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Australia's Secret Army
Established after World War I by the Royal Australian Navy, the Coast Watchers were a loose organisation of several hundred European settlers, missionaries, patrol officers and planters living in British and Australian Pacific Island territories whose job it was to observe and report on the enemy. They were mostly all unpaid volunteers whose job it was simply to observe and report on foreign shipping and aeroplane movements.
It was never envisaged that the Coast Watchers would do any fighting, nor operate inside enemy-occupied territory. But when World War II came to the Pacific, that is exactly what they ended up doing, becoming, in effect, Australia's secret army. Fully cognisant of their fate should they be caught, they nonetheless battled not just the enemy, but constant exhaustion, tropical disease, and the ever-present spectre of capture, torture and death.
Without the Coast Watchers and the crucial intelligence they provided, key moments in the war could have turned out very differently. This is the story of these unsung heroes who risked their lives - and sometimes lost them - in the service of their country.
It was never envisaged that the Coast Watchers would do any fighting, nor operate inside enemy-occupied territory. But when World War II came to the Pacific, that is exactly what they ended up doing, becoming, in effect, Australia's secret army. Fully cognisant of their fate should they be caught, they nonetheless battled not just the enemy, but constant exhaustion, tropical disease, and the ever-present spectre of capture, torture and death.
Without the Coast Watchers and the crucial intelligence they provided, key moments in the war could have turned out very differently. This is the story of these unsung heroes who risked their lives - and sometimes lost them - in the service of their country.
363 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 31, 2022
14 people are currently reading
97 people want to read
About the author
Michael Veitch
28 books37 followersMichael Veitch spent much of his youth writing and performing in television sketch comedy programs, before freelancing as a columnist and arts reviewer for newspapers and magazines. For four years he presented Sunday Arts, the national arts show on ABC television, and produced two books indulging his life-long interest in the aircraft of the Second World War, Flak and Fly. He lives in Hobart, where he presents ABC radio.
Books:
Hailing from a family of journalists, Veitch wrote Flak – True stories from the men who flew in World War II published in 2006 by Pan Macmillan and later, Fly: True stories of courage and adventure from the airmen of World War II published by Penguin Australia in August 2008. A third book, The Forgotten Islands, exploring the lesser-known islands of Bass Strait, was published by Penguin Australia in August 2011.
Further publications include a history of the CSIRO marine exploration vessel, Southern Surveyor will be released in late 2015 (CSIRO Publishing) and a further volume of Second World War airman stories, which will also be published late 2015 (Penguin Books).
Books:
Hailing from a family of journalists, Veitch wrote Flak – True stories from the men who flew in World War II published in 2006 by Pan Macmillan and later, Fly: True stories of courage and adventure from the airmen of World War II published by Penguin Australia in August 2008. A third book, The Forgotten Islands, exploring the lesser-known islands of Bass Strait, was published by Penguin Australia in August 2011.
Further publications include a history of the CSIRO marine exploration vessel, Southern Surveyor will be released in late 2015 (CSIRO Publishing) and a further volume of Second World War airman stories, which will also be published late 2015 (Penguin Books).
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
January 29, 2023
Australia’s Secret Army absorbed me, not only because its content connects with my novel (Death of a Coast Watcher, 2020) but in large part because Michael Veitch founds rich characters on prodigious research about individual Europeans, New Guineans and Solomon Islanders. Other historical and journalistic works on the coast watchers are laudable but do not bring out, to the same extent, the players as complex, sometimes flawed people who unite (not always) in their hellish battle to survive and repel the Japanese invasion of the Pacific Islands. Along the way, Veitch is unique in his encyclopaedic coverage of resourceful and courageous women under stress in an isolated war zone, and he analyses many aspects of the Pacific campaign apart from the role of the coast watchers.
Of particular interest to me is Veitch’s re-creation of legendary Bougainville coast watcher Jack Read. The author fills out Read's reserved and sometimes difficult character, as encountered in my face-to-face contact with him in 1971 when he was Papua New Guinea’s Land Titles Commissioner. I was 22, he was 66. I now feel even more privileged to have spent time chatting with him at my home on a PNG patrol post, and later in a remote village where we worked on a land dispute.
