Darwin Defenders by Lauren Smith

Servicemen who enlisted from my home town in Victoria were a part of what is known as the Darwin Defenders 19th Machine Gun ‘Gunners’ Battalion which was headquarters in Horsham. Through personal research and anecdotes I will explain a collective memory of their experiences and outlooks.

These soldiers originated from Goroke, Victoria.

Brooks, Arthur John

Burns, Cecil James (also Z Force)

Guthridge, Richard John (Z

Hinch, Adrian

Hinch, Howard Edgar

Ingram, Max

Kuhne, Walter Albert

Maher, Arthur Thomas

Mayvery, Charles Hallam

McKinnon, DOuglas Fraser

McPhee, Geoffrey Michael

Nuzum, Lindsay Gordon

Rask, Alan John

Robinson, Ray Ernest

Scott, Angus Keith (still alive)

Scott, Ronald Darell

Watts, John Lewis 

One of the men, Uncle Cecil Burns, was the first person to spot the Japanese zero’s flying toward Darwin on 19th February 1942. At the museum you will see a theatre that portrays the first zero’s coming in. A voice will say “I think the Japs are here,” to which his commanding officer says “how do you know?” and he replies “because they’;ve got bloody big red spots on them.” That is the voice of Cecil.

Anecdotes from the defenders was that the planes were that close that they could see the Japanese smiling as they were strafing those below. The soldiers were only issued 5 rounds each. In training, there weren’t enough rifles so they used broomsticks for drills.

Angus Scott, who is still alive, has spent most of his life trying to forget what he witnessed that day but his memories remain clear.

"It was 9:58am and I saw a V formation of aircraft flying in over the sea," he said.

"It was 9:58am and I saw a V formation of aircraft flying in over the sea," he said.

"There were so many of them and we had no idea that they were the enemy — there were no procedures in place to provide any warning, we were left so unprepared.

"We had one rifle and a lot of us had no ammunition — none whatsoever.

"I was a driver and had my rifle behind the seat, but had nothing to put in it. Now, it was just, well, bad. Very bad."

"If the Japanese had not bombed us and just landed troops, they could have walked right through and taken Darwin," Mr Scott said.

After his service in the army he returned to Gymbowen and purchased a mail run from Frances to Gymbowen. He then delivered fuel from Caltex before retiring and volunteered for the RSL whenever he could. He is now 101.

Rex Ruwoldt also served in the battalion. He recalled not knowing where he was going to be sent, except that when leaving on the Ghan from Adelaide that it had to be somewhere North, potentially New Guinea. This was weeks after Pearl Harbour and the fall of Singapore. Soldiers got dysentery from drinking the different bore water at every stop along the way. The military tactics of the Japanese were being hypothesized based on how the Japanese had landed and attacked. They arrived three weeks before the raid. He served in a pill box on the beach near Leanyer Creek where 40 men guarded the beach. They have 5 minutes worth of ammunition.

Cecil Burns moved into Z Force after the 19th Gunners disbanded.

Z Force special operations was very hush hush and were sent into danger zones in New Guinea as part of a specialist reconnaissance and sabotage unit. They spied and informed on the enemy, often had to do whatever they could to survive.

Those chosen were required to sign that they wouldn’t divulge information for 30 years after the war. George Edwards was a Z Force who was put on an island to spot Japanese planes - this location was only known to the highest ranking officials. George was also chosen to be a runner and memorise orders so there was no paper evidence. If he was captured he was not to divulge information on where his comrades were, even under torture.

Many of the men refused to buy anything Japanese after the war ended, including cars.