World War I and Australia

Australia was in the middle of a double-dissolution election when Britain declared war against Germany in August 1914. With Britain now at war, all dominions of the British Empire were also at war with Germany — including Australia. The Prime Minister, Joseph Cook as well as opposition leader, Andrew Fisher — who would win the election and become the Prime Minister — both pledged Australia’s full support. The campaign to recruit volunteers for the Australian Imperial Force began straightaway.

We have a number of books published in the lead-up to the centenary of the beginning of the war. Visit us to read these books.

• 1914: the year the world ended
• The origins of the First World War
• The sleepwalkers: how Europe went to war in 1914
• A history of the Great War: World War One and the international crisis of the early twentieth century

Some of the first Bega men to enlist during World War I, 1914, on Tathra Wharf ten miles from Bega. Waiting to embark on ship Merimbula – Tathra, NSW

References

• First World War 1914–1918
• The National Archives Australia's Prime Ministers 

You can make copies of pictures for research and study purposes by:

• using a digital camera
• using our microfilm reader printers 
• ordering paper or electronic copies
• ordering high quality digital scans  

You need to contact us for permission to publish our original materials. You must also acknowledge the Library and provide the correct location details. 

Find out more about copying and purchasing digital copies.