Veitch leaves no doubt that the coast watchers were heroic under great psychological and physical pressure. Even so, Read suggested to me that, despite their courage and clearheaded resolve, they sometimes cracked and behaved in less than commendable ways not mentioned in official records. Veitch’s quotation from Read about a reputed local traitor sticks in my head: ' "He was a dead man if ever I caught up with him," said Read at the time (p. 133)'. It is the only direct quotation I have ever seen that links with our discussion about deadly things being done in wartime, maybe without justification. This was his final comment on the matter late at night in the glow of a dying hurricane lamp, in a hut on the West Coast of New Ireland: "Things were done under pressure that maybe shouldn't have been done. I'll leave it at that. You can make of that what you will." That was in the context of alleged 'summary justice' to villagers who might or might not have betrayed coast watchers to the Japanese. Local people told me such stories. Veitch extols the stalwarts who stuck with the coast watchers but he does not condemn the redirected ‘loyalty’ of others who, on Bougainville for example, saw the Australian administration flee, and feared Japanese murder for supporting coast watchers or not divulging their whereabouts.
Veitch’s work evokes my awe of the coast watchers and rekindles the self-doubt that caused me to wonder, long ago in Read’s presence and often since then, how well I would have fared as a one of them, and what might have been the immediate and long term implications for me and others within my orbit. That is where my novel Death of a Coast Watcher came from, and why I decided to depict one coast watcher as an aberration from Veitch’s exemplary majority; as a man who cracks under intense pressure and seems to behave out of character in despicable ways. Is he culpable? Perhaps; perhaps not. Who is to judge whom, when so few of us have faced such pressure? The principle might be relevant to current questions about some Australian SAS soldiers in Afghanistan. Are there convincing contextual reasons for alleged abominable behaviour, but no excuses? Whatever the case, military veterans tend to like my novel because it reflects the intensity of their precarious experience and its aftermath. They would like Veitch’s quite different work for much the same reason. My late friend Tim Page, celebrated Vietnam War photographer and PTSD victim, agreed with them about my novel. I am sure he would have loved Veitch’s non-fictional depiction of intrepid but imperfect characters under pressure in a zone of dog eat dog, kill or be killed, run or die.
Veitch could not probe the experience of every coast watcher, and there had to be omissions that would warrant inclusion in a longer book: for example, Les Williams, my first boss in PNG; a calm, modest character whose leadership, courage and 'kills' on New Britain were legendary.
Australia’s Secret Army is an enthralling and well-orchestrated study in which the author wastes not a single word. Among many accolades, I admire the way he crafts long sentences with perfect flow.
Of particular interest to me is Veitch’s re-creation of legendary Bougainville coast watcher Jack Read. The author fills out Read's reserved and sometimes difficult character, as encountered in my face-to-face contact with him in 1971 when he was Papua New Guinea’s Land Titles Commissioner. I was 22, he was 66. I now feel even more privileged to have spent time chatting with him at my home on a PNG patrol post, and later in a remote village where we worked on a land dispute.
Veitch leaves no doubt that the coast watchers were heroic under great psychological and physical pressure. Even so, Read suggested to me that, despite their courage and clearheaded resolve, they sometimes cracked and behaved in less than commendable ways not mentioned in official records. Veitch’s quotation from Read about a reputed local traitor sticks in my head: ' "He was a dead man if ever I caught up with him," said Read at the time (p. 133)'. It is the only direct quotation I have ever seen that links with our discussion about deadly things being done in wartime, maybe without justification. This was his final comment on the matter late at night in the glow of a dying hurricane lamp, in a hut on the West Coast of New Ireland: "Things were done under pressure that maybe shouldn't have been done. I'll leave it at that. You can make of that what you will." That was in the context of alleged 'summary justice' to villagers who might or might not have betrayed coast watchers to the Japanese. Local people told me such stories. Veitch extols the stalwarts who stuck with the coast watchers but he does not condemn the redirected ‘loyalty’ of others who, on Bougainville for example, saw the Australian administration flee, and feared Japanese murder for supporting coast watchers or not divulging their whereabouts.
