Australia’s greatest military defeat and how it broke the bonds of Empire
In 1923, Billy Hughes, until the previous year Australia’s Prime Minister, welcomed the news that Britain would build a fortress at Singapore. ‘We cannot defend ourselves,’ he declared, reflecting a belief shared by many Australian political leaders that the nation’s security ultimately depended upon British power. With that assumption, Australia embarked on the long road to Changi—a journey that would end in total, ignominious and unnecessary defeat.
Researched and written from a distinctly Australian perspective, The Long Road to Changi examines both the political and military decisions that committed Australian forces to the defence of Singapore and the subsequent attempts by some British writers to attribute the disaster to Australian ‘bad behaviour’. It is a study of strategy, national policy and the gradual unravelling of Australia’s unquestioning reliance on the British Empire.
Publisher: HarperCollins, 2013