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Cambridge Concise Histories
A Concise History of Australia
Australia is the last continent to be settled by Europeans, but it also sustains a people and a culture tens of thousands years old. For much of the past 225 years the newcomers have sought to replace the old with the new. This book tells how they imposed themselves on the land, and describes how they brought technology, institutions and ideas to make it their own. The fourth edition incorporates the far-reaching effects of an export and investment boom in the early years of the twenty-first century that lifted Australia to unprecedented prosperity. The sale of minerals and energy enabled the economy to withstand the global financial crisis of 2007–08 but there was no agreement on how the wealth was to be managed and its benefits distributed. The book describes a continuing search for solutions to climate change, the unauthorised arrival of refugees, Indigenous disadvantage and generational change.
374 pages, Paperback
First published January 28, 2000
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About the author
Stuart Macintyre
53 books9 followersStuart Macintyre was Emeritus Laureate Professor of the University of Melbourne and a Professorial Fellow of the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies. He was president of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia from 2007 to 2009 and a life member of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. With Alison Bashford, he edited the Cambridge History of Australia (2013). His last book, published posthumously, is The Party: The Communist Party of Australia from heyday to reckoning (2022), the second volume in his history of the Communist Party of Australia.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
May 31, 2014
A more liberal view of Australian history
13 November 2011
My previous arguments with relation to history books really do not apply with Australia. From my memories of my school days Australia did not have a history prior to 1788 (the year the first fleet arrived in Sydney Harbour). Okay, a couple of explorers stumbled across the country, but all they saw was lots of rocks, desert, and low lying trees, so they wrote it off as uninhabitable. It was only when Captain Cook arrived off of Sydney Harbour (more precisely Botany Bay) in 1770 that they decided that the country was worth colonising. Prior to that Australia had no history (or so people were concerned).
However that is incorrect, and this book does try to address this inaccuracy. Some would say that it is taking a reinterpretive view of history, but I disagree namely because the original history of Australia failed to take into account the thriving nations of indigenous Australians that lived here prior to our arrival. Granted the aboriginals may not have lived in cities but that does not mean they are any less human. In fact, up until recently Aboriginals were treated pretty much like orcs are treated in a Dungeons and Dragons campaign. That is as a bunch of barbarous sub-humans that it is okay to kill because the laws of murder do not apply to them.
This, obviously, is not the case. The Aboriginals had a complex political system of nations that stretched right across the country. While the aboriginals did not live in cities, they had their own territories separated by borders which they did not cross, and a sophisticated system of diplomatic relations (such as a visitor standing on the border until they were invited in). They also had a complex legal system as well as a deep cultural heritage. The difference is that they had no recorded history like we have, but there was no need. Life pretty much went on the same as it had been going on for thousands of years. Everything they needed was produced by the land, but if they needed something better they would invent it. While they did not have farms, they did farm the land by planting and harvesting crops as needed, and while they did not fence off paddocks, they did graze the wildlife in the region.
However, from 1789 to the present day I still suggest that Australia has no history in the sense that European Nation states (or even the United States) have. Australia is pretty much an extension of British sovereignty, and since its slow separation from the Crown, it has now entered an era where the region dominates and not the country, though there is still a struggle between Australia's British Heritage and its new Asian identity. 'We are not Asian', we White Australians say, 'and because we are not Asian we are not apart of Asia, we are our own'.
Australian history is thus pretty much a history of expanding colonialism. We do not care about, and in fact ignore, the wars against the Aboriginals (what? There were wars with the Aboriginals? I thought they simply submitted). Well, that may be the case, but it was what they call peace through superior firepower. There were some incidents of Aboriginals launching guerrilla raids against British farms, but they were generally isolated events. The fact is, when the Australians first colonised a region, the first thing they would do would be to gun down the inhabitants, and those that were left were either enslaved or fled inland. Now what we have is an underclass of Aboriginals living in our cities, and another underclass living in uninhabitable lands in central Australia (much the same as the story of colonialism in the United States).