Veitch’s work evokes my awe of the coast watchers and rekindles the self-doubt that caused me to wonder, long ago in Read’s presence and often since then, how well I would have fared as a one of them, and what might have been the immediate and long term implications for me and others within my orbit. That is where my novel Death of a Coast Watcher came from, and why I decided to depict one coast watcher as an aberration from Veitch’s exemplary majority; as a man who cracks under intense pressure and seems to behave out of character in despicable ways. Is he culpable? Perhaps; perhaps not. Who is to judge whom, when so few of us have faced such pressure? The principle might be relevant to current questions about some Australian SAS soldiers in Afghanistan. Are there convincing contextual reasons for alleged abominable behaviour, but no excuses? Whatever the case, military veterans tend to like my novel because it reflects the intensity of their precarious experience and its aftermath. They would like Veitch’s quite different work for much the same reason. My late friend Tim Page, celebrated Vietnam War photographer and PTSD victim, agreed with them about my novel. I am sure he would have loved Veitch’s non-fictional depiction of intrepid but imperfect characters under pressure in a zone of dog eat dog, kill or be killed, run or die.
Veitch could not probe the experience of every coast watcher, and there had to be omissions that would warrant inclusion in a longer book: for example, Les Williams, my first boss in PNG; a calm, modest character whose leadership, courage and 'kills' on New Britain were legendary.
Australia’s Secret Army is an enthralling and well-orchestrated study in which the author wastes not a single word. Among many accolades, I admire the way he crafts long sentences with perfect flow.
July 16, 2023
This book is on track to be the best book of 2023 and it is only January. Veitch gives a thrilling account of the predominantly Australian coastwatchers of the South Pacific islands during WWII. This wonderfully vivid book tells the stories of ordinary and rather eccentric Australian and Indigenous Pacific Islanders who worked alongside the allied forces; often relaying vital intelligence at the expense of their lives. From the remarkable rescue of the later POTUS John F. Kennedy to the stories of survival and courage of flawed yet gutsy civilians, Veitch gives a balanced yet gripping account of this little-recognised aspect of the pacific theatre. I was hooked from the first chapter and I feel as though Veitch does the memory of these stories justice - this book should be mandatory reading.
5/5
5/5
July 28, 2024
Extremely interesting story. The book was very slow for the first half, but the second half saved it.
If you are interested in Australian history, and have never heard the story of the Coastwatchers of the Solomon Island during WWII, which I hadn't before reading this book, then I suggest you read it. The book is only 326 pages, and I suggest if you are finding it hard to read, persevere as it does pick up speed and become quite exciting to read from the half way point.
I consider my self a little better eductaed after reading this book.
If you are interested in Australian history, and have never heard the story of the Coastwatchers of the Solomon Island during WWII, which I hadn't before reading this book, then I suggest you read it. The book is only 326 pages, and I suggest if you are finding it hard to read, persevere as it does pick up speed and become quite exciting to read from the half way point.
I consider my self a little better eductaed after reading this book.
February 2, 2023
Amazing! I had never heard of Coast Watchers in WW 2. Brilliantly and methodically researched. These men and women were heroes who largely remained unrecognised by Australia but heralded by the US. I had to print off a map as I read it on Kindle but that made it easier. Geographically I am a lot better off for the read as well. Top drawer. 4 stars.
July 15, 2024
‘Hidden deep in the jungles and high in the mountains of the Southwest Pacific during World War II, Australia’s secret army – the Coastwatchers – reported every move of the Japanese invaders to Allied intelligence.
Following World War I, the Coastwatcher organisation was formed from European planters, missionaries, and patrol officers living in New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. All volunteers, they were tasked with keeping an eye on Australia’s porous northern border and providing early warnings via radio.
When World War II came to the Pacific, however, overnight the Coastwatchers found themselves no longer just observers but spies operating behind enemy lines. Besides evading the enemy’s desperate efforts to hunt them down, the Coastwatchers battled exhaustion, tropical diseases, and malnutrition, as well as the ever-present spectre of capture, torture, and death. Yet without the Coastwatchers’ crucial courage and intelligence, key moments of the Pacific War may have turned out very differently.’
