Glory or Vainglory? The Australian Corps in 1918
From the Battle of Hamel in July 1918 to the breaking of the Hindenburg Line nearly four months later, the Australian Corps was an integral part of the great British offensive that ended the Great War. Their achievements were quickly broadcast by their commanding officer General Sir John Monash in his memoir The Australian Victories in France in 1918.
There can be no doubt that the Australians were involved in some of the most significant victories of the Hundred Days, and are one of the best examples we have of how successful the British could be at limited, set-piece attacks by 1918. But that is only part of this story.
This presentation looks at the approach the Australian Corps took to battle and why it could be stunningly successful, but it also looks at where it all could have so easily gone wrong - when commanding officers (including Monash himself) made terrible decisions that cost lives, and jeopardised the advance itself.
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