Four Brothers in the Pacific War

Book excerpt: Dave, Ray, Morris and Alex Rohrlach were Australian Lutherans of German descent who served in the Australian Army and Navy in the Pacific during World War Two. In a fascinating biography of the brothers, Chris Pratt chronicles the events of their lives before, during, and in the aftermath of war. Dave, a Lutheran missionary in New Guinea, captained his mission schooner to rescue defeated Australian soldiers from New Britain in the opening months of the war. Ray served in a motorised infantry unit before enduring a year in an isolated malarial outpost in Dutch New Guinea. Morris struggled through two amphibious landings in Japanese occupied Borneo. Alex survived kamikaze attacks and a battle with a Japanese fleet in the Philippines to witness from an Australian heavy cruiser the signing of the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay. Included are historical maps and photographs provided by the family.