I still think that there is a lot of rewriting of history even today. One prominent church in Australia likes to boast of its evangelical heritage that dates back to the the founding of the colonies. However a religion that preaches peace and goodwill to all men, and that we are all equal under God, that participates in such wholesale slaughter of Aboriginals cannot be that evangelical (how indeed can a pastor of an evangelical church step back and do nothing while innocents are gunned down simply because they want the land). Granted, I was not there when that happened, so I really can't speak for the pastor at the time, but I find that the statement is one of those statements that has the potential of white-washing some bloody, and uncomfortable, period of our history.
Look, I liked this book because it tried to take a different view of Australian history. This was a history of class warfare (which was being mimicked in the United Kingdom) and this warfare has broken out into bloody battles such as the Eureka Stockade and the mass protests at the turn of both the 19th and 20th Centuries. While we Australians have been handed our prosperity on a plate, we are not necessarily complacent about it. As with the Workplaces Reforms that the last Liberal Government tried to implement we saw a huge reaction from the working people (which, ironically, has not manifested out of the Carbon Tax). However, the corporate rulers of our country use their power to attempt to influence our thoughts as well, and while I believe the Carbon Tax is a poorly implemented law, it is a necessary step in attempting to reign in unbridled pollution. Workchoices was simply a way of increasing the power of corporate Australia at the expense of the average worker.
13 November 2011
My previous arguments with relation to history books really do not apply with Australia. From my memories of my school days Australia did not have a history prior to 1788 (the year the first fleet arrived in Sydney Harbour). Okay, a couple of explorers stumbled across the country, but all they saw was lots of rocks, desert, and low lying trees, so they wrote it off as uninhabitable. It was only when Captain Cook arrived off of Sydney Harbour (more precisely Botany Bay) in 1770 that they decided that the country was worth colonising. Prior to that Australia had no history (or so people were concerned).
However that is incorrect, and this book does try to address this inaccuracy. Some would say that it is taking a reinterpretive view of history, but I disagree namely because the original history of Australia failed to take into account the thriving nations of indigenous Australians that lived here prior to our arrival. Granted the aboriginals may not have lived in cities but that does not mean they are any less human. In fact, up until recently Aboriginals were treated pretty much like orcs are treated in a Dungeons and Dragons campaign. That is as a bunch of barbarous sub-humans that it is okay to kill because the laws of murder do not apply to them.
This, obviously, is not the case. The Aboriginals had a complex political system of nations that stretched right across the country. While the aboriginals did not live in cities, they had their own territories separated by borders which they did not cross, and a sophisticated system of diplomatic relations (such as a visitor standing on the border until they were invited in). They also had a complex legal system as well as a deep cultural heritage. The difference is that they had no recorded history like we have, but there was no need. Life pretty much went on the same as it had been going on for thousands of years. Everything they needed was produced by the land, but if they needed something better they would invent it. While they did not have farms, they did farm the land by planting and harvesting crops as needed, and while they did not fence off paddocks, they did graze the wildlife in the region.
However, from 1789 to the present day I still suggest that Australia has no history in the sense that European Nation states (or even the United States) have. Australia is pretty much an extension of British sovereignty, and since its slow separation from the Crown, it has now entered an era where the region dominates and not the country, though there is still a struggle between Australia's British Heritage and its new Asian identity. 'We are not Asian', we White Australians say, 'and because we are not Asian we are not apart of Asia, we are our own'.
Australian history is thus pretty much a history of expanding colonialism. We do not care about, and in fact ignore, the wars against the Aboriginals (what? There were wars with the Aboriginals? I thought they simply submitted). Well, that may be the case, but it was what they call peace through superior firepower. There were some incidents of Aboriginals launching guerrilla raids against British farms, but they were generally isolated events. The fact is, when the Australians first colonised a region, the first thing they would do would be to gun down the inhabitants, and those that were left were either enslaved or fled inland. Now what we have is an underclass of Aboriginals living in our cities, and another underclass living in uninhabitable lands in central Australia (much the same as the story of colonialism in the United States).
