Marine Corps and Navy personnel, were sent to New Zealand. arrivals down under were originally trained and destined for Europe, but with Australia and New Zealand threatening to bring their forces home from battlefields in Europe and North Africa, Roosevelt redirected the U.S. Army divisions to Australia in early 1942. Many people in both countries feared an actual invasion as a result of Japan’s conquests.Īt the behest of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and in agreement with Prime Minister John Curtin of Australia, President Franklin D. New Zealanders and Australians alike, with most of their fighting men on the other side of the world, felt vulnerable to the new approaching threat. With the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Japanese forces moved rapidly south, taking British strongholds such as Hong Kong and Singapore. Soon after New Zealand declared war on Germany in 1939, the 2nd New Zealand Division was formed and sent off to fight alongside its British counterparts in Greece, Crete, and North Africa. This was quite a sacrifice for such a small nation. Altogether, 10,130 New Zealanders lost their lives in World War II and another 19,345 were wounded. In addition, 9,700 New Zealand women also served in their country’s armed forces. Another 6,000 served in the Navy, 24,000 in the Air Force. The majority of New Zealanders who served during World War II served in the Army (127,000). This small nation also had a Home Guard of 124,000 men at its peak, many of whom had served in World War I. Of that number, 135,000 served overseas during World War II during six long years from 1939 to 1945. New Zealand men of military age (18-45) numbered roughly 355,000. During World War I, the United States had roughly four million in uniform with 8.2 percent becoming casualties.Ī generation later, the population of New Zealand was approximately 1.6 million. Of that 20 percent, 100,000 served overseas, and of that 100,000 more than 60 percent became casualties. According to official sources, 20 percent of New Zealand’s eligible manpower served in uniform during World War I. Early in the 20th century, the population of New Zealand was just under a million.
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