This book was amazing.
As someone who has read a lot about Australia’s Military history, I was surprised that I had never heard of the Coastwatchers before I read this book.
This was one of those books that I absolutely devoured. I was intrigued as soon as I read the synopsis, but I didn’t expect this book to captivate me as much as it did. I was so engrossed in the real-life stories being told that I didn’t want to put this book down.
The amazing and unbelievable true stories in this book deserve to be known and I am so glad that I now know the stories of these brave and patriotic individuals and the work that they did to ensure Australia’s safety during the Pacific Campaign of WWII.
Michael Veitch has done a fantastic job with this book. The stories were emotional and human while still being factual, and the writing was perfectly paced making it easy to follow. I am so glad that I picked this book up and I will definitely be re-reading this book again in the near future.
Australia’s Secret Army by Michael Veitch is an absolute must-read.
Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com
Following World War I, the Coastwatcher organisation was formed from European planters, missionaries, and patrol officers living in New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. All volunteers, they were tasked with keeping an eye on Australia’s porous northern border and providing early warnings via radio.
When World War II came to the Pacific, however, overnight the Coastwatchers found themselves no longer just observers but spies operating behind enemy lines. Besides evading the enemy’s desperate efforts to hunt them down, the Coastwatchers battled exhaustion, tropical diseases, and malnutrition, as well as the ever-present spectre of capture, torture, and death. Yet without the Coastwatchers’ crucial courage and intelligence, key moments of the Pacific War may have turned out very differently.’
This book was amazing.
As someone who has read a lot about Australia’s Military history, I was surprised that I had never heard of the Coastwatchers before I read this book.
This was one of those books that I absolutely devoured. I was intrigued as soon as I read the synopsis, but I didn’t expect this book to captivate me as much as it did. I was so engrossed in the real-life stories being told that I didn’t want to put this book down.
The amazing and unbelievable true stories in this book deserve to be known and I am so glad that I now know the stories of these brave and patriotic individuals and the work that they did to ensure Australia’s safety during the Pacific Campaign of WWII.
Michael Veitch has done a fantastic job with this book. The stories were emotional and human while still being factual, and the writing was perfectly paced making it easy to follow. I am so glad that I picked this book up and I will definitely be re-reading this book again in the near future.
Australia’s Secret Army by Michael Veitch is an absolute must-read.
Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com
September 23, 2022
The Australian coast watchers in World War 2 were really a secret weapon, spies who were strategically located in the Pacific Islands who could tell the Allies about Japan's troop, shipping and aircraft movements. Initially the Japanese seemed unaware of the importance of ths spie newwork and the vital strategic value it provided to the Allied Generals. Michael Veitch's book seems to owe a great deal to Eric Feldt's, the founder of the Coast Watchers, original book on the subject, but he adds to the narrative to turn out a very esciting and free flowing read. The courage of the coast watchers was huge, particularly after the Japanese realised their important vlue and tried to hunt them down, and clearly they had a take no prisoners policy. The high point of the coast watchers was on Bougainville Island in the Solomons Group when they provided that vital intelligence difference. It's a book I'm happy to recommend as a very excuting read.
November 4, 2022
Once again, another remarkable book by Michael Veitch. I knew nothing about The Coastwatchers of the Pacific during WWI, but I do now. Every story is different yet every Coastwatcher exhibited unbelievable courage and perseverance.
From page 321 - "With little more than guts, a cumbersome radio and help of some devoted locals, the Coastwatchers of the Pacific covered a network stretching across half a million miles of ocean, recorded hundreds of aircraft sightings, identified the movements of secret convoys, announced Japanese troop movements, provided vital and otherwise unobtainable weather information, spirited away hundreds of civilians, soldiers and missionaries to safety, and provided a continual flow of intelligence which denied the Japanese the ability to either defend or attack without the Allies knowing their every move."
What a great piece of history.
