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You are here: Home / Archives for Article topics / Naval history / Biographies and personal histories

Biographies and personal histories

Erle Alwin Greglach Boyd

Swinden, Greg · Mar 21, 2010 ·

Forgotten Hero of the RAN Amongst the thousands of men and women who have served in the RAN there have been heroes and rogues, scholars and scoundrels. In a career ...

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WW1 Losses || “Too Far Away Thy Grave to See…”

Wright, Ken · Dec 21, 2009 ·

From the beginning of recorded history until now, war has been the curse of mankind and by its very nature means the death of many of the combatants and the ...

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Louis Antoine de Bougainville and his Exploration of the Pacific

Dunstan, Timothy, SBLT, NEOC 39 RANC · Dec 21, 2009 ·

Introduction Usually in one’s lifetime, a person will witness or experience one event that will, or has the ability, to change the world. This event will stand out in history, ...

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Search for Bracegirdle Sundial

Dutton, Ken, Professor Emeritus · Dec 21, 2009 ·

Professor Dutton is a member of the Arts and Library Committee of the Newcastle Club One of Australia’s most distinguished naval officers was Rear Admiral Sir Leighton S. Bracegirdle, KCVO, ...

Address to Trafalgar Night Dinner

Goldrick, James, Commodore, RAN · Dec 21, 2009 ·

At HMAS Penguin on Friday, 17 October 2008 I am not here to talk about a battle but to reflect on just what it is that makes Nelson the ‘immortal ...

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The Australians at Jutland

Swinden, Greg · Sep 21, 2009 ·

The Battle of Jutland on 31 May 1916 was the major naval battle of World War I.  For a few short hours on that day the British Grand Fleet and ...

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Admirable Ancestors

Graham-Smith, Mick · Sep 21, 2009 ·

This is a copy of a lecture recently delivered to the WA Chapter of the Naval Historical Society of Australia by Mick Graham-Smith Firstly, I would like to introduce myself. ...

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Organisation of Coastwatching in the New Guinea WW 2

Wright, Ken · Sep 10, 2009 ·

People over-impressed by spies and espionage are fond of quoting the observation attributed to the French General Napoleon Bonaparte around 1795 when he estimated that a spy in the right ...

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Obituary: Jenny of ‘Jenny’s Side Party’, Hong Kong

Mobley, Mark, (Naval Reservist) · Jun 21, 2009 ·

Mrs Ng Muk Kah, BEM Generations of sailors who visited Hong Kong will mourn the death of Jenny. She was a much loved living legend who, for all the colony’s ...

Leadership: Sir Ernest Shackleton – 1874-1922

Taylor, Megan, Midshipman, RAN · Dec 5, 2008 ·

‘Superhuman effort isn’t worth a damn unless it achieves results.’ Ernest Shackleton, 1916 ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It ...

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AE2 – Unsung Hero of Gallipoli

Spencer, Mark · Dec 5, 2008 ·

On May 24, 1914, Australia acquired its first submarines from England as part of a new post‑federation initiative to achieve more autonomy in the protection of our shores. These were ...

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A Letter from HMAS Sydney

Barrey, R.B., Flying Officer · Sep 5, 2008 ·

Editor’s note: This letter was written by Flying Officer R.B. Barrey who was the pilot of the Walrus Amphibian aircraft in HMAS Sydney in 1941. He did not survive the ...

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Leadership: Captain Alfred T. Mahan USN

Waring, P.S., Midshipman, RAN · Sep 5, 2008 ·

Academic leadership, writings on the history of seapower and his influence on the international struggle for command of the sea pre-WWI (submitted as an entry in the RANC Graduation Naval ...

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Lifeboat No. 7 – 23 days at sea

McIntosh, Ian, Sub-Lieutenant, RN · Sep 5, 2008 ·

Note: Sub Lieutenant McIntosh RN was later to become Vice Admiral Sir Ian McIntosh, RN, KBE CB DSO DSC I was brought up on the family property Camperdown in Victoria’s ...

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Letters: Obituary of Rear Admiral Dovers

Letter Writer · Jun 12, 2008 ·

Dear Sir, I note Tony Howland’s obituary [your Editor assures you he is in fact alive and well!] published in the December 07 edition. I have also read other obituaries ...

Book Review: Flinders Year 1947

Book reviewer · Jun 5, 2008 ·

Flinders Year 1947 Presents the stories of twenty four young men who joined the Royal Australian Navy at age thirteen by entering the Naval College at Flinders Naval Depot, HMAS ...

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Japanese Surrender in Toyko-from Warramunga’s Surgeon

Rischbieth, H.G., Surgeon-Lieutenant, RAN · Jun 5, 2008 ·

Henry George Rischbieth, second son of Harold and Eileen Rischbieth (nee de la Poer Beresford) served in the Royal Australian Navy as a Surgeon Lieutenant during World War II. He ...

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The Midshipman – A Corvette Wartime Experience

Ward, Kirwan · Mar 5, 2008 ·

This article first appeared in As You Were, a compilation of articles by ex-Navy men and women writing about their wartime experiences, and published by the Australian War Memorial in ...

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Book Review: Cochrane the Dauntless

Book reviewer · Mar 5, 2008 ·

Cochrane the Dauntless. The Life and Adventures of Thomas Cochrane. By David Cordingly. Published by Bloomsbury and available from Allen and Unwin Book Publishers This is yet another biography of ...

Obituary: Rear Admiral W. J. Dovers, CBE, DSC (RAN, Ret’d)

Howland, Tony · Dec 4, 2007 ·

The death occurred on 4 October 2007 of Rear Admiral Bill Dovers. His contribution across so many areas of the Royal Australian Navy marked him out as not only a ...

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Leadership: Vice Admiral Sir John Augustine Collins

Dennard, Luke, Midshipman, RAN · Dec 4, 2007 ·

This essay will discuss the role of Sir John Collins in reference to his career in the Mediterranean and Pacific theatres of World War II as captain and commodore in ...

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The Story of Ordnance Artificer Gordon Robertson

Swinden, Greg · Sep 12, 2007 ·

In the quiet Presbyterian Section of GoreHill Cemetery (Sydney), only 50 metres or so from the busy Pacific Highway upon which the people of the city travel to and from ...

RAN Heritage Management: The Long Memory

Periodical, Semaphore · Sep 10, 2007 ·

This article was first published in Semaphore, the newsletter of the Sea Power Centre – Australia, Issue 20, November 2006. The Naval Historical Society is grateful for their permission to ...

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Leadership: Admiral Bruce Fraser, RN

Plater, Robert, Midshipman, RAN · Sep 4, 2007 ·

The aim of this essay is to examine the circumstances and life experiences which contributed to leadership qualities seen in Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser that allowed him to rise to ...

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Book Review: RN Navy List 1943

Book reviewer · Sep 4, 2007 ·

O.U. 5513 (10) 43 The Navy List, containing list of ships, establishments and officers of the Fleet, October, 1943. Published by order of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty for ...

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