Professional Reading List for RASigs Personnel
Land Warfare Studies Centre, Working Paper No 116 Communications Electronic Warfare and the Digistised Battlfield
Communications Electronic Warfare and the Digitised Battlefield
Land Warfare Studies Centre, Working Paper No 116
Communications Electronic Warfare and the Digistised Battlfield
by Michael Frater and Michael Ryan
October 2001
Signals History
Signals - A History of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals 1788 - 1947
Now out of print. Copies may be difficult to find.
SWIFT AND SURE - A history of the Royal Australia Corps of Signals 1947 - 1972 by author John Blaxland
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| Swift and Sure |
Signals - Volume III - History from 1973 until current day
Once funding has been gained, we will commence production of Volume III of the Signals Corps History. The newly formed Corps Council have commenced planning for fund-raising and sponsorship activities to allow this project to proceed.
The Saga of a Sig - The Wartime Memories of six years Service in the 2nd A.I.F. by NX3698 Ken Clift D.C.M.
"The Saga of a Sig" is an autobiography told in soldiers' language by a Signaller who enlisted in the 2nd A.I.F., sailed with the first convoy, saw active service in Palestine, Egypt, Bardia, Tobruk, Greece, Crete, Syria, Ceylon and the Kokoda Trail; then after being commissioned, served as a Lieutenant in the 1st Australian Parachute Battalion until the end of hostilities.
Humour throughout this narrative tempers the pathos and the stark realities which of necessity must be part of war and the Author's descriptions of heroism and comradeship will grip the reader with a compassionate and absorbing interest.
Bring Decent Signallers - The Memoirs of James Lumsden McKinlay OBE MM ED, 1894 - 1984
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In World War I, Signals support was vital for the young men plunged into murderous battle half a world away - places like Gallipoli and the Western Front. In World War II the threat reached our shores and teh theatres in which Colonel McKinlay served were at the forefront of the Nation's defences.
This decorated soldier dedicated most of his working life to the Australian Signals Corps and his humour, fairness and humility permeate these memoirs.
Edited by Neil Churches and Margaret Ely. Published by the Royal Australian Corps of Signals Committee
Short biographies on the Editors
Neil Churches resigned from the Regular Army in 1992 after commanding the School of Signals and has served in Kashmir, Germany and as aide-de-camp to the Australian Governor-General. He has had an interest in the Signals Corps History for several years and is now a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army Reserve.
Margaret Ely worked for several years for a large sharebroking firm, then returned to study and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree, specialising in history, from La Trobe University, following that with a Graduate Diploma in Librarianship from the University of Melbourne. This is her first editing project.
M. Ryan, A Brief History of Battlefield Communications, RA Sigs Museum, 1997.
"A brief history of Battlefield Communications", written by Lieutenant Colonel Michael Ryan and illustrated by Corporal Max Dimmack, is available for sale at the RASigs Corps Museum in Simpson Barracks Macleod.
The history takes the reader from the heyday of Pheidippides to the current era of Battlefield Communications. The booklet is a softcover of 16 pages and can be had for a mere $2, the proceeds of which support RASigs Corps Heritage.
Signaller Silas - Diary and "Crusading at ANZAC - AD 1915"
Signaller Silas - Diary
In 1914, after joining the 16th Battalion AIF in Perth, Western Australia, Ellis Silas began recording his experiences in a diary. It covered his training in WA, his voyage to and time in Egypt, his journey to Gallipoli, the early days of the campaign at Anzac, and finally, in mid-May 1915, his medical evacuation back to Egypt. In 1916, he undertook a revision of his diary, adding to it and having it typed. He may have intended to publish it, as a surviving copy held in the Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW - ML MSS.1840, revised version, prepared 1916, typescript, signed by Silas - contains the title page Diary of an Anzac and a self-portrait sketch.
Silas claimed, in a letter attached to the diary, that his revision contained ‘much that was omitted' in the original owing to lack of space. Eventually, he hoped he might work the ‘rough' material up into ‘something more tangible'. It was not to be, but his reactions to the early fighting on Gallipoli show how the realities of war became a nightmare for one highly sensitive soldier.
"The Signal Continues" a history of B.C.O.F. Signals Regiment Occupation of Japan - 1945 - 1952
"The Signal Continues" a history of B.C.O.F. Signals Regiment Occupation of Japan - 1945 - 1952, is written by Mr Ron Orwin.
Ron has been kind enough to send a copy of this book for inclusion in the Defence Force School of Signals library.
Ron also has a number of copies of this book for sale (and he can arrange further print runs on demand).
The book is written by a former member of 113 Australian Cipher Troop, HQ Signals B.C.O.F. The book deals with the activities of members of the Regiment during its 1945 - 1952 tour of duty in Japan as part of Australia's first, and we hope, only fully operational Army of Occupation in the country of a defeated enemy.
The book does not enter into a detailed description of the technical aspects of Signals Operations, but concentrates on matters which affected Signals personnel in the course of their duties, including recreational and sporting activities, which will be of interest to former members of the Regiment and also to other members of the Corps of Signals.
