In the tradition : writing our official history of the Vietnam war

Abstract

What is it like to carry the tradition of Australia’s official war historian, initiated by Charles Bean after the 1914-18 war, into the controversial arena of Vietnam? How does an official war history treat a major protest movement? And strike the right balance between the military and the political-diplomatic aspects of the war? And address sensitive medical issues, such as those associated with ’Agent Orange’? Peter Edwards, the official historian of Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War, discusses these questions and some of the conclusions of the award-winning, nine-volume official history.