John Laffin
Encyclopedia
John Laffin was an Australian military historian. Laffin was born in Mosman, Sydney
. Both of his parents served during World War I
.
. He trained as an infantryman and later completed an officer course before serving in New Guinea, the world's second largest island. While convalescing in Sydney in 1943 he met his future wife Hazelle, a young VAD/VAR.
Laffin travelled extensively in Europe, especially the Western Front areas of WWI and in the Middle East. He returned to Australia in 1995. Hazelle Laffin died in early 1997 of heart disease.
in 2000 after a long illness. He was survived by two daughters and a son.
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. Both of his parents served during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
World War II
In 1940, having worked with Smith's Weekly, one of Australia's most patriotic newspaper-style magazines, and The Wagga Advertiser, he enlisted in the 2nd Australian Imperial ForceAustralian Imperial Force
The Australian Imperial Force was the name given to all-volunteer Australian Army forces dispatched to fight overseas during World War I and World War II.* First Australian Imperial Force * Second Australian Imperial Force...
. He trained as an infantryman and later completed an officer course before serving in New Guinea, the world's second largest island. While convalescing in Sydney in 1943 he met his future wife Hazelle, a young VAD/VAR.
Post-WWII
After the war Laffin worked for a number of newspapers and magazines, wrote short novels and began his own feature service and editing unit. With his family he left for England in 1956 where he resided for nearly 40 years. He wrote articles for Australian newspapers and taught English, history and geography in secondary colleges. One of these was Mayfield college in East Sussex where he taught English and History in the 1960s while living in nearby Herstmonceux.Laffin travelled extensively in Europe, especially the Western Front areas of WWI and in the Middle East. He returned to Australia in 1995. Hazelle Laffin died in early 1997 of heart disease.
Death
John Laffin died in CanberraCanberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
in 2000 after a long illness. He was survived by two daughters and a son.