Collected: Stories from the Australian War Memorial

The Australian Army has always had rules about who is allowed to fight for their country. But during the First World War those rules were sidestepped by thousands of underage boys desperate to enlist. In Episode 32 of Collected, Louise Maher hears the stories of the boy soldiers who went looking for adventure, many never to return, and the project to ensure their memory is kept alive.

Women now comprise more than 25 per cent of service personnel in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and there are no restrictions on what they’re allowed to do. But it wasn’t always like this. In Episode 31 of Collected, Louise Maher is shown the clothes and hears the stories of some of the female pioneers, including members of the Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) that was formed in World War 2.

The V2 rocket developed by the Germans in World War Two was the world’s first strategic ballistic missile and a forerunner of the rocket that took humans to the moon. In Episode 30 of Collected, Louise Maher is shown a captured V2 that was brought to Australia after the war and hears the testimony of a Jewish concentration camp survivor forced to work on the Nazi weapons project.

Jewellery given and received in war is a symbol of love, pride and support. It comes in many forms, from expensive, commercially manufactured pieces in precious metals to hand-made objects crafted from whatever material was available. In Episode 29 of Collected, Louise Maher is shown a range of sweetheart jewellery, including a tiny gold brooch, a silver identity bracelet and a necklace made from shells.

The Lone Pine The magnificent Lone Pine planted at the Memorial is 1934 is a living symbol of the sacrifice of war. It was grown by a bereaved mother from the seeds from pine cones gathered by her son at Gallipoli. Since the late 1940s, around 70,000 seedlings have been propagated from this one tree for distribution around Australia and the world. In Episode 28 of Collected, Louise Maher visits the tree in the Memorial’s grounds, the Lone Pine diorama which dramatically recreates the battle which took its name, as well as the nursery where the seedlings are tended and a school which has proudly planted one.

The history of military aviation is told in the stories of the Memorial’s oldest and newest aircraft. Built 70 years apart, these two planes demonstrate the huge and rapid shifts in design and technology in the 20th century. In Episode 27 of Collected, Louise Maher visits the Treloar Technology Centre to see a 1910 monoplane that was purchased for Australia’s first military flying school and an FA-18 Classic Hornet recently retired from service with the RAAF.

HMAS Brisbane was one of the first three major Australian war ships designed and built in the United States and the last steam powered ship in the Royal Australian Navy. After the destroyer was retired from service in 2003, its command and control centre, the bridge, was placed on display at the Memorial. Join Louise Maher on a tour of the bridge to learn about HMAS Brisbane’s role in the Vietnam and Gulf Wars.

The Australian tail gunners who served in World War Two had a particularly dangerous job. They spent hours in cramped, freezing conditions, perched in Perspex turrets at the rear of bomber planes, vulnerable to enemy fire and often exposed to the elements. In Episode 25 of Collected, Louise Maher is shown a gun turret that survived the war and hears the stories of men who lived to tell the tale of bombing raids over Europe.

In 1945, a young Indigenous Australian solider recently released from a German prisoner-of-war camp sat to have his portrait painted by war artist, Stella Bowen. It was nearly 70 years before his identity was discovered. In Episode 24 of Collected, Louise Maher explores the work of the ‘ghost-hunters’ behind the Memorial’s Indigenous Defence List which acknowledges and honours the service of Indigenous Australian defence personnel.

How do you preserve fragile items of clothing that tell remarkable stories about two young women whose lives were transformed by World War Two? Henryka’s cotton frock was made from Nazi curtains to give her something to wear when she finally walked free from a concentration camp. Maud’s satin wedding gown was packed away for three years while she waited to be reunited with her American fiancé. In Episode 23 of Collected Louise Maher explores the lives of these two women and finds out how their precious dresses are being cared for at the Memorial.

Nearly every town across Australia has its own war memorial. They range from small monuments – perhaps a stained glass window in a church – to community halls and swimming pools. Places of Pride, the National Register of War Memorials, is an Australian War Memorial initiative to record the location and photo of every publicly accessible war memorial in Australia. In Episode 22 of Collected Louise Maher finds out how the project works and meets a volunteer who has contributed over 400 memorials to the site.

Australia has a proud record of peacekeeping around the world, from the Middle East to Asia, Africa to the Pacific. These operations have often involved ensuring the wellbeing of children. In Episode 21 of Collected, Louise Maher discovers the peacekeeping stories behind toy guns collected in Somalia, an artwork about the conflict in Bougainville and a song about a cow recorded on cassette.

When the war in the Pacific ended on August 15, 1945, Australians went wild with joy. That day – VP (Victory in the Pacific) Day – was celebrated across the country with street parties and parades. But the day was also marked with sorrow for the tens of thousands of Australians killed or injured. To commemorate the 75th anniversary of VP Day, Louise Maher explores the story of a young woman’s simple knitted vest that symbolised the relief of the nation and hope for the future.

Opportunities were limited for women who wanted to serve in World War One. But many women found a way to use their social position, skills, ingenuity or pure pluck to contribute to the war effort. In Episode 19 of Collected, Louise Maher shares the stories of three remarkable women, including the teenager who disguised herself as a young man to stow away on a troopship.

Towards the end of World War Two, Japan built and mobilised thousands of killer boats to defend its homeland and occupied territories from possible Allied invasion. In Episode 18 of Collected, Louise Maher discovers how one of these Shinyo suicide launches was captured by Australian troops in Borneo and used for joyrides after the war before finding a permanent home at the War Memorial.

Just months before he sailed for Gallipoli a young Australian soldier on leave in Egypt recorded a letter to send home. This unique artefact is the oldest known recording of an ordinary solider at war. In Episode 17 of Collected, Louise Maher hears the story of the Lanser disc and other recorded letters and messages which enabled families on the home front to hear the voices of their loved ones serving overseas.

In 1993, the remains of a WWI Australian soldier were brought home from the battlefields of France and laid to rest in the Hall of Memory at the Australian War Memorial. In Episode 16 of Collected, Louise Maher discovers the history of the Unknown Soldier, meets the tomb’s caretaker and hears the story of the pigeon determined to share this sacred space by building a nest of poppies.

During the Second World War, 10,000 Australians served in British-based Bomber Command. More than one in three were killed during air raids over Europe, in training, or in accidents. In Episode 15 of Collected, Louise Maher explores the remarkable history of the Memorial’s Lancaster Avro ‘G for George’ and the stories of the men who flew in these heavy four-engined bombers.

Dogs have always accompanied Australians to war, as mascots, messengers, scouts, guards - and comforting companions in tough times. These days, dogs in the Australian Defence Force are highly trained and serve in specific and vital roles. In Episode 14 of Collected, Louise Maher learns about the long and varied history of military working dogs and visits a new memorial that honours their courage, skill and devotion.

During the Second World War, the oceans of the world became even more perilous – for civilians and merchant seamen as well as naval forces. In Episode 13 of Collected, Louise Maher explores the stories behind four maritime disasters and the people who survived against the odds.