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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-09-18 Daily Xml
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BITA PAKA

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (15:39): On Tuesday 11 September, I attended a memorial service and this date from now on will have additional significance for me, not only remembering the loss of Andrew Knox—a friend to many here who, along with thousands of others, died at the World Trade Centre in New York—but because I now know that this is the date, some 98 years ago, of the first military action by Australian servicemen in World War I.

I am indebted to Mr Allen Lyne, President of the Naval Association Australia (SA) for this information and to Jean Hudson, who was involved in the organisation of the commemoration. The well-attended ceremony was held in the Naval Memorial Gardens, Peace Park, North Adelaide. The RAN band provided music, with Mrs Lyne giving an a cappella rendition of Amazing Grace.

The Battle of Bita Paka is a little known action at the start of World War I, yet it was an action that had important strategic consequences and affects our relationships with many of our Pacific Island neighbours to the present day. It was a small action, and it was dwarfed by the events at Gallipoli some seven months later and those of the Western Front, with its enormous casualty lists, that followed soon after.

However, small though it was, the Battle of Bita Paka, in what became New Britain on 11 September 1914, deserves a special place in the history of our Navy and our nation. It was an operation carried out by landing parties of the Australian Fleet—the first ever action by the Royal Australian Navy. We, as a nation, sent forth our armed forces on an overseas mission for the first time. Bita Paka was the first amphibious landing by our armed forces. Naval personnel became the casualties—Able Seaman Williams was the first fatality—and Navy personnel won the first decorations (including a DSO) in the history of our national armed forces. Bita Paka was, for us, a victory.

The capture of the German wireless station at Bita Paka was quickly followed by the capture of Rabaul and the surrender of the entire German Pacific Island possessions. This was a major strategic victory won after action by Australian naval and military forces and bombardment by Australian ships. So, almost completely, it was a victory by our naval forces.

The German defence at Bita Paka was 240 native police soldiers and 50 German officers. German New Guinea was different to her counterpart colonies in Africa in that it had no colonial defence force, rather, using local people to put down rebellions and tribal wars.

After landing six miles from Bita Paka, an Australian landing party began their advance but ran into German sniper fire. A German was spotted in a tree and consequently wounded by one of the Australians. After being captured, the German convinced a band of his comrades to surrender by shouting out lies about the strength of the Australians. (They were lies put into his mind by the Australians, by the way.) It was later discovered he was wired to a mine with the capacity to blow up the 12-pounder gun that was soon to be deployed.

There are many other stories like these, remarkable for the telling of the courage and ingenuity of the Australians, and they will be told in the ensuing years. I can add today, though, that when they successfully reached their objective the Australians discovered the radio tower was felled and much of the equipment destroyed by the fleeing Germans. The Allies were unable to resume transmission with the tower until 1916.

In the aftermath of Bita Paka, not only did the German governor cede New Britain, New Ireland and New Guinea but he gave up all of the German Pacific Island possessions. I want to note the Germans were ejected from Samoa by our allies in so many actions—New Zealand troops, backed by an Australian fleet.

The Bita Paka victory meant Admiral von Spee's East Asiatic Squadron had no wireless communication links or logistics support bases (particularly for loading coal) anywhere in our region. He had no way of getting reports on our shipping—merchant or naval. Von Spee was unable to carry out the German war plan that called on him to harass and sink our shipping and to bombard Australian and New Zealand coastal towns and installations. Von Spee was forced to flee for home and was killed at the Battle of the Falkland Islands while attempting to do so. Along with two of von Spee's sons, about 2,400 other German sailors died. That was the first Royal Navy victory since Trafalgar.

Holding Bita Paka meant Australian shipping was free to move and our transport of troops to the UK and Middle East could take place without fear of interdiction. This was a major strategic victory for Australia at the very start of World War I. In the longer term, Australia was granted sovereignty over Papua New Guinea, New Britain, New Ireland and some other former German Pacific Island possessions following World War I. This has had major effects on our standing in our region and our relations with our close neighbours.

It is sometimes written that Australia lost six men at the Battle of Bita Paka and that four were wounded. This ignores the fact that one of Australia's first two submarines, HMAS AE1, went missing somewhere close to the Duke of York Islands while on patrol during this campaign. Thirty-five of our submariners died that day, and the wreck of their vessel has never been found.

The men who fought, and especially those who died at Bita Paka and aboard AE1, deserve better than they have so far received from the Australian nation. These men volunteered to serve when called upon, not knowing where they were going and not knowing the strength of the enemy forces they would encounter. They went to the colours when called, they performed magnificently, and they won the day.

From now on, we will all remember them and their gallant action, the first ever action by the Royal Australian Navy and the first by Australian military forces in World War I on 11 September each year. The memory of the deeds of those brave naval personnel must be kept alive and honoured in the future forever. We will remember them, lest we forget.

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