The last century closed and the new one opened with the Boer War spanning them. This war was deeply unpopular in Europe and became more so as reporters wrote of farms being burned and concentration camps being established. 1/1/1901 saw the birth of the Australian nation and the celebrations included a contingent of Colonial troops who had returned from the Boer War. These troops had been raised by the States : in future the Australian Federal Parliament would be responsible for recruitment.
Australian Colonial troops had fought in Campaigns like the Sudan, but the first use of such troops were in the two wars fought by the British in New Zealand against the Maoris. The British suffered some defeats and requested Australian troops to come to their aid. In Australia a continuous frontier war was being waged against Aboriginals by settlers and it continued during the period we are now reviewing.
Terry Case