Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918

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The Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918 is a 12-volume series covering Australian involvement in the First World War. The series was edited by C.E.W. Bean, who also wrote six of the volumes, and was published between 1920 and 1942. The first seven volumes deal with the Australian Imperial Force while other volumes deal with the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force at Rabaul, the Royal Australian Navy, the Australian Flying Corps and the home front. The final volume is a photographic record.

Unlike other official histories which are often aimed at military staff, Bean intended the Australian history to be accessible to a non-military audience. The relatively small size of Australia's forces enabled the history to be presented in great detail, giving accounts of individual actions that would not have been possible when covering a larger force. For example, Bean dedicated over 100 pages to the Battle of Fromelles, a relatively small action intended as a diversion during the Battle of the Somme that lasted one night and involved a single Australian division (the 5th). However, Fromelles was also the first time that the First Australian Imperial Force (AIF) saw action on the Western Front, and was very costly for the Australians, with 5,533 killed, wounded or captured.

Following the publication of the final volume, Charles Bean compiled Anzac to Amiens, a condensed history in a single volume aimed at the general public, which was published in 1946.

1 Volumes
2 Other Volumes
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Volumes

Volume I - The Story of Anzac: the first phase, C.E.W Bean, 1921
Volume II - The Story of Anzac: from 4 May, 1915 to the evacuation, C.E.W Bean, 1924
Volume III - The Australian Imperial Force in France: 1916, C.E.W Bean, 1929
Volume IV - The Australian Imperial Force in France: 1917, C.E.W Bean, 1933
Volume V - The Australian Imperial Force in France: December 1917 - May 1918, C.E.W Bean, 1937
Volume VI - The Australian Imperial Force in France: May 1918 - the Armistice, C.E.W Bean, 1942
Volume VII - The Australian Imperial Force in Sinai and Palestine: 1914 - 1918, H.S. Gullett, 1923
Volume VIII - The Australian Flying Corps: 1914 - 1918, F.M. Cutlack, 1923
Volume IX - The Royal Australian Navy: 1914 - 1918, Arthur W. Jose, 1928
Volume X - The Australians at Rabaul, S.S. Mackenzie, 1927
Volume XI - Australia during the War, Ernest Scott, 1936
Volume XII - Photographic Record of the War

[edit] Other Volumes

The following volumes are: 'Official History of the Australian Army Medical Services, 1914–1918' also considered to be Volumes XIII, XIV & XV of the Official History.

[edit] See also

History of the Great War - 29-volume British official history edited by Brigadier-General Sir James Edmonds.
Official History of Australia in the War of 1939–1945 - 22-volume official history of Australia in the Second World War edited by Gavin Long.