This is Part 9 of our series looking at the Kokoda Campaign, looking at the combat performance of the 39th Battalion.
This episode discusses the formation of the 39th Battalion, it's preparation for combat and how it performed on the Kokoda Trail. The 39th Battalion is one of the Australian Army's most famous Battalion, a militia battalion that bore the brunt of the Japanese attacks down the Kokoda track. What enabled it to fight so well?
Have a listed Dr David Cameron, an expert on the Kookoda Campaign as he discusses the history and performance of the 39th Battalion.
Check out the show notes for the podcast for all of the information that we cover in this episode as well as the images and other details that didn't make it into the podcast.
Dr David Cameron Biography
David Cameron received first class Honours in Prehistory, University of Sydney and a PhD in Palaeoanthropology, Australian National University. He has written over twenty books covering Australian Military History, Colonial History, and Evolutionary Science with over 70 internationally peer reviewed papers published in various journals and book chapters. He is a former Australian Research Council Post Doctoral Fellow, School of Archaeology, Australian National University; and an Australian Research Council QEII Fellow in the Department of Anatomy and Histology, University of Sydney. He has conducted and led several international fieldwork projects in Europe (Hungary), Asia (Vietnam, India, and Japan), and the Middle East (Turkey, Jordan, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates) and conducted extensive museum studies and conferences (United States, Europe, and Asia). Before retiring in 2023, he was a senior analyst in the Australian Intelligence Community.
Books on the Papua Campaign by Dr Cameron:
Cameron, D.W. (in preparation – December 2024.) The Battle for Milne Bay, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (in preparation – August 2024) Sanananda, Bastard of a Place: The Battle for the Beachhead, 1942-43, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (in press – November 2023) Bloody Buna: The Battle for the Beachhead, 1942-43, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (2023) Gona’s Gone: The Battle for the Beachhead 1942, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (2022) Retaking Kokoda: The Australian Advance Across the Owen Stanleys, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (2022) Saving Port Moresby: Fighting at the End of the Kokoda Track, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (2022) The Battle for Isurava: Fighting on the Kokoda Track in the heart of the Owen Stanleys, Big Sky Publishing
Cameron, D.W. (2020) The Battles for Kokoda Plateau: Three Weeks of Hell Defending the Gateway to the Owen Stanleys, Allen & Unwin Australia
Firepower 39: Western Front Plenary Session
Firepower 38: The advent of the tank
Firepower 37: The Battle of Cambrai and the role of artillery
Firepower 36: The emergence of modern combined arms warfare
Firepower 35: Messines Ridge / Passchendaele Plenary Session
Firepower 34: Artillery and manoeuvre warfare in the Desert War
Firepower: The origins of Artillery Intelligence Fusion
Firepower 32 - Menin Road - Cracking the nut
49 - Innovative tactics for the Battle of the Bismarck Sea
48 - Creating a culture of military innovation - GEN Kenney and the Fifth Air Force
Firepower 31: Western Front 1917 Plenary Session
Firepower 30: The Gunners of 101st Battery - Lance Bombardier Lindsay Barret DCM
Firepower 29: Industrialised warfare 1916 - 1918 - Firepower and tactics
Firepower 28: 1917 - A strategic overview
Firepower 27: Plenary Session for the Western Front - Verdun and the end of the beginning
Firepower 26: Archie - The Development of Anti Aircraft Artillery
Firepower 25: Feeding the guns - From Arsenal to Gun Position
47 - Military Innovation and Creativity with GEN Kenney and the Battle of the Bismarck Sea
46 - The Battle of the Bismarck Sea
45 - Leadership and Morale on Palliers Hill
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