I still think that there is a lot of rewriting of history even today. One prominent church in Australia likes to boast of its evangelical heritage that dates back to the the founding of the colonies. However a religion that preaches peace and goodwill to all men, and that we are all equal under God, that participates in such wholesale slaughter of Aboriginals cannot be that evangelical (how indeed can a pastor of an evangelical church step back and do nothing while innocents are gunned down simply because they want the land). Granted, I was not there when that happened, so I really can't speak for the pastor at the time, but I find that the statement is one of those statements that has the potential of white-washing some bloody, and uncomfortable, period of our history.
Look, I liked this book because it tried to take a different view of Australian history. This was a history of class warfare (which was being mimicked in the United Kingdom) and this warfare has broken out into bloody battles such as the Eureka Stockade and the mass protests at the turn of both the 19th and 20th Centuries. While we Australians have been handed our prosperity on a plate, we are not necessarily complacent about it. As with the Workplaces Reforms that the last Liberal Government tried to implement we saw a huge reaction from the working people (which, ironically, has not manifested out of the Carbon Tax). However, the corporate rulers of our country use their power to attempt to influence our thoughts as well, and while I believe the Carbon Tax is a poorly implemented law, it is a necessary step in attempting to reign in unbridled pollution. Workchoices was simply a way of increasing the power of corporate Australia at the expense of the average worker.
March 25, 2018
"He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich."
With, as always, a stress on the 'concise', Macintyre's effort is fair-to-middling. As with many histories, it starts out strong, juggling both the European and Indigenous narratives (with a perhaps unflattering emphasis on the former), but peters out post-WWII when the narrative becomes a slack-jawed, eye-blearing exploration of economic policy. Yawn.
Prior to that, it's fine. The section on the long 19th century down under is probably the best part and is the meat of the book. There is virtually nothing on culture, which is astounding, since that is one of Australia's strong points: how you write a history of Australia without mentioning Paul Hogan, Foster's, or Midnight Oil is beyond me.
With, as always, a stress on the 'concise', Macintyre's effort is fair-to-middling. As with many histories, it starts out strong, juggling both the European and Indigenous narratives (with a perhaps unflattering emphasis on the former), but peters out post-WWII when the narrative becomes a slack-jawed, eye-blearing exploration of economic policy. Yawn.
Prior to that, it's fine. The section on the long 19th century down under is probably the best part and is the meat of the book. There is virtually nothing on culture, which is astounding, since that is one of Australia's strong points: how you write a history of Australia without mentioning Paul Hogan, Foster's, or Midnight Oil is beyond me.
January 15, 2022
A reasonable introduction to Australian history. As with many other histories of this type, it is too heavily focused on the recent past, giving plenty of detail on near-contemporary politics while rattling through the 19th century. I would also have liked to see more social and cultural history, with the latter chapters in particular being almost exclusively devoted to economics and politics.
May 29, 2013
If you've got a bit of time to skim through Australian history this book is a good start. It doesn't delve into the specifics of war or the Stolen Generations but it provides a general and concise overview of the events that took place from the beginning of European settlement until 2004 (the edition I read is slightly dated). I was personally really interested in the development of our own currency and the influential Australians who are featured on the notes but unfortunately this was not included in the book.
September 22, 2021
Being a canadian, I found this book quite interesting since both Canada and Australia do share common roots as ex british colonies. Both became dominions and then full fledged autonomous democracies sharing characteristics of the british parlementarian system. Both are not densely populated with vast areas not acceptable as living spaces. Both are guilty of original sins against aboriginal populations and they still have not found a way to fully deal with a dark period of their history. Both also share common relationships with Commonwealth countries and have to deal with the US as a mostly friendly but overbearing ally. The pattern of development is quite similar with immigration having been indispensable and economies having relied heavily on extraction and transformation of resources. They have become quite properous and are amongst world economic leaders. Both countries have to contend with a very agressive China which is also a shared major trading partner. Quality of life in both countries is superior to what the US can offer (public education system, universal health care, gun control and low criminality, multi culturalism, democratic institutions, independence of the judiciary, freedom of the press).
