The Australian Wars

Hear the untold history of territorial battles that swept across colonial-era Australia – and discover forgotten stories of First Nations resistance, refusal and survival.   

An estimated 100,000 people died in the frontier wars that raged across Australia for more than 150 years after colonial settlement – a death toll equivalent to the combined total of all Australians killed in overseas conflicts to date. Yet this country’s longest and perhaps most defining war has largely been written out of history.  

In this eye-opening session, Rachel Perkins joins Marcia Langton, Henry Reynolds and David Marr to discuss The Australian Wars, a landmark book that brings long-overdue attention to the history of Australia’s frontier wars. Conceived by filmmaker Rachel Perkins as a companion to her award-winning documentary series of the same name, this collection of stories and essays offers an unflinching look at a dark chapter of the nation’s past and examines its ongoing impacts that reverberate to this day.  

Join this esteemed panel of editors and contributors as they confront the silences of the past, examine the enduring impact of colonial violence, and call for a reckoning with the true origins of modern Australia.