Maritime Museum marks 80 years since the end of WWII - Series of exhibitions & activities tell the story of The World Remade
Australian National Maritime Museum
The world most of us live in started 80 years ago this year, in the aftermath of the Second World War. Much of the architecture and rules underpinning global order – the United Nations, NATO and ANZUS – flowed out of those tumultuous events.
To mark its end in the Pacific, the Australian National Maritime Museum is delivering a series of programs, events, activations and exhibitions under the banner The World Remade.
Today the Museum launches Persuasion, an exhibition of WWII propaganda posters from the USA and Australia.
Persuasion
During WWII mobilising the resources and spirit of the population was essential to defeating our shared enemies in World War II.
Government agencies employed the persuasive powers of the best illustrators from the world of advertising to create propaganda posters.
The posters used colour, sophisticated design, clever language and psychological ‘angles’ to communicate essential messages and inspire action.
Posters were pinned up in factories, post offices, schools, libraries and displayed on buses and trains as part of the campaign to support the war effort. They depicted heroism and sacrifice, encourage recruitment, preach thrift and discipline, promote investment in peace, inspire optimism in the future and tackle racism, women in war and international cooperation.
The enemy is evoked in stereotypes, as a ruthless invisible menace, lurking and listening in the shadows, and as the ultimate target of victory.
This exhibition is supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
The World Remade at the Museum
Exhibitions/ Activities (details follow)
- The Secret Strike opened March 6
- Guided tours of the MV Krait commenced June 4
- Persuasion (propaganda posters) June 19
- WWII Trail June 19
- Japanese maritime postcards June 27
- The Bomb and its aftermath July 11
- In Conversation with Keiko Ogura August 17
- History Week talk - Sydney invaded! September 7
- History Week talk – Secret Strike September 10
- Dark Victory - Operation Jaywick September 26
- Book Launch - Australian Coastal Wars October 11
- Book Launch - 1945 – The Reckoning October 12
- War Brides, Grooms & Babies October 16
- Splash & Swing: 40’s Festival October 18-19
Program details
Secret strike - War on our Shores features the stern section of the midget submarine M22 and voice pipes from the HMAS Kuttabul. The exhibition explores the raid and includes historic images of the aftermath of the attack and firsthand accounts of the impact the raid had on ordinary people’s lives.
Guided tours of MV Krait
The World War II special forces raider MV Krait is now open for guided tours. This unassuming vessel was used in Operation Jaywick, one of the most daring and successful commando raids of World War II. Visitors can now go onboard with one of our expert guides and tour the upper deck of the vessel and learn more about its fascinating history.
Vengeance, fear, allegiance, loss, the home front and the fighting spirit, portrayed in the dramatic art of World War II propaganda posters from the USA and Australia. Supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
WWII Trail
Follow a trail through the museum and our fleet highlighting artefacts and stories from WWII including the bell from the United States Navy ship with an Australian name, a naval Bofors gun and MV Krait.
Japanese maritime postcards - きかは便動 Movement is convenient
A series of postcards that combined traditional design with photographs of innovative technology. Showcased in the museum’s Vaughan Evans Library, this display features a selection of postcards from the early twentieth century, issued by major Japanese shipping line, Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK).
The Bomb and its aftermath
Twenty-one days after the first successful detonation in the desert at Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA, an atomic bomb was detonated over Hiroshima, Japan on 6 August 1945, and three days later over Nagasaki. What brought World War II to an end, ended an estimated 160,000 - 240,000 lives and changed our world.
