1915 —Ottoman soldiers launched an attack to capture the Suez Canal. The assault was repelled by Indian troops, supported by the 7th and 8th Infantry Battalions of the Australian Imperial Force.

1942 —The Australian garrison on Ambon surrendered to overwhelming Japanese forces. Alongside soldiers of the Netherlands East Indies, they were unable to hold their position. Tragically, 300 men were executed by the Japanese, and two-thirds of the Australians taken as prisoners of war perished before liberation.

1942— The first Japanese air attack on Port Moresby took place as part of Japan's plan to capture the area and establish it as a base to disrupt shipping routes to Eastern Australia.

1968— 3RAR recaptured Baria, the capital of Phuoc Tuy province, Vietnam, following the Tet Offensive. Baria had been a key target of Viet Cong attacks against Australian forces in the region.

1943— The last of Australia’s troops in the Middle East departed for home. Japan's entry into the war compelled Australia to prioritise its own regional defence over British requests to focus on the campaigns in North Africa and Europe.

1942— British forces withdrew from the Malayan Peninsula and retreated to what was believed to be the impregnable fortress of Singapore.

1941— Australian forces capture Derna as the Italians begin to withdraw towards Benghazi.

1942— Japanese forces attack Ambon, Netherlands East Indies. Dutch soldiers and the Australians of “Gull Force” defending the island are defeated.

1951— Women’s Royal Australian Air Force was formed.

1968— The Tet Offensive began in Vietnam. Australian troops of 2, 3, and 7RAR were involved in the Offensive.

1941— Italian soldiers evacuate Derna, Libya, after being defeated by Australian 6th Division troops.

1944— Battle of Wau, New Guinea, began. The Japanese recognised that Allied possession of Wau posed a significant threat to their important bases at Lae and Salamaua and sought to take the town. The Japanese were defeated after weeks of heavy fighting.

1944— HMAS Westralia was attacked by a Japanese bomber while landing troops at Milne Bay, Papua. The ship was damaged, and one crew member was wounded. 

1991— A Royal Australian Navy Clearance Diving Team departed for Kuwait to begin explosive ordnance demolition duties, as part of Australia’s commitment to the Gulf War.   

1918— Dunsterforce, comprising of 48 Australian Officers and NCOs, left Baghdad to fight in northwest Persia, to keep the Turks and Bolsheviks out of Persia. This was part of an Allied support of Russian Imperial forces following the Russian Revolution in 1917. 

1945— The evacuation of Sandakan POW camp begins. Japanese troops marched the prisoners 260 km inland to Ranau. Many of the prisoners died of disease, malnutrition, exhaustion, and ill-treatment, and the survivors were shot when they reached their destination. Only 6 of 2,500 Australians survived the Sandakan Death March, the greatest single atrocity committed against Australians in war.

1942— Japanese forces landed at Lae, New Guinea. The capture of Lae allowed for the defence of Rabaul and attacks on northern Australia.

1942— The Government ordered full mobilisation in Australia in response to the threat posed by the proximity of Japanese forces.

1944— Battle of Sio-Sepik River began with troops advancing from Sio on the Huon Peninsula to the Sepik River on New Guinea’s north coast.

1952— HMAS Sydney completed her service in Korean waters where she had been on operations since August 1951.