From page 321 - "With little more than guts, a cumbersome radio and help of some devoted locals, the Coastwatchers of the Pacific covered a network stretching across half a million miles of ocean, recorded hundreds of aircraft sightings, identified the movements of secret convoys, announced Japanese troop movements, provided vital and otherwise unobtainable weather information, spirited away hundreds of civilians, soldiers and missionaries to safety, and provided a continual flow of intelligence which denied the Japanese the ability to either defend or attack without the Allies knowing their every move."
What a great piece of history.
March 23, 2023
Wow, what amazing and remarkable people. Thank you Michael Veitch for presenting this amazing history. How did the survivors ever return to a normal life after all they had been through.
September 8, 2023
Probably more like 3 and a half stars, but the rounding up is all about the facts themselves. I have recently come to realise that the Pacific Campaign of World War 2 was quite horrific for everyone concerned. But, how the activities of this largely civilian network of Coastwatchers throughout New Guinea, Bougainville and the Solomon Islands has seemingly remained unspoken in the past verges on the criminal.
October 18, 2022
More great work from Michael Veitch , an amazing history that i fear would disappear if not for Michael making it accessible.
April 30, 2024
An account of some of the truly remarkable, and mostly unknown, brave men who often worked alone and at great risk to inform on Japanese sea and land movements close to Australia. They not only reported on the Japanese, but also helped many civilians and downed airmen to safety at great personal danger. Veitch was able to depict the tension and stress these heroes were under, the hunger and exhaustion, with the constant threat of discovery, and knowing that some of their coastwatcher colleagues had already been killed.
This book covers only a few of those involved, and the fact that they were better appreciated by the Americans than the Australian Government. Veitch alludes to several mistakes of the Government and "military higher ups" which had disastrous results.
A wonderful tribute to those who really deserve our thanks and admiration.
Established after World War I by the Royal Australian Navy, the Coast Watchers were a loose organisation of several hundred European settlers, missionaries, patrol officers and planters living in British and Australian Pacific Island territories whose job it was to observe and report on the enemy. They were mostly all unpaid volunteers whose job it was simply to observe and report on foreign shipping and aeroplane movements. It was never envisaged that the Coast Watchers would do any fighting, nor operate inside enemy-occupied territory. But when World War II came to the Pacific, that is exactly what they ended up doing, becoming, in effect, Australia's secret army. Fully cognisant of their fate should they be caught, they nonetheless battled not just the enemy, but constant exhaustion, tropical disease, and the ever-present spectre of capture, torture and death. Without the Coast Watchers and the crucial intelligence they provided, key moments in the war could have turned out very differently. This is the story of these unsung heroes who risked their lives - and sometimes lost them - in the service of their country.
This book covers only a few of those involved, and the fact that they were better appreciated by the Americans than the Australian Government. Veitch alludes to several mistakes of the Government and "military higher ups" which had disastrous results.
A wonderful tribute to those who really deserve our thanks and admiration.
Established after World War I by the Royal Australian Navy, the Coast Watchers were a loose organisation of several hundred European settlers, missionaries, patrol officers and planters living in British and Australian Pacific Island territories whose job it was to observe and report on the enemy. They were mostly all unpaid volunteers whose job it was simply to observe and report on foreign shipping and aeroplane movements. It was never envisaged that the Coast Watchers would do any fighting, nor operate inside enemy-occupied territory. But when World War II came to the Pacific, that is exactly what they ended up doing, becoming, in effect, Australia's secret army. Fully cognisant of their fate should they be caught, they nonetheless battled not just the enemy, but constant exhaustion, tropical disease, and the ever-present spectre of capture, torture and death. Without the Coast Watchers and the crucial intelligence they provided, key moments in the war could have turned out very differently. This is the story of these unsung heroes who risked their lives - and sometimes lost them - in the service of their country.
August 26, 2024
Damnn, now that was a thrilling, historical recount of the events that took place not so far away from Aus.
