John Blaxland (historian)
John Blaxland | |
---|---|
![]() Blaxland c. 2023 | |
Born | 1963 (age 61–62) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
Nationality | Australian |
Occupation(s) | Historian, academic and former Australian Army officer |
Title | Professor of International Security and Intelligence Studies |
Awards | Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy Fellow of the Australian Institute of International Affairs |
Academic background | |
Education | University of New South Wales (BA [Hons]) Australian National University (MA) Royal Military College of Canada (PhD) |
Alma mater | Australian National University |
Academic work | |
Discipline | History |
Sub-discipline | International Relations Strategic and Security Studies Military History Intelligence Defence |
Institutions | Australian National University |
Notable works | The Protest Years: The Official History of ASIO, Vol. II, 1963-1975. The Secret Cold War: The Official History of ASIO, Vol. III 1975-1989. Revealing Secrets: An Unofficial History of Australian Signals Intelligence and the Advent of Cyber. |
Website | https://researchportalplus.anu.edu.au/en/persons/john-blaxland |
John Charles Blaxland (born 1963) is an Australian historian, academic, and former Australian Army officer. He is a Professor of International Security and Intelligence Studies at the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University. He is also currently Director of the Australian National University's North America Liaison Office in Washington, D.C.[1]
Early life and military career
[edit]Blaxland was born in Chile in 1963 and attended school at Barker College, Sydney. He graduated from the Royal Military College, Duntroon in 1986 and was commissioned as a Lieutenant into the Australian Army's Intelligence Corps. In 1987, he completed his Honours thesis in History at the Australian Defence Force Academy.[2] He completed his regimental training with the Royal Australian Corps of Signals during which he wrote Signals – Swift and Sure: A History of the Royal Australian Army Corps of Signals 1947–1972.[3][4]
Blaxland graduated from the Royal Thai Army Command and Staff College in 1997.[1] He was a member of the International Force East Timor in 1999.[5] He was posted as an exchange officer at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency in Washington D.C. and was awarded a U.S. Meritorious Service Medal for his contribution.[6] He was director of joint intelligence operations at Headquarters Joint Operations Command.[1] He was Australia’s Defence Attaché to Thailand and Myanmar from 2008 to 2010.[7] He retired from the Australian Army in 2011 at the rank of Colonel.[4]
Education and academic career
[edit]Blaxland holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of New South Wales, a Master of Arts in History from the Australian National University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in War Studies from the Royal Military College of Canada.[8][6]
Blaxland is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales, Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of International Affairs. In 2015 he was the first Australian recipient of a U.S. Department of Defense's Minerva Research Initiative grant.[6]
In 2018 Blaxland won the U.S. Association of Former Intelligence Officers Best Foreign Intelligence Book Award along with Dr. Rhys Crawley for The Secret Cold War: The Official History of ASIO, Vol. III, 1975–1989.[9][6]
Blaxland was selected in July 2019 to lead an Australian National University team responsible for writing the official history of the Australian Signals Directorate. He stepped down from leading the ANU's Strategic and Defence Studies Centre in order to work on the official history.[10] ASD Director-General Rachel Noble cancelled the ANU's contract in August or September 2020. At this time, Blaxland was reported to have completed half of the first of two planned volumes. Both ASD and the ANU stated that the contract was cancelled by mutual agreement. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Noble's decision was motivated by a desire to exercise greater control over the official history project.[11]
Blaxland's research interests include Australian military history and strategy, public policy, security, defence, international relations, Southeast Asia (Thailand, Myanmar, East Timor), North America (Canada) and military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Blaxland proposed a new flag design for Australia in 2013.[12]
Bibliography
[edit]Blaxland's publications include:
- Conde, J. & Blaxland, J. (2025). 'Challenging the Kremlin’s Hyperreality Construct' in Australian Journal of International Affairs. Volume 1, Number 5. Taylor and Francis Online. doi: 10.1080/10357718.2025.2481058.
- Blaxland, J., ed. (2025). Mobilising the Australian Army: Contingencies and Compromises Over More than a Century. Cambridge University Press. doi: 10.1017/9781009565257. ISBN 9781009565257.
- Blaxland, J. (2024). 'Revealing Secrets About Deep Australia-UK-US Intelligence Connections' in Georgetown Journal of International Affairs. Volume 25, Number 1. Georgetown University, Washington D.C. [1]
- Blaxland, J. (2024). Canada's Defence Challenges in the Indo-Pacific: A View from Down Under. Policy Insights Forum, Canada. Volume 2, Number 1. [2]
- Blaxland, J. & Bergin, C., (2023). Revealing Secrets: An Unofficial History of Australian Signals Intelligence and the Advent of Cyber. UNSW Press Ltd. ISBN 9781742237947.
- Blaxland, J. (2023). 'Craig Stockings’ Fiery Official History of the East Timor Crisis' in Australian Journal of International Affairs, Volume 77, Number 3. Taylor and Francis Online. pp. 333–344. doi: 10.1080/10357718.2023.2189219.
- Blaxland, J. (2022). 'Fear, Honour and Interests: Cooperation, Competition and Contestation and Australia’s Engagement in the Indo-Pacific' in Melbourne Asia Review. Edition 9. doi: 10.37839/MAR2652-550X9.14.
- Blaxland, J., Bose, S., & Lushenko, P. (2021). 'The Significance - and Potential- of a Fourth Wave of Drone Warfare Scholarship' in P. Lushenko, S. Bose & W. Maley, eds. (2021). Drones and Global Order: Implications of Remote Warfare for International Society. Volume 1, Edition 1. Routledge. Taylor and Francis Group. doi: 10.4324/9781003139676-13. ISBN 9780367689223.
