Mould, dodging mine shafts, sleeping in beds of dried leaves: Mary Anne Allen’s diary offers a fascinating glimpse of family life on the goldfields in 1852.
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Articles on Australian history
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Outnumbered 200 to one and using traditional weapons, Tongerlongeter and his warriors drove the colony to desperate measures. In other wars his self-sacrifice would have earned him a medal.
History isn’t just learning facts. Students learn about the past by researching information and synthesising it to form an evidence-based argument. This skill is useful for a range of careers.
Along with firearms and disease, the horse was a key element in occupying Aboriginal land during the colonial period and controlling the largely convict workforce on the frontier.
When Britain legislated to abolish slavery in 1833, some former slave owners moved to the Australasian colonies. New research traces this movement of people, money and ideologies.
Australian writer Eve Langley, author of the 1942 novel The Pea Pickers, resisted gender expectations and wrote acutely about the landscape.
The first class action on stolen wages against the Commonwealth seeks compensation for wages owed to Aboriginal workers in the Northern Territory.
Gwoja Tjungurrayi features on our $2 coin and was the first living Australian to feature on a postage stamp. It turns out he made his stamp debut much earlier.
She was a feted opera singer, and Australia’s first celebrity. But there were many sides to Nellie Melba, a complex, clever businesswoman with a rather contemporary take on fame.
While Mother’s Day is often surrounded by cloying sentiment, Australian mums have a long history of political activism and forcing social change.
Historical artefacts of every facet of Australian life - from government to migration to popular culture - is held by the National Archives. Without an urgent injection of funds, it could all be lost.
Anzac soldiers wrote poetry about body lice, shared treatment tips and experimented with new ways of bathing.
The prime minister calls it “our most sacred day”, but numbers at Anzac Day dawn services fell by 70% from 2015-2019.
In 1901, there were almost 30,000 Chinese men in Australia but fewer than 500 women. Despite their small numbers, emerging research reveals surprising stories of Chinese Australian women’s lives.
What happens when the distant frontier takes up residence in the family home? How are we to remember our flawed ancestors? A new book grapples with these questions.
From the “goo goo” boys mocked for their love of theatre to cross-dressing troops and “trouser women”, Australia has a rich queer history.
It would be ‘aggressively Australian’, holding a mirror up to contemporary society. The creation of the first Macquarie Dictionary, while not without controversies, was a cultural milestone.
A new book, about the suburban women who poisoned their husbands in post-war Sydney, explores their cold-blooded modus operandi and the hot dinners they prepared.
From Cantonese sausage on the goldfields, to mid-century sweet and sour pork, to today’s delicate xiao long bao, Chinese food in Australia has come a long way.
An artist and self-proclaimed witch, Rosaleen Norton defied cultural norms in Menzies-era Australia. Reviled by the media, she was a powerfully unconventional woman.
Top contributors
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Professor of History, ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences, Australian National University
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Professor in Public History, University of Technology Sydney
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Professor of History, La Trobe University
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Research Professor in the Australian Centre for the Study of Armed Conflict and Society, UNSW Sydney
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ARC Laureate Fellow, Monash University, Director of Global Encounters Program., Monash University
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Senior Lecturer in Linguistics, Monash University
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Professor of Linguistics, Monash University
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Lecturer in History, La Trobe University
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Head of Knowledge, Australian National Maritime Museum and Honorary Affiliate, University of Sydney
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Joanna Mendelssohn is a Friend of The Conversation.
Honorary (Senior Fellow) School of Culture and Communication University of Melbourne. Editor in Chief, Design and Art of Australia Online, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Law, University of Technology Sydney
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Emeritus Professor of Media and Culture, Griffith University, Griffith University
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Wesfarmers Chair of Australian History, The University of Western Australia
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Professor, Indigenous Studies and Director of The Centre for Global Indigenous Futures, Macquarie University
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Matthew Flinders Professor, Flinders University
