Historians’ Talk: Air Raids, Searchlights, Celebrations

In this special presentation, discover how Sydney braced for conflict and rejoiced in peace on the home front during the Second World War.

By 1942, war was quite literally at Australia's door; from the savage aerial bombing of Darwin and the Top End which began in February, to the bold and audacious attack on Sydney Harbour in May/June when 3 Japanese midget submarines stealthily entered the Harbour and attempted to torpedo major Allied ships then at anchor. A week later, the Eastern suburbs were shelled and Japanese submarines fired on Newcastle 34 times.

How did those on the home front prepare themselves for conflict and later celebrate the hard-won peace ushered in by victory in the Pacific?

Join Anzac Memorial's Brad Manera (Senior Historian and Curator) and Dr Catie Gilchrist (Research Officer) as they uncover stories from the home front - from the underground air raid shelters at Sydney’s St James Station to the searchlights that scanned the skies for enemy aircraft and later, the jubilant celebrations through the streets to welcome the longed-for news of peace in the Pacific in August 1945.

This special presentation is part of the Anzac Memorial’s commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in the Pacific, held on Victory in the Pacific Day.

Banner image: Victory in the Pacific celebrations in 1945. Photo source: The Sydney Morning Herald.