The Great Mistakes of Australian History

by Crotty, Martin

• ISBN13: 9780868409955
• ISBN10: 0868409952
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-10-01
• Publisher: University of New South Wales Press

Summary

Blunders, stuff-ups and misjudgments are a part of any country's history. Dwelling on what might have been isn't always helpful, but recognizing our mistakes and learning from them is important. In this highly original and provocative book leading Australian historians attempt to do just that. Many stories, scenarios and situations are explored with verve, compassion and insight.The Great Mistakes of Australian Historyis a lively and provocative account of where we might have got it wrong, written so that next time we can get it right.

Table of Contents

Notes on contributors	p. vii
Introduction: Contemplating the Role of Mistakes in Australia's Past	p. 1
Indigenous Peoples
'They Would Speedily Abandon the Country to the New Comers': The Denial of Aboriginal Rights	p. 14
Shelley's Mistake: The Parramatta Native Institution and the Stolen Generations	p. 32
The Australian Environment
The Burke and Wills Phenomenon: Trial and Error in the Conquest of Australia	p. 48
Agrarian Ideals and Pastoral Realities: The Use and Misuse of Land in Rural Australia	p. 64
A Curse Upon the Land: Foxes and Cane Toads	p. 79
'An Architectural Monstrosity'?: The Cahill Expressway and Town Planning	p. 93
War
Naive Militarism: Australia's World War I Generation	p. 108
A Great and Impotent Friend: The Singapore Strategy	p. 123
The Enemy Within: Wartime Internment of Enemy Aliens	p. 139
Politics and Trade
'Another Singapore'? Australia Turns Away from Asia	p. 156
States of Mind: Federation and the Problematic Constitution	p. 170
Guarding the Flood Gates: The Removal of Non-Europeans, 1945-49	p. 186
(Mis)adventures in Brinkmanship: Whitlam and the Governor-General	p. 203
Notes	p. 219
Index	p. 238
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