The Australian Academy of the Humanities invites academics to contribute short articles to the Academy's website under the heading 'Power of the humanities'. Professor Peter Stanley, President of Defending Country, has contributed an article 'Anzac in a time of uncertainty'. His article discusses the history of Anzac since 1915 and concludes with a list of developments that 'suggest that the cult of Anzac no longer permeates Australian society as it once did'.
This development stood out from the others:
Despite the failure of the Voice referendum, the widespread acceptance of the fact of the Australian Wars (aka Frontier Conflict) has disrupted the simple message of Anzac: wars are no longer seen as happening outside Australia, and a debate over their incorporation into war remembrance continues.
Professor Stanley concludes:
What might once have seemed one of the eternal and defining expressions of Australian national identity, perhaps turns out to be less certain. Anzac and its day has always evolved, and it will continue to do so. What directions that evolution takes will – or should be – up to the Australian people to decide.
Professor Stanley is a Fellow of the Academy and an Honorary Professor at UNSW Canberra.
25 April 2025
Picture credit: Gallipoli 1915. 'A soldier uses his rifle to retrieve his hat from over the top of a trench'. However, it is possible that the trooper is firing over the parapet with his rifle upside down (Donor J. Derham, AWM )