April 1, 2024
Interesting factoids but incoherent connections concerning international politics and Australia’s identity. Macintyre relentlessly presents Marxist propaganda in every chapter, especially the ideas of racism, the evils of European colonialism and lack of equity.
Ironically Macintyre included absolution for Australia’ sins of the past, “They should certainly not agonise over antique injustices: Howard adopted a phrase of the historian Geoffrey Blainey to repudiate the ‘black armed’ of the national past’…who had made Australian history ‘a basis for obsessive and consuming national guilt and shame’ (p 254, Macintyre).
Aside from the depressing views on Australia, the photographs and maps are excellent visual supplements.
Ironically Macintyre included absolution for Australia’ sins of the past, “They should certainly not agonise over antique injustices: Howard adopted a phrase of the historian Geoffrey Blainey to repudiate the ‘black armed’ of the national past’…who had made Australian history ‘a basis for obsessive and consuming national guilt and shame’ (p 254, Macintyre).
Aside from the depressing views on Australia, the photographs and maps are excellent visual supplements.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2021
A very concise history of Australia. Very easy to read and a good starting-point for anybody interested in Australian history.
December 23, 2025
About a third of the text in this book covers events in my lifetime, which I guess says two things - one, that I am getting old, and two, that this book is a "front-forward" history. Macintyre is a well-known Australian historian, who was part of the famous "History Wars" that occurred in this country early this century.
This book, part of a series of concise histories commissioned by Cambridge University Press, breezes through thousands of years of Aboriginal occupation of the country before covering the history of the European conquest, colonization and development of the country.
This book is mostly a political history - it glosses over the social - I felt as a reader that I didn't get a sense of how people were living on a day-to-day basis. For instance, the central role of sport in the social make-up of the country is hardly mentioned, and the churches are more often mentioned as sources of division than of inclusion and provision of welfare.
As a political history, it seems to me that Macintyre's personal politics are on display too much in what is meant to be a general history for the average reader. One comes away from this book feeling that there is and has been nothing good produced by the conservative side of politics, or by business interests, and that the left, and the working class, have been nothing but noble in their pursuits.
This bias cruels the history in a few ways: Macintyre gives too much emphasis on events and movements that were peripheral to mainstream Australia, such as the Unemployed Workers Movement and the New Guard in the Depression. He also fails to explain why the conservatives have been so successful throughout Australia's political history if they were such a reprehensible group of people - is he suggesting that Australia's polity is irredeemably stupid? Or could it be that the majority of people, for the majority of the time have on the whole preferred what the right has to offer them? This seems to be a conclusion that Macintyre cannot accept.
Generally speaking, Macintyre's history paints Australia as a plaything of Empire (Britain or the USA) or of greedy elites, either Liberal or Labor. He seems to belittle the hard work of those everyday people who actually built the country that we know today, and who sacrificed themselves in so many ways to create a better life for their successors. While he details the many mis-steps that have been made along the way, he does not describe the successes in as much detail.
If I was someone who knew nothing of Australian history and I had only read this book, I would look around at today's Australia and wonder how we got to where we are, given what Macintyre has described. This is not a history that can be read as a stand-alone tome. Alternative views must be sought to get a rounded view of the singular history of this country.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/
This book, part of a series of concise histories commissioned by Cambridge University Press, breezes through thousands of years of Aboriginal occupation of the country before covering the history of the European conquest, colonization and development of the country.