Copies are being sold at $35 each (including postage). Please contact Ron Orwin on phone/fax (07) 3200 3212 or email orwinsigs113@aool.com.
A. Jack Brown - Katakana Man - 'I worked only for Generals'
Heritage Series - Winner of the 2005 RAAF Heritage Awards.
Katakana Man was written by Mr A. Jack Brown, on 'the most secret of all allied operations in World War II in the Pacific.
When A.J. (“Jack”) Brown enlisted in the RAAF at Adelaide on June 1942 he wanted to become aircrew and to help win World War II by flying aircraft. While he was still in initial training at Victor Harbour, it was found that he had natural ability as a wireless operator—a discovery that dramatically shaped his subsequentservice.
Instead of a flying career, Jack found himself in top secret RAAF wireless units. There he worked to intercept radio transmissions sent in the Japanese katakana code, which were then analysed to produce the highly reliable intelligence that helped General MacArthur in devising his strategy for the allied campaign in the South-West Pacific.
Beginning with No 1 Wireless Unit at Townsville, Jack went to New Guinea in 1943, serving at Port Moresby and subsequently Nadzab, Biak and then Hollandia. In October 1944 he joined the nucleus of a new unit, No 6 WU, which headed for the Philippines to take part in MacArthur's momentous invasion at Leyte Gulf.
Here is a frank account of a remarkable facet of Australia's contribution to the war effort in the Pacific, drawn from a personal knowledge and perspective of events and activities that were not widely known or recorded at the time—a situation which was to cause Jack Brown considerable personal hardship after the war.
Published 2006
ISBN 1 920800 09 3
940.544994 ','400','400'))
Author's Note
"To my knowledge no author has ever written regarding the life of a Katakana operator.
This book is written for all operative Katkana wireless operators in the field units during World War II.
It is based on my life and my fellow operators. To write the story is to give the character of the person.
I focus on a few lines of my life in the music world, which helped my life in the early Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) days to lead me to the Katakana field. My love of adventure and independance also had a big influence. The book is an account of my military life and reflects, to the best of my knowledge, accurate military history; it applies to most of my kana friends and is their story too.
Australian Katakana wireless operators together with code breakers supplied information about Japanese movements at a time when we had little to fight with. Our work gave the Allies the means for Victory."
A. Jack Brown
Adelaide, 2005
About the Author
A. Jack Brown was born and educated in Adelaide, South Australia and lives there to this day with his wife, Anne.
Jack is a man who helped carve the history and victory in the Pacific. His activity during World War II over the period 1942 - 46 was as a Japanese Katakana Wireless Operator and this involvement gave him this privilege.
He operated with Nos 1 and 6 Wireless "Sigint" Units and was one of the twenty-four Australians who went ashore with General Douglas MacArthur's Intelligence Organisation for the invasion and liberation of the Phillipines.
Here he speaks frankly about emotions, dissolutions and events which occurred during his Service career.
These publications are available for purchase by both Defence Members and the public from the Air Power Development Website
The Duke - A Hero's Hero at Sandakan
A book called The Duke - A Hero's Hero at Sandakan,has been written on the life of Captain Lionel Matthews, GC, MC. The book has been written by Captain Matthews' son, Mr David Matthews and will be published by Seaview Press in Adelaide.
Mr Matthews took three years writing the story and conducted extensive research in order to best ensure material on the Sandakan underground movement was correct. In the book he explains that "The Duke" was Captain Matthews nickname in the Army and there will be numerous photographs and illustrations. It is anticipated that the book should be finished by mid-March next year and will be launched firstly in Adelaide and then again in Sydney.
Mr Matthews also advises that the forward will be written by 'someone' who is well-known, but wishes to keep that identity a secret for now!
To find out the mystery writer of the forward and to learn more of "The Duke" from an insider's perspective, watch this space for book purchase details.
Laden, Fevered, Starved - the POWs of Sandakan, North Borneo 1945
A book on the POWs of Sandakan (researched and written by Dr Richard Reid, with assistance from Robert Pounds and Courtney Page, copyright Commonwealth Department of Veterans' Affairs 1999) is available on the DVA site here
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Fort Lytton Signals Museum
Fort Lytton Historical Association - Special Signals Display
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Book on the 5th Australian Division Special Signals Display - Fort Lytton Signals Museum
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| Fort Lytton Signals Museum - Author Jim Meehan |
Fort Lytton Historical Association Home
Aussie Soldier - Up close and personal
This new Book will be officially launched and in bookstores from 1st March 2008
"He is the raw steel whose spirit has been forged in the furnace of war from the Boer campaign and Gallipoli to the present day conflicts. It has hardened under fire in difficult situations during the desert and jungle campaigns of WW2, Korea, Borneo and Vietnam. It was then tempered under modern conflicts which have been far different, where compassion, understanding and patience are as much a part of the soldier's kitbag as his war fighting skills"
Warrant Officer Arthur Francis CSC, OAM - Ex RSM Army
A new book, authored by Denny Neave, has been contributed to be current and ex serving members of the Army. Denny is now working on his next book and is seeking contributions.
