the campaign and brought the war home for many australians. filmed by damien parer, it won an oscar for the documentary category – the first time an australian film/documentary was awarded an oscar. curator, poppy de souza, observes: "this iconic newsreel contains some of the most recognised images of australian troops in the second world war, images that have contributed to the collective visual memory of the events at kokoda. ...[quoting parer] a war that seemed until this point 'a million miles away’". although it has since become accepted that an invasion of australia was not possible, or even planned by the japanese, at the time there was a very real belief within australia that this was possible and as such the kokoda campaign has come to be viewed by some as the battle that "saved australia". as a result, within the collective australian psyche, the campaign and particularly the role of the 39th battalion has become a key part of modern notions of the anzac legend. indeed, the battle of isurava has been described as "australia's thermopylae", although the key premise of this comparison—the idea that the australians were outnumbered—has since been shown to be inaccurate.
kokoda track campaign