Description

There were 38 cadets of the Royal Military College Duntroon who graduated in December 1961. Each had endured — and mostly enjoyed — the rigorous four-year course preparing them to become officers in the Australian Regular Army or, for the seven Kiwis in the class, the New Zealand Army. Other cadets had started with them in February 1958, some as young as 16 years old, but had chosen other paths. Not everyone graduates from Duntroon. It is a measure of the strong bond formed as cadets that any former member of the group, graduate or not, belongs to the class of 1958-61.

A Vintage Class is a forthright and lively account of the formative experiences at Duntroon, from the misery of extra drills in Fourth Class to the honour of leading the Corps of Staff Cadets in First Class. Replete with candid, humorous and thoughtful recollections contributed by members of the class, this is an engaging story of military life in post-war Australia experienced only by a select few. Six decades on — having served Australia and New Zealand in armed combat, and after retiring from careers in the Army, academia, the arts, finance and industry — members of the class reflect on their time at Duntroon with gratitude for the opportunities they were given, and the lifelong friendships formed.

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184pp, hardback, 240 x 185 mm, black-and-white and colour illustrations throughout