Never been a history enthusiast but I really enjoyed this book. Thanks
Never been a history enthusiast but I really enjoyed this book. Thanks
June 6, 2023
The story of the Coastwatchers is one of the many forgotten chapters of Australia's involvement in the Second World War. Scattered across the islands of Papua New Guinea and the Solomons were a handful of (mostly) men reporting Japanese movements to Allied intelligence. Veitch does a good job in bringing that story back to a popular audience, stitching together the various personal accounts. The result is a series of extraordinary adventures.
A three-star rating might seem a bit miserly, but I am expecting a bit more from my history authors. Otherwise, I would recommend reading the original accounts. Eric Feldt's The Coast Watchers provided the classic account of the time, and Veitch's bibliography lists many works in which the participants provided their own account.
Assessing how significant the Coastwatchers were requires the historian to dig a little deeper - and no archival sources were quoted. Blaxland and Birgin note in Revealing Secrets: An unofficial history of Australian Signals intelligence and the advent of cyber that the Coastwatchers "provided a plausible alternative explanation or 'cover' for Sigint [Signals Intelligence]". While Veitch mentions Japanese signals intelligence, there is no mention of allied sigint - or any other intelligence collection - giving the impression that it was only the Coastwatchers providing intelligence
A three-star rating might seem a bit miserly, but I am expecting a bit more from my history authors. Otherwise, I would recommend reading the original accounts. Eric Feldt's The Coast Watchers provided the classic account of the time, and Veitch's bibliography lists many works in which the participants provided their own account.
Assessing how significant the Coastwatchers were requires the historian to dig a little deeper - and no archival sources were quoted. Blaxland and Birgin note in Revealing Secrets: An unofficial history of Australian Signals intelligence and the advent of cyber that the Coastwatchers "provided a plausible alternative explanation or 'cover' for Sigint [Signals Intelligence]". While Veitch mentions Japanese signals intelligence, there is no mention of allied sigint - or any other intelligence collection - giving the impression that it was only the Coastwatchers providing intelligence
January 9, 2023
Amazing and horrifying story of little known events of World War II. Really important reading.
November 5, 2023
I loved this book, having grown up in PNG and knowing some coast watchers I was interested to see how Michael brought a new perspective to a topic that's already been written about. It's a great read. It was the audio book that I listened to, ready by the author. My only wish is that he checked first on the pronunciation of some of the places. When it's said incorrectly it becomes a distraction but that is such a minor criticism.
If you are interested in social history, and PNG's chapter in WWII the story about the coast watchers is gripping. Please read it.
If you are interested in social history, and PNG's chapter in WWII the story about the coast watchers is gripping. Please read it.
May 2, 2023
What an amazing documentary of unrecognised heroics
I have always been aware of the “coast watchers” and the difficult situations they encountered. “Difficult” does not describe it, nor the heroism of these people - men and women alike. They were frequently ignored by governments and efforts thwarted by bureaucracy. They continued to broadcast very very effectively. In the words of US Admiral Halsey, this handful of people won the war in the Pacific.
I have always been aware of the “coast watchers” and the difficult situations they encountered. “Difficult” does not describe it, nor the heroism of these people - men and women alike. They were frequently ignored by governments and efforts thwarted by bureaucracy. They continued to broadcast very very effectively. In the words of US Admiral Halsey, this handful of people won the war in the Pacific.
September 21, 2022
intriguing account of a forgotten piece of Australia’s New Guinea War History
Well written, enthralling, Michael Veitch’s account of the heroism of Australia’s WW2 Coastwatchers deserved to be read by every Australian. One of the best books written about the New Guinea campaign.
Well written, enthralling, Michael Veitch’s account of the heroism of Australia’s WW2 Coastwatchers deserved to be read by every Australian. One of the best books written about the New Guinea campaign.
November 27, 2022
An outstanding book about a little known band of heroes in the War in the Pacific. The Coastwatchers played an enormous role in helping the Australian and US military stay ahead of the Japanese. Highly recommended.
November 14, 2023
Superb story/history, superbly written
October 7, 2025
Really good reading, a very interesting piece of history that I'm sure not everyone knows about.
September 2, 2025
Writing is a bit slow but a story that needed to be told
😎👍📚✅
😎👍📚✅
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews