A vulnerable island? Tasmania’s civil defence 1935‑1945

Japan’s invasion of China, Italy’s attack on Abyssinia, the Spanish Civil War, Germany’s rearmament and annexation of Austria and the Sudetenland; the 1930s world was in turmoil. Tasmania was on the opposite side of the world to this evolving chaos. One would then question why the State was concerned about civil defence, in particular developing air raid precautions (ARP) and creating its administrative organisation, the Civil Defence Legion (CDL).
Simply, this thesis argues, the State felt an unprecedented vulnerability. The Government, its defence forces, the press and a growing portion of the community believed that Tasmania was at risk from attack. This was not a new perception; Tasmania’s remoteness and isolation had created a sense of vulnerability from the beginning of European settlement. Its allies were too far away to render assistance. A sparse population and undefended coastline made it an attractive proposition as a base for an enemy wishing to attack Australia. On the eve of World War II, Australia’s Defence Forces were inadequate and unable to offer the military support that Tasmania desired. The only solution left to Tasmania’s Government was to develop a civilian response to manage the safety and well-being of its population should the island be attacked.
This thesis is the first scholarly study to focus on Tasmania’s sense of vulnerability and how this fear impelled the State Government to develop a series of air raid precautions under the auspices of the Civil Defence Legion. It begins by placing this development within a long-term historical framework, exploring how a sense of vulnerability developed in Tasmania from colonial times. Although this fear fluctuated as global tensions changed, the increasingly volatile world in the aftermath of World War I intensified this concern. The advancing technologies of warfare meant that Tasmania’s isolation no longer guaranteed its safety.
The second part of the thesis overviews the British systems of ARP and how the Commonwealth, in response to the deteriorating global situation, developed its own air raid guidelines. The ARP was subsequently delegated to the States for implementation. In Tasmania, this was to be under the auspices of the newly created CDL, discussed in the final section of the thesis. This thesis contends that the CDL’s extensive organisational structure, its harnessing of all levels of government, including leading public servants, and enrolment of a diverse range of the State’s people as volunteers demonstrates the belief that Tasmania was at risk. The minimisation of this risk necessitated both the legislative powers and public support of the CDL.
The CDL’s papers, held by the Tasmanian Archives, reveal an administrative system that functioned on multiple levels of government and public support. The Premier’s Correspondence files demonstrate a deep-seated concern for the State’s safety and the need to vocalise their feeling of vulnerability in response to Commonwealth defence decisions. Tasmania’s press critically responded to the work of the CDL and the Government’s management of the fears for the island. However, it is the public’s voice recorded in letters, interviews and Letters to the Editor that demonstrate a sense of anxiety that Tasmania could be attacked.
The home front in Australia during World War II is a well visited topic for historians. Many touch on memories of ARP. Surprisingly, however, there is little detail given to the administrative systems developed behind these precautions and their countless human responses. No-where is this more apparent than in Tasmania’s historiography. Not only does this thesis address a crucial and historically neglected element of Tasmania’s response to World War II, it highlights an aspect of the island’s psyche since European settlement; that of feeling exposed and vulnerable.