For the first time, acclaimed military historian Dr Tom Lewis OAM uncovers the full scale of World War II’s forgotten battles along our coastline.
From German surface raiders laying deadly mines to Japanese submarines prowling offshore and enemy aircraft launching hundreds of attacks, the war on the coast stretched across thousands of kilometres—from Darwin to Hobart, from Townsville to Melbourne.
This landmark book rewrites history, revealing a long and brutal struggle between German and Japanese forces and those of Australia, Britain, and the United States. Scores of ships were sunk, thousands of lives lost—yet much of this story remains unknown.
Among the tragedies are gripping accounts of heroism and heartbreak: the sinking of the cruiser Sydney with 645 lives lost in a duel with the raider Kormoran; a deadly mine explosion on a quiet South Australian beach; and the haunting fate of a priest abducted and executed by an enemy floatplane crew.
There are also tales of misjudgement and misadventure—like the flawed decisions during the Sydney midget submarine raids, partly redeemed by the courage of small ship commanders whose bravery remains unrecognised. Other stories are only now coming to light, including the daring attack by two RAAF bombers on a Japanese submarine still lost off the coast of New South Wales.
Australia’s Coastal War reveals it all—a sweeping and deeply human account of a war far closer to home than most Australians ever realised.
Dr Peter Williams is the author of several books on the Pacific War. His latest work is Japan’s Pacific War: Personal Accounts of the Emperor’s Warriors, published by Pen and Sword. –
Review by Dr Peter Williams
The latest book from military historian Tom Lewis is a weighty work of just over 500 pages. Australia’s Coastal War brings together all the actions around Australia’s coastline through World War II; surface, submarine and air. It is an attempt to show the reader how extensive those battles were, and it succeeds. The action ranges from Darwin to Hobart, from Perth to Townsville.
The work is copiously illustrated, with liberal use of tables listing the total numbers of operations, including fatalities. Australia’s Coastal War is a welcome addition to the country’s history, and for anyone’s family whose ancestors saw action defending us – or for anyone who wants to understand fully the effects of the war we had here at home, this is an invaluable work.
Judge’s Comment, NSW History Awards, Shortlist –
Australia’s Coastal War condenses 40 years of research into Australia’s World War II history by Dr Tom Lewis OAM into a single volume. The book efficiently details attacks made on Australian shores, seas and within its skies, and the technologies used to inflict them. He summarises the well-known bombings of Darwin, midget submarine attacks in Sydney Harbour, and sinking of the Centaur, but more importantly, dedicates pages to lesser-known enemy actions. We learn about German mine warfare, Japanese submarine attacks in Hobart Harbour and Japanese bombings of Broome, Townsville and across Australia’s north. Lewis also details Australian defences, from coastal netting and our home-grown naval ships to searchlights, fighter aircraft and radar.
The easy-to-read prose, combined with the short chapters, subheadings, sidebars and tables, make this a highly useable reference book. It organises substantial research into concise descriptions of events by date, time and location, complemented by personal recollections.