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Attacks on continental Australia during World War II were relatively rare due to Australia's geographic position. However, axis surface raiders and submarines periodically attacked shipping in the Australian coastal waters from late 1940 to early 1945. Japanese aircraft bombed towns and airfields in Northern Australia on 97 occasions during ...
The Bombing of Darwin, also known as the Battle of Darwin, [4] on 19 February 1942 was the largest single attack ever mounted by a foreign power on Australia. [5] On that day, 242 Japanese aircraft, in two separate raids, attacked the town, ships in Darwin Harbour and the town's two airfields in an attempt to prevent the Allies from using them as bases to contest the invasion of Timor and Java ...
The explosion of the MV Neptuna, hit during the first Japanese air raid on Darwin.In the foreground is HMAS Deloraine, which escaped damage.. The bombing of Darwin on 19 February 1942 was both the first and the largest attack mounted by Japan against mainland Australia, when four Japanese aircraft carriers (Akagi, Kaga, Hiryū and Sōryū) launched a total of 188 aircraft from a position in ...
The 1984 alternate history novel The Bush Soldiers by John Hooker depicts a successful Japanese invasion of Australia and the last-ditch resistance effort made by a handful of Australian and British troops. [28] In John Birmingham's 2004 alternative history novel Designated Targets, Imperial Japan launches an invasion of northern Australia.
After the fall of Singapore, the Australian government and many Australians feared that Japan would invade the Australian mainland. Australia was ill-prepared to counter such an attack. The entire 8th Division, deployed to Malaya, Ambon, Timor and Rabaul, was lost or rendered ineffective as the Japanese rapidly advanced. [9]
Australia entered World War II on 3 September 1939, following the government's acceptance of the United Kingdom's declaration of war on Nazi Germany. Australia later entered into a state of war with other members of the Axis powers , including the Kingdom of Italy on 11 June 1940, [ 1 ] and the Empire of Japan on 9 December 1941. [ 2 ]
Japanese propaganda was produced at the time to spread the idea of invasion or bombing of southern Australian cities. [12] Authorities were attempting to allay fears a month before the Darwin bombings. [13] The events surrounding the bombings and response by authorities in northern Australia were referred to as "Japanese Scare" tactics. [14] [15]
The Battle of Milne Bay (25 August – 7 September 1942), also known as Operation RE or the Battle of Rabi (ラビの戦い) by the Japanese, was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II. Japanese naval infantry, known as Kaigun Tokubetsu Rikusentai (Special Naval Landing Forces), with two small tanks attacked the Allied airfields at ...