- Blaxland, J. (2021). 'Australia's Military after the Second World War: Legacies and Challenges' in P. Dean & T. Moss. eds., Fighting Australia's Cold War: The Nexus of Strategy and Operations in a Multipolar Asia, 1945-1965. pp. 35-52. ANU Press, Canberra. doi: 10.22459/FACW.2021.02. ISBN 9781760464820.
- Raymond, G. & Blaxland, J. (2021). The US-Thai Alliance and Asian International Relations: History, Memory and Current Developments. Routledge. Taylor & Francis Group, New York. ISBN 9781032010069.
- Blaxland, J., Fielding, M. & Gellerfy, T., eds. (2020). Niche Wars: Australia in Afghanistan and Iraq, 2001–2014. ANU Press, Canberra. doi: 10.22459/NW.2020. ISBN 9781760464028..
- Blaxland, J., Kelly, M. & Higgins, L., eds. (2020). In from the Cold: Reflections on Australia's Korean War. ANU Press, Canberra. doi: 10.22459/IFTC.2019. ISBN 9781760462734.
- Blaxland, J. (2019). A Geostrategic SWOT Analysis for Australia. Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University, Canberra. [3]
- Blaxland, J. & Raymond, G. (2017). Tipping the Balance in Southeast Asia? Thailand, the United States and China. Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University, Canberra. [4]
- Blaxland, J. & Crawley, R. (2016). The Secret Cold War: The Official History of ASIO, Vol. III, 1975–1989. Allen & Unwin, Sydney. ISBN 9781760297428.
- Blaxland, J. (2016). The Protest Years: The Official History of ASIO, Vol. II, 1963-1975. Allen and Unwin, Sydney. ISBN 9781760294182.
- Blaxland, J. (2016). MANIS: Time for a New Forum to Sweeten Regional Cooperation. Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University, Canberra. [5]
- Blaxland, J. (2016). 'Intelligence and Special Operations in the Southwest Pacific, 1942–45', in P. Dean, ed., Australia 1944–45: Victory in the Pacific. Cambridge University Press. pp. 145–168. doi: 10.1017/CBO9781316015445. ISBN 9781316015445.
- Blaxland, J. (2015). 'Return to Turmoil: Timor-Leste 2006', in G. Wahlert, ed., Anzac Cove to Afghanistan: The History of the 3rd Brigade. Big Sky Publishing, Sydney. pp. 289–298. ISBN 9781925275551.
- Blaxland, J. ed. (2015). East Timor Intervention: A Retrospective on INTERFET. Melbourne University Publishing Ltd, South Carlton. ISBN 978-0522867763.
- Blaxland, J. (2014). The Australian Army from Whitlam to Howard. Cambridge University Press. doi: 10.1017/CBO9781107445246. ISBN 9781107445246..
- Blaxland, J. (2006). Revisiting Counterinsurgency: A Manoeuvrist Response to the 'War on Terror' for the Australian Army. Land Warfare Studies Centre, Canberra. [6]
- Blaxland, J. (2006). Strategic Cousins: Australian and Canadian Expeditionary Forces and the British and American Empires. McGill-Queen's University Press, Canada. ISBN 9780773530645.
- Blaxland, J. (2002). Information-Era Manoeuvre: The Australian-led Mission to East Timor. Land Warfare Studies Centre, Canberra. ISBN 0642 295662.
- Blaxland, J. (1998). Signals – Swift and Sure: A History of the Royal Australian Army Corps of Signals 1947–1972. Royal Australian Corps of Signals Corps Committee, Canberra. ISBN 9780646365510.
- Blaxland, J. (1989). Organising an Army: The Australian Experience 1957-1965. Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University, Canberra. ISBN 0731505301.
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Lowy Institute Contributor". 23 July 2025.
- ^ Blaxland, J. (1989). Organising an Army: The Australian Experience 1957-1965. Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University, Canberra. ISBN 0731505301.
- ^ Blaxland, J. (1998). Signals – Swift and Sure: A History of the Royal Australian Army Corps of Signals 1947–1972. Royal Australian Corps of Signals Corps Committee, Canberra. ISBN 9780646365510.
- ^ a b "Speech to the Chief of Army Symposium 2023, Perth Convention Centre". Australian Army Research Centre. 30 August 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
- ^ Blaxland, John (September 2015). East Timor Intervention: A retrospective on INTERFET. Melbourne Univ. ISBN 978-0-522-86777-0.
- ^ a b c d "Professor John Blaxland". Australian National University Faculty Profile. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
- ^ "Contributors". ABC News. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
- ^ "Professor John Blaxland". Research Services Division. The Australian National University. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
- ^ Blaxland, J. & Crawley, R. (2016). The Secret Cold War: The Official History of ASIO, Vol. III, 1975–1989. Allen & Unwin, Sydney. ISBN 9781760297428.
- ^ "ASD is Making History". Australian Signals Directorate. 9 July 2019. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
- ^ Galloway, Anthony (18 September 2020). "Cyber spy agency dumps military historian from writing its official history". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
- ^ Pearlman, Jonathan (27 January 2013). "New flag proposed for Australia".
External links
[edit]- 1963 births
- Australian Army officers
- Australian military historians
- Australian military personnel of the International Force for East Timor
- Academic staff of the Australian National University
- Living people
- Royal Military College, Duntroon graduates
- Royal Military College of Canada alumni
- University of New South Wales alumni