This book is mostly a political history - it glosses over the social - I felt as a reader that I didn't get a sense of how people were living on a day-to-day basis. For instance, the central role of sport in the social make-up of the country is hardly mentioned, and the churches are more often mentioned as sources of division than of inclusion and provision of welfare.
As a political history, it seems to me that Macintyre's personal politics are on display too much in what is meant to be a general history for the average reader. One comes away from this book feeling that there is and has been nothing good produced by the conservative side of politics, or by business interests, and that the left, and the working class, have been nothing but noble in their pursuits.
This bias cruels the history in a few ways: Macintyre gives too much emphasis on events and movements that were peripheral to mainstream Australia, such as the Unemployed Workers Movement and the New Guard in the Depression. He also fails to explain why the conservatives have been so successful throughout Australia's political history if they were such a reprehensible group of people - is he suggesting that Australia's polity is irredeemably stupid? Or could it be that the majority of people, for the majority of the time have on the whole preferred what the right has to offer them? This seems to be a conclusion that Macintyre cannot accept.
Generally speaking, Macintyre's history paints Australia as a plaything of Empire (Britain or the USA) or of greedy elites, either Liberal or Labor. He seems to belittle the hard work of those everyday people who actually built the country that we know today, and who sacrificed themselves in so many ways to create a better life for their successors. While he details the many mis-steps that have been made along the way, he does not describe the successes in as much detail.
If I was someone who knew nothing of Australian history and I had only read this book, I would look around at today's Australia and wonder how we got to where we are, given what Macintyre has described. This is not a history that can be read as a stand-alone tome. Alternative views must be sought to get a rounded view of the singular history of this country.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/
April 2, 2023
This book delivers what it claims in the title! It was indeed a concise history, neatly arranged in chapters in chronological order, each covering a period of three to four decades. Writer captured main themes of the era and placed the development of australian history within the context of wider international developments (the colonial age, the world wars, cold war etc).
January 7, 2026
Excellent book but weaker and too detailed on modern Australia, especially recent politics, stronger on early Australia and 'deep time'. But I learned a lot about the history of Australia and how it had a cult of equality or 'mateship' from very early on, although that has been eroded by the rise of income inequality in recent years.
July 30, 2021
A history book that is actually a good read
A History book that is enjoyable to read. No overblown claims or so biased you stop reading. I actually finished the book, and it was educational.
A History book that is enjoyable to read. No overblown claims or so biased you stop reading. I actually finished the book, and it was educational.
September 11, 2022
As an introductory book, too ambitious in covering so many details of each period in Australia history to the extent that it reads like a chronicle. Probably need a bit more focus to increase readability.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 12, 2018
I was hoping for a brief history. This is more than that. Very heavy on the political scene and author's bias is not hidden. Still got what I needed with some scanning.
December 17, 2018
Great book
February 27, 2020
This should be a compulsory text for all Australian school students; I, however, will be moving to New Zealand.
November 21, 2020
A good balance of concision and depth. Would make a quality undergrad primer.
February 14, 2021
It's concise, academic and reasonably readable. While I can't say I was at all excited reading this book, it had a singular eponymous goal, and accomplished it.
August 29, 2021
Excellent resource.
January 16, 2023
Interesting information, a little dry
July 22, 2025
A must read for all Aussies, although Macintyre did speed run the post Howard years…
September 9, 2015
A good introduction to Australian history. Not exactly a page turner, but quite readable as history goes. Worth the effort if you'd like to reflect a bit more deeply about how Australia came to be the country it is today.
June 13, 2007
I don't have much to say about this. It's pretty straightforward. I'm not really interested in history in concise form (it's the little details I want!) but it did the job.
June 25, 2009
It is really good book. As the title says, it’s concise, it gives you all the info that you need to know, and eventually you will learn a lot about this young continent. Enjoyable read.
November 11, 2012
Chapter 2.
August 16, 2013
While this book does provide an interesting overview of Australian history, it tends to drag. The writing is dull.
September 10, 2013
really good read, learnt so much!
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews