Exploring Military Crime in the Australian Imperial Force by Officers During The First World War

Authors: Des Lambley

Abstract:

The scope and scale of crime in the AIF is a subject largely overlooked by historians preferring to narrate the macro-scale topics. This examination exposes some 17,000 military criminals, 414 of them officers and illustrates how military law imposed itself. This subjective sociological perspective humanises the impacts of war upon soldiers. Examples of the crimes, their seriousness, punishments and military justice tell of cause and effect linkages between crime, stress and illness. The discourse is derived from original official military sources in the Australian Archives.

Keywords: Australia, AIF, Military Crime, WW1, Officers