The Latest Breaking News from National Archives of Australia

Why an 80-year-old Canberran partially dismantled his pride and joy for Holden fans

Holden lovers, make your way to the National Archives of Australia.

The Canberra Times · Jun 11

Gough Whitlam believed John Kerr’s wife played a key role in The Dismissal. Did she?

The Dismissal still looms as Australia’s greatest political crisis, 50 years on. The familiar story centres on four figures. Governor general Sir John Kerr – who, on November 11 1975, sacked prime minister Gough Whitlam. Malcolm Fraser, the opposition leader who blocked the budget to force the election he would…

The Conversation · Nov 9, 2025

How migrant stories and contributions have shaped Australian TV since the 1950s

The introduction of television in Australia in 1956 coincided with mass post-war immigration, initially from Britain and Europe, and later from Asia, the Americas and Africa. Both played a significant role in forming modern society.

The Conversation · Sep 3, 2025

Harold Holt's secretary remembers what it was like when the former prime minister disappeared

When anti-Vietnam war protesters rocked Harold Holt's car, his secretary Jan Drury had to be pulled through the passenger-side window. That's just one of her memories of working for the prime minister who went for a swim and never returned.

ABC News · Jun 4, 2023

What First Nations Australians think of King Charles III's coronation

King Charles III's coronation has stirred up mixed emotions among Australians, but what do First Nations people think of the event?

ABC News · May 5, 2023

The Montevideo Maru has been found but the wrecks of other 'hell ships' like the Rakuyo Maru are still missing

The discovery last week of the wreck of the Montevideo Maru has prompted renewed focus on the Japanese prison ships of World War II. Many were sunk by Allied submarines, sending thousands of their comrades to their deaths.

ABC News · Apr 29, 2023

If still standing, this forgotten Acton cottage would be submerged in water

The story of our beloved National Museum of Australia's site is, ironically, one you don't hear often.

The Canberra Times · Apr 14, 2023

The 'forgettables': 5 Australian prime ministers you may not know much about

The idea of a “forgotten prime minister” may seem laughable. For Australian historians, it is the governed rather than the governors who need rescuing “from the enormous condescension of posterity” as the English historian E. P. Thompson famously put it.

The Conversation · Jan 3, 2023

Tampa, Bali bombings, 9/11 and the Kyoto Protocol: today's cabinet paper release shows what worried Australia in 2002

Every year, the National Archives of Australia releases the cabinet records from 20 years earlier, and this year’s batch is out today.

The Conversation · Jan 1, 2023

'No regrets' over refugee plan: Vanstone

The Howard government's approach to refugees and asylum seekers in 2002 has been outlined in cabinet papers released by the National Archives of Australia.

AAP · Dec 31, 2022