The Strategic & Defence Studies Centre (ANU) and the Australian Centre for the Study of Armed Conflict and Society (UNSW Canberra) are pleased to announce an international conference that explores the future of military history, to be held at the Australian National University 4 – 5 February 2016.

The conference aims to explore the unique position occupied by military history between the public, scholarly and professional arenas. Historians of all fields have long mined the wealth of sources that war generates, and the history of war remains popular at an undergraduate level. In Australia the centenary of the First World War has generated substantial public interest, while the Anzac myth is central to national commemoration of war and a signifier of national identity. Yet, military history arguably remains on the margin of the historical discipline in Australia, following an international trend in which the field has been considered to be traditional and conservative.

The organisers invite proposals for 20-minute papers that engage with these and related themes. Proposals should be no more than 300 words, should include a short biography, and be sent to Tristan Moss, tristan.moss@anu.edu.au, and Tom Richardson, t.richardson@adfa.edu.au by 2 October 2015.

To encourage a broad range of participants, at least four bursaries of $500 each will be available to defray travel costs. All participants are eligible, with an emphasis on those who do not have access to institutional funding. Those wishing to apply should include with their paper proposal a CV and a page explaining how they would benefit from a bursary.

Further information here.