'Nazi Dreamtime' is the story of extreme-right ultra-nationalists in Australia before and during the Second World War. Some native-born Australians were attracted to the ideology of Nazism, believing it to be applicable to Australian political and cultural life. They felt the 'German revolution' was a European experiment that Australians ought to learn from, and to an extent emulate.

These Nazi enthusiasts and their fellow travellers were charitably described by one renegade amongst them as 'well-meaning dreamers'. Their ranks included tourists, appeasers, political agitators, propagandists, writers, poets, mystics, aesthetes, academics, soldiers and outright cranks. Some were obscure figures; others enjoyed a high public profile. Many thought that Aboriginal concepts of dreaming could be merged with national-socialism to form a 'blood-and-soil' white dreaming - a Nazi Dreamtime under the Southern Cross. Berlin's aggressive foreign policy in the late 1930s failed to shake their faith, and even the war would not dislodge some from Hitlerism. Only the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945 terminated the dream that had become a nightmare, although the idea still lingered.

The ground-breaking story of extreme-right, ultra-nationalist thought and practice in Australia in the period immediately before and during the Second World War.

About the Author

Dr David Bird is an independent historian based in Melbourne.

Reviews

'[P]roduces new and valuable knowledge [on] the spread and appropriation of National Socialist discourses around the world' -Oliver Haag, 'Australian Studies Journal / Zeitschrift fur Australienstudien'

'The work chronicles the infatuation some in Australia had with Germany's Nazis. This book is, to put it simply, definitive in its topic. Dr Bird's book is in many respects a warning as well as a riveting piece of history and I welcome it into the ever-expanding corpus of first-rate historical writing.' -Professor Paul Bartrop, Florida Gulf Coast University, USA

'The book shows the value of being prepared to depart from the well-trodden path. It should serve as an object lesson in the insidious strength of bad ideas. Bird's history of the Australia-First movement is not the first but it is the most thorough.' -'The Australian'

'The "Nazi Dreamtime" unleashes an avalanche of fascinating evidence. This book combines prodigious scholarship with the fervour of a moral crusade.' -'Sydney Morning Herald'

'Here is a new book on a neglected theme - those 'dreamers' who before and during the second world war sympathised with the other side and in some cases even favoured its victory.' -'Spectator Australia'

'One of the major achievements of "Nazi Dreamtime" is to track relentlessly the ideological walkabout of the Jindies as their leader, Ingamells, attempted unsuccessfully to infuse Australian poetry with potent Aboriginal words and symbols.' -'The Age'

'Many politicians, and other prominent Australians, writes Bird, went on to 'adjust their memory' of their early pro-fascist acclamations.' -'Australian Left Book Review'

Book Information
ISBN 9781783081240
Author David Bird
Format Hardback
Page Count 484
Imprint Anthem Press
Publisher Anthem Press
Weight(grams) 454g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 153mm * 26mm