We are honoured to display three artefacts on loan from the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, and to tell the stories of their young owners on that terrible day. This project supported by the museum's USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
In Conversation with Keiko Ogura - Hiroshima survivor talk - Talk by Keiko Ogura, a Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor, will be held at the museum on Sunday August 17. Ms Ogura was eight years when the bomb was detonated near her home, around 2.4 kilometres from the centre of the blast. In 1984, she established Hiroshima Interpreters for Peace (HIP), and by interpreting for foreign researchers and journalists who visit Hiroshima, she has worked to communicate the reality of the atomic bombing to the world
Talk - Sydney invaded! The American Fleet of 1925 and the British Pacific Fleet of 1945
This year marks the anniversaries of two spectacular visits to Sydney by foreign navies. In 1925, the US Navy filled Sydney Harbour with eight battleships and support vessels, while at the same time sending another three battleships, six cruisers and 24 destroyers to Port Philip Bay. Two decades later, as World War II came to a close, the British Pacific Fleet sailed into Sydney Harbour, boasting its own complement of battleships and what had become the prime instrument of naval warfare – aircraft carriers. This presentation asks what happened when our allies invaded Sydney, including stories about capital ships, aircraft accidents, racism and romance.
Talk - Secret strike! Japan’s clandestine submarine attack on Sydney Harbour
This presentation discusses the history, archaeology and human legacies of the 1942 Japanese midget submarine strike on Sydney Harbour. It includes accounts from both the Japanese and Australian participants, including other Japanese midget submarine raids in Hawaii and Madagascar. How prepared was Sydney Harbour six months into the Pacific War, and who responded to the crisis.
Banner exhibition - Dark Victory
This exhibition tells the story of Operation Jaywick the secret commando raid on Japanese shipping in Singapore Harbour in September 1943 and the unforeseen consequences it had for the civilian population. Jaywick was one of the most successful and daring Commando raids of WWII with the Japanese military stunned by the audacity and success of the attack. Not believing that the allied military could be responsible, they immediately suspected the civilian population. Local Chinese and Malay, prisoners of war and European civilians topped the list of suspects, and a wave of arrests, torture and executions followed.
Book Launch – Australian Coastal Wars
For the first time, acclaimed military historian Dr Tom Lewis OAM uncovers the full scale of World War II’s forgotten battles along our coastline. This landmark book rewrites history, revealing a long and brutal struggle between German and Japanese forces and those of Australia, Britain, and the United States. Scores of ships were sunk, thousands of lives lost—yet much of this story remains unknown.
Australian Coastal Wars reveals it all—a sweeping and deeply human account of a war far closer to home than most Australians ever realised
Book Launch - 1945 – The Reckoning
Phil Craig talks about his new book on the final, dramatic acts of the WWII that set Britain, her colonies & dominions on a new course. Phil will be in conversation with multiple Walkley Award–winning and Logie Award–winning Australian journalist and author Chris Masters.
War Bride, Grooms and Babies
War splits families apart and throws people together. We explore stories of wartime marriages. Featuring objects from the collection including the 'stars and stripes' jumper knitted by Audrey Capuano on her voyage to a new life in the USA; and a pressed gardenia corsage, memento of war time romance in Melbourne. This project is supported by the museum's USA Bicentennial Gift Fund.
Splash & Swing: 40's Festival
Its 1945 and the end of the WWII has been declared. Step back to a time of celebration, romance, reuniting with loved ones and the wonder of a world free of war.
Dust off your dancing shoes for a weekend of music, dance, nostalgia, and fun. Whether you're a music lover, into 40's cosplay, a history buff, or simply looking for a great, family-friendly day out, this festival offers something for everyone.
Join us for Jitterbug and Lindy Hop workshops, curated war time cine reels, 'Make Do & Mend' workshops, swing sounds from the Royal Australian Navy Big Band and much more.
For further information on all related activities please visit www.sea.museum/world-war-II
ENDS
Interviews/media enquiries please contact:
Steve Riethoff e: [email protected] m: 0417 047 837
80th anniversary - End of WWII Background Information
Key dates
- Anniversary of midget sub attack on Sydney Harbour (1942) May 31
- Hiroshima Bombing August 6
- Nagasaki bombing August 9
- Declaration of End of War in the Pacific August 15
- VP Day/ Signing on the USS Missouri September 2
- Operation Jaywick anniversary (1943) September 26
Moments in time
On 8 December 1941 Australian PM John Curtin solemnly announced that “men and women of Australia, we are at war with Japan”. In August it will be 80 years since WWII in the Pacific ended, an event that had galvanised the 7 million people of Australia to a common purpose and changed the world and particularly the Pacific to this day.
It’s also 80 years since one million members of the US armed forces stayed in or passed though Australia on their way to war, not only critical to defeating the enemy, but also in their direct influence on Australian society.
Stories of WWII have been passed down through generations. If only considering the one million Australians who joined the armed forces during the war; their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren conceivably now number 6 million.
Add to this the stories of those who served on the Home Front and stories brought to Australia by post war immigration, and it’s fair to say that WWII in the Pacific is part of the collective memory of most if not all Australians.
Our oceans played a huge part in naval combat, personnel deployments and post-war reunions. It was a time of great challenges but also of valour and service by members of the Royal Australian Navy, Women’s Royal Australian Naval Service and the Merchant Marine.
After the bomb, new beginnings
The catastrophic atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which effectively ended the war heralded new beginnings for individuals and nations. The occupation by Japan of The Philippines, China, Korea, Singapore, Guam and other Pacific islands, (the then) Malaya and Dutch East Indies and Burma ended, and from it sprang popular and political drives for independence from pre-war imperialism and colonisation.
Post-war Allied occupation revolutionised the social and political structure of Japan under an American written constitution that enforced parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy.
Australia and New Zealand now turned directly to the United States for their defence, culminating in the ANZUS Security Treaty of 1951 ending historical reliance on the UK for defence, and for Australia leading to the AUKUS security partnership of 2021.
Australia - the land of tomorrow, under US influence
Some 15,000 Australian women who married American men left home and travelled across the Pacific on Matson ocean-liners in ‘Operation War Brides’ to begin a not-always-happy new life in the USA, and just a few American ‘war grooms’ travelled in the opposite direction to Australia.
Exposure to the American mores and popular culture brought to Australia by one million Americans influenced our social outlook, language and lifestyle towards an American ideal.
‘Australia - land of tomorrow’ was the government slogan used to entice and welcome European immigrants to Australia after life as they knew it ended with WWII and they sought a new beginning.
A new world order emerges
When war ended the world dreamt of peace and a new world order reflected in the creation of the United Nations, a dream soon dashed by the Cold War and the birth of NATO. In the Pacific the dream of independence from pre-war colonial rule would eventually become reality for many nations.
A complex system of Western alliances, traders and institutions sought to cement in key principles around free trade, democracy and the rule of law.
Travelling exhibitions
In addition to the program at the museum the following travelling exhibitions are currently in Australia and overseas.
Battle of the Coral Sea banner exhibition and film is on display at Townsville Maritime Museum. The battle was fought from 4 to 8 May 1942, Australian and Allied naval forces successfully stopped Japanese seaborne invasion of Port Morsby. Supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
Dark Victory-Operation Jaywick is showing at the National Museum of Singapore and the Changi Chapel & Museum. The film tells the story of the successful raid on Japanese shipping in Singapore in 1943 undertaken by fourteen men of the Z Special Unit using the captured and repurposed Japanese fishing vessel MV Krait.
Supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
Guardians of the Sunda Strait is on display at Battleship New Jersey Museum, in Camden, USA, and has just opened at the Western Australian Maritime Museum, Fremantle. The graphic exhibition tells the story of the Battle of the Sunda Strait where HMAS Perth and USS Houston stumbled across and took on the Japanese fleet invading Java. The battle took place on the night of 28 February and into the early hours of 1 March 1942 resulting in the loss of both ships and death of 1,046of their crew members.
Supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
War and Peace in the Pacific a banner exhibition continues its display at Jackson Barracks Military Museum, Louisiana, USA. Supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
Mission X – an exhibition on the role of Australia’s small ships flotilla during WWII has just completed its display at Bribie Island Seaside Museum. Supported by the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund
Mission X It is available for other venues, as is our photographic show Capturing the Home Front on life at home during WWII.