Australia’s official Second World War historian.
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Great at Heart: Gavin Merrrick Long, Australia’s official Second World War historian
By Garry Hills
Details: Non-Fiction, published 2025.
Format: Soft cover.
Everyone interested in Australian involvement in the Second World War is indebted to Gavin Long, the subject of Garry Hills’ valuable new biography. Long was the general editor of the 22-volume official history of Australia in that war, and author of three of its volumes. His writings – and his leadership of the talented historians who created the series from the 1950s to the 1970s – have profoundly influenced Australians’ understanding of the war. Long’s mentor was Charles Bean, the principal author of the First World War official histories and chief proponent of the Australian War Memorial.
Hills has put prodigious effort into rescuing Long from obscurity in this first full-length biography. It contains much fascinating information about newspaperman-turned-historian Long, including his wartime experiences in Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific, and his formidable struggles managing the unprecedentedly complex official history series. He negotiated with politicians to ensure authors could speak without fear or favour, gathering varied and reliable source materials, selecting and guiding writers qualified to tackle the immense task of writing each volume, and finalising the beautifully illustrated tomes that constitute this monumental and authoritative series.
This biography has imperfections. It is a bit repetitive, there are small factual and typographical errors (6th Battalion for 2/6th, Abbeyville for Abbeville). Occasionally readers will want more, such as when the otherwise saintly Long is suddenly quoted from a private diary about people ‘who know f- all about f- nothing’ and then panning Blamey and other generals. A chapter on criticisms of Long misses a key issue. As Hills notes, when Long was appointed official historian, politicians and senior army figures advised him to avoid Bean’s ‘mistake’ of making the official history too detailed to be widely read. Yet the Second World War volumes – more than 3 million words – are forbiddingly dense. Their influence is immeasurable but indirect. Nevertheless, this inspiring biography will bring Long, an Australian ‘great at heart’, closer to the prominence he deserves.
About the reviewer
Dr Mark Johnston
Mark is an expert on the experience of Australian soldiers during the Second World War and is the author of 12 books.