For further information to to the following website:
Aussie Soldier
General History
"Pompey Elliott" Pompey Elliott biography by Ross McMullin
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Brigadier General Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott, CB, CMG, DSO, DCM, VD
Date of birth: 19 June 1878
Place of birth: West Charlton, VIC
Date of death: 23 March 1931
Place of death: Victoria
Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott
A02607
Pompey Elliott
By Tony Stephens, Sydney Morning Herald
July 13 2002
POMPEY ELLIOTT
By Ross McMullin
Scribe Publications, 718pp, $45
Australian attitudes to war are sometimes puzzling. Although the nation has not seen war on its own soil, apart from frontier battles with Aborigines, Japanese bombs dropped in the north and midget submarines in Sydney Harbour, the nation has been most willing to go to war - from the Maori Wars in 1863 through the Sudan campaign, the Boxer Rebellion in China, the Boer War, the world wars, Korea, Vietnam and the Gulf, to Afghanistan and wherever the so-called war on terrorism might lead.
The decisions to fight some of these wars were puzzling enough in themselves. Our attitude to those men and women most directly involved can be equally curious and sheds light on aspects of the national character.
Why, for example, do Australians remember the saviours of war rather than the courageous killers? Why is Albert Jacka, who attacked a Turkish trench at Gallipoli single-handedly, killed nine men and won the Victoria Cross, less well-known than Simpson and his donkey? Why do Australians remember Weary Dunlop, the great surgeon-soldier, rather than Diver Derrick, who fought with distinction at Tobruk, won a Distinguished Conduct Medal in Egypt, and the VC in New Guinea for single-handedly wiping out 10 enemy machine-gun posts in previously impenetrable jungle?
Why do most Australians know little or nothing about Pompey Elliott, who led sweeping military victories and triumphed against the odds with courage and ingenuity in adversity?
Ross McMullin's biography fills a gap in the Australian narrative.
Elliott's parents were part of the migratory wave to the colonies in the 1850s gold rushes. Harold Edward Elliott - he took the "Pompey" later from a footballer - was born in 1878 in Charlton, western Victoria. He lived in a two-room hut of timber, iron and bark until his father struck it rich on the Kalgoorlie goldfield and the family moved to Ballarat. Pompey was studying law before going to the Boer War, where he won a Distinguished Conduct Medal for a tactical coup - and an appreciative telegram from Lord Kitchener.
Elliott commanded the 7th Battalion which landed at Gallipoli on April 25, 1915. He was lucky to survive the August battle at Lone Pine. Four Australians won VCs at that battle, but Elliott wrote to his wife, Kate: "... you could have my share of all the glory" in exchange for just "one of the poor boys who died or was mangled to death there". His letters are among the most revelatory written by a soldier.
Elliott commanded the 15th Brigade on the Western Front. He opposed the engagement at Fromelles, where the Fifth Division lost, in less than 24 hours, 178 officers and 5355 men - equal to Australian casualties of the Boer, Korean and Vietnam wars put together. Pompey had written home on the battle eve: "I have taken every precaution ... to help my boys along, and am now awaiting the signal which will launch so many of my poor boys to their death. They are all eagerly awaiting the signal ... I am going up to watch the assault from our front line ... My will is in the safe at the office."
His men broke through the Hindenburg Line at Bullecourt. They secured a fine victory at Polygon Wood, with Elliott leading from the front. Elliott's greatest triumph, however, was at Villers-Bretonneux, where the 15th Brigade charged the enemy with a roar "sufficient to make the enemy's blood run cold". The battle was fought almost exactly three years after the Gallipoli landing. Unlike at Gallipoli, the Australians now had a profound effect on the war's outcome. McMullin writes:
"In these dramatic weeks, the climax of the entire war, Australians were influencing the destiny of the world as never before and rarely, if ever, since."
Elliott was disqualified from commanding a division, probably because the British command disliked his frankness and volatility. It was his greatest personal disappointment.
By the end of the war he felt guilty about having survived while so many had died.
Back home, he was overlooked in Australia's postwar defence plans, became a Nationalist senator and campaigned over defence, for returned servicemen and in his own interest. The onset of the Depression added to his own depression. So did the nightmares reliving war horrors.
In 1931, he cut a vein with a razor. Newspapers did not mention suicide. A coroner reported that Elliott had died from a self-inflicted wound while "temporarily insane", but Elliott's story was already being buried, with his body. McMullin has given him new life.
Tony Stephens is a Herald journalist and the author of The Last Anzacs (Allen & Kemsley).
Memoirs of an Aussie Digger 1940 - 1945
Memoirs of an Aussie Digger 1940 - 1945 CD Version Milne Bay CD - "As we lived it"
"As We Lived It" Pronto in Vietnam
Newsletter - Pronto in Vietnam