Australian
Screen

Teacher’s notes

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This clip shows a black-and-white advertisement for war bonds, known as 'liberty loans’, that would have been shown in cinemas during the Second World War. It dramatically re-creates a military operation at night and opens with a close-up of a soldier shouting 'fire’, before cutting to a barrage of guns being discharged, troops advancing and more close-up shots of the soldier issuing the order to fire. A narrator says that war costs 'big money’ and asks people to 'back the attack’ by buying national savings stamps and investing them in the Fourth Liberty Loan. The narration is subtitled.

Educational value points

• Australia entered the Second World War (1939–45) in September 1939, following Britain’s lead after Germany invaded Poland. The Australian Government declared war on Japan three days after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in December 1941. About one million Australian men and women served in the armed forces, including 560,000 servicemen who fought in campaigns against Germany and Italy in Europe, North Africa and the Mediterranean, and against Japan in the Pacific.

• In February 1942 Japanese aircraft bombed Darwin, killing at least 243 people and wounding between 300 and 400. The Japanese attack on northern Australia continued until November 1943, targeting Broome, Townsville, Katherine, Wyndham, Derby and Port Hedland. Australia and its allies lost about 900 people, 77 aircraft and several ships. In May 1942 Japanese midget submarines entered Sydney Harbour. A naval depot-ship was torpedoed, killing 19 seamen before the submarines were destroyed. Japanese submarines shelled Newcastle and Sydney and although little damage resulted, when added to the Japanese southward thrust in Malaya, Singapore and New Guinea, the very real fear of a Japanese invasion was increased.

• In 1940 the Australian Government introduced war loans, which raised money directly from the Australian public to help fund Australia’s war effort. The Government encouraged people to invest in war bonds or certificates that cost 16 shillings and were expected to mature to £1 (20 shillings, so a 25 per cent gain) by the end of the War. The Government also launched a National Savings Campaign to promote the idea that people could invest their savings in war bonds.

• The Fourth Liberty Loan was launched in October 1943 and attracted 567,533 subscribers, easily meeting the target of £125,000. The Fourth Liberty Loan offered interest of 3.5 per cent. Twelve major government war loans were offered to the public, known variously as 'liberty’, 'austerity’ and 'victory’ loans. The 'victory’ and 'liberty’ loans were intended to suggest that Australians were investing in victory in the War and in ensuring the continued freedom of the country (which became particularly pertinent with the threat of a Japanese invasion in 1942), while 'austerity’ referred to measures taken by the Government to divert resources to the war effort.

• During the War, Australians were able to buy national saving stamps for 5 shillings each, collected in a special booklet that could be redeemed for a bond or certificate. The stamps were sold through banks, post offices and even by movie theatres and retailers. The Government set up War Loans and War Savings Certificates Committees to coordinate the promotion of the scheme and the issuing of bonds and certificates.

• By 1942 the sale of war savings certificates was a major source of revenue for the Government. In the 1941-42 financial year the Government spent £319 million on the War, of which £108 million came from taxes (including income tax, which the Commonwealth Government collected under wartime defence powers), £126 million from loans and War Savings certificates, £78 million from Treasury Bills and £6 million from other government funds. In total, Australia spent about £2.1 billion on the War, equal to 30 per cent of the national income over the period.

• Launched in 1942, the war loans campaign encouraged people to work longer hours, consume less, recycle and invest any spare cash in war loans. Prime minister John Curtin said that 'The only justification for possessing [spare cash] is that it should be saved and lent to the nation for the nation’s need’ (john.curtin.edu.au). War loans also reduced inflation by absorbing money that might be spent on scarce consumer goods.

• Australians were urged to buy war loans through extensive promotional campaigns that included posters, leaflets and cinema, radio, newspaper and magazine advertisements. The print media ran articles encouraging Australians to adopt austerity measures and to invest in war loans and war loan drives held throughout the country. The drives included military parades, displays, demonstrations of equipment, and tours with their aircraft by crew who had served their country with distinction. Towns received a pennant when they reached an allotted quota in the drives.

• Advertisements for war loans appealed to people’s patriotism by asking civilians to do their bit at home or, in Curtin’s words, 'there can be no distinction between soldiers and civilians. Everyone has a battle station’ (john.curtin.edu.au). While war loans helped finance the War, they also had an effect on morale on the home front. When he launched the Fourth Liberty Loan, Curtin said the slogan 'back the attack’ referred to the fact that the Allied forces were on the offensive.