Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are advised that this page contains images and links to material containing images of deceased people.

Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders in the Australian Defence Force (Australian War Memorial)
From the Australian War Memorial encyclopedia section. Especially see:
- Australian Indigenous Servicemen

Too Dark for the Light Horse: Resource Book [pdf file] To download, right-click and save)

Too dark for the light horse: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the defence forces (Australian War Memorial)
Memorial Box 03 examines the contribution of Aboriginal Australians during World Wars 1 and 2. Much of the content of the Resource Book would be useful in the classroom even without the actual materials it is primarily designed to be used with.
- Download Resource Book for Memorial box 03 [pdf file]

Indigenous Australians at War (aiatsis.gov.au)
"This site is primarily about the author’s research into Australian Aboriginal servicemen in the defence of Australia."
The Memorials page lists some aboriginals who fought in World War 1.

Aboriginals' significant role in WWI revealed (The Australian, 13 April 2004, in eniar.org)
"The names of more than 400 Aboriginal soldiers who served in World War I have been uncovered -- and many were from Tasmania's Bass Strait islands..."

Aboriginals who served in WW1 (ulladulla.info)
Some of the Aboriginal soldiers from the South Coast and Yuin area of new south Wales who served in World War 1. See also archived copy with links.

World War 1 Honour roll (partial) (fortunecity.com)
Partial list of Aboriginal soldiers who died in war (mainly World War 1).

Aboriginal members of the Light Horse, AIF (alh-research.tripod.com)
Many Aboriginal volunteers served with the Australian Light Horse.
See in particular Aboriginals in the AIF and, on the same page, Aboriginal lLght Horsemen.
See also the Education Centre: Scroll down to "11. Aboriginal Light Horsemen", in particular see:
- Lesson 11 Aboriginal Light Horsemen, Lesson Plan
- Aboriginal Light Horsemen, Part 11, Students outline

Corporal Harry Thorpe (awm.gov.au)
Born at the Lake Tyers Aboriginal Mission Station, Victoria. Fought in France 1916-18.

Aboriginal Diggers (diggerhistory.info - if the link is not working, see Where is Digger History?)
World War 1 soldiers include Corporal Harry Thorpe, Private S. Cunningham, Private William Joseph Punch, Private Reginald Francis Hawkins.

 

Aboriginals at Gallipoli Aborigines: Ben Murray (southaustralianhistory.com.au) Flinders Ranges Research. Scroll down to the third paragraph beginning "That Ben Murray, born in 1891..." Ben Murray fought at Gallipoli. ● See also Ben Murray on our Biographies page. Blog article - Aboriginal ANZACs (Battlefield Tours 24 April 2008, in awm.gov.au) "There are only five known Aboriginal servicemen buried at Gallipoli, however, it is estimated that 500-800 Aboriginal diggers served in the First World War."

Indigenous Australians at War (fortunecity.com)
[Site contains pop-ups]
Scroll down for list of contents. See especially:
- Why did they serve? (This section could also be called 'What was the effect of Aboriginals serving in World War 1?')

Indigenous Australians and World War I (Skwirk.com.au Interactive Schooling)
Information about Indigenous Australians and World War I, the historical context, and the aftermath.
Note: this is a commercial site requiring subscription for further access to images, quizzes, etc.

The Anzac Day legend & Coloured Digger Anzac march (creativespirits.info)
"This article focuses on Australia's Aboriginal war veterans and the Coloured Digger march which started in 2007." Includes the following poems:
- Black Anzac by Cecil Fisher
- The Coloured Digger by Sapper Bert Beros, a non-Aboriginal soldier in WWII. The poem is written about an Aboriginal soldier, Private West.
 

Forever Warriors Book shines light on Indigenous soldiers (ABC Stateline WA) Broadcast 22 October 2010. Online video of TV report about "Forever Warriors", a new book on Western Australia's Aboriginal soldiers by Jan "Kabarli" James. "Pays tribute to the sacrifices of Aboriginal soldiers who fought for Australia only to return home to racism and discrimination."  Online video expires 20 January 2011. A light is shone on Aboriginal soldiers' service (abc.net.au) 29 October 2010. Bibliographical details of Forever Warriors: Trove (National Library of Australia) More information on Forever Warriors: Honouring Indigenous War Graves Inc.

Experiences of War: Aboriginals and War (State Library, South Australia)
 

Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders in the Australian Defence Force (Australian War Memorial)
From the Australian War Memorial encyclopedia section. Especially see:
- Reginald Saunders

Reginald Walter Saunders (awm.gov.au)

Reg Saunders (Wikipedia)
Australia's first Aboriginal commissioned officer.

"One ilan man": the Torres Strait Light Infantry (Australian War Memorial)
The story of the Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion.

Torres Strait Light Infantry Battalion (Wikipedia)

Island Defenders (anzacday.org.au)
History of the participation of Torres Strait Islanders in the armed services.

Page with photograph of conscripted Aboriginal soldiers (State Library of South Australia)
At a training camp in Australia during World  War 2. Library details.

Black Magic (diggerhistory.info - if the link is not working, see Where is Digger History?)

'All in' - Indigenous service (Australia's War 1939-1945) (ww2australia.gov.au)
Contains images and information about Australian aboriginal soldiers and the wartime contribution of aborigines.
 

Lest we forget about indigenous disadvantage (Sydney Morning Herald, 22 April 2010)
"Indigenous disadvantage remains a problem for Australia despite the national apology..."

Indigenous Anzacs need recognition and closure (bigpondnews.com, 22 April 2010 in treatyrepublic.net)
"Aboriginal people have represented Australia in every single conflict since the Boer War, but they have been rarely recognised and celebrated..."

Recognising the Aboriginal Diggers the Country Forgot (ABC Stateline WA, 25 April 2008)
Transcript of television program. "As thousands lined the street to watch today's Anzac Day parade, there was one small group marching to remember diggers who have been forgotten by this country. Hundreds of Aboriginal veterans are buried without military recognition..."

The battle for recognition not yet won (The Standard, Victoria, 11 November 2009)
Attempt to have the contributions of some Aboriginal soldiers recognised. At least 65 Victorian Aboriginals volunteered for World War 1.

Indigenous Diggers (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Transcript from the ABC program George Negus Tonight, broadcast 5 June 2004. "In this story we hear the stories of indigenous Australian soldiers – the forgotten diggers and hear what it was like to go to war as a black Australian and how this experience led them to agitate for rights at home."

Back to Being Black (acmi.net.au)
Video of 3 mins 55 secs. John Lovett relates his father's 1917 World War 1 experiences and lack of being honoured after the war.
 

Aboriginal Anzac Day and coloured Digger resources (creativespirits.info)
Scroll to the bottom.

 

See also

● Background to Anzac Day
● Biographies