If you go searching you will find many more but this is enough to give you the general idea -
4/8/1900 Battle of Elands River - Bushmen from Australia helped in its defense against the Boers.
4/8/1914 War declared on Germany - 20,000 Australian soldiers pledged
6/8/1915 Battle at Lone Pine Gallipoli - 2,200 Australian casualties and 7 Australians awarded a Victoria Cross
3/8/1916 Battle of Romani - Australian Light Horse were involved
8/8/1918 Battle of Amiens - Some 11,000 Australians were killed or wounded in the fighting
13/8/1941 The Australian Women's Army Service was established
9/8/1942 HMAS Canberra sunk whilst supporting US marines landing at Guadalcanal.
5/8/1944 Breakout of Japanese prisoners from Cowra POW camp
18/8/1966 Battle of Long Tan - 108 men of D Company, 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, supported by artillery and a timely resupply by
the RAAF, fought off an attack by an enemy force of more than 2,000 in a rubber plantation near the abandoned village of Long Tan.
So here's the challenge for August - from your own perspectives and thoughts, for whatever piece of our military history impacts on your hearts the most - share your words with us. Whether that be a single event, an overall perspective, whatever you feel able to share - for some, I would hope that this may even be a healing exercise, but whatever people chose to write - it will be treated with the utmost respect.
To those of you who partook in last months exercise - well done. Our numbers may be small but our words are powerful. Have any of you ever considered that your words may become the time capsules of our generation?
Am I being too high falutin suggesting that????? My mind works in mysterious ways, but I often think that even though we quite possibly don't really think along those lines perhaps we should - because don't we now look back on the words of our esteemed poets of previous decades and take on board their view of their times from what they have written?Anyway, something to ponder perhaps - Go to it my lovelies and make magic and memories with your words.