A History of the Auckland Officers’ Club

By Skill and Spirit: A History of the Auckland Officers’ Club

The role and history of a club that came to symbolise Auckland’s largely volunteer military officer corps is reflected in a book just published, By Skill and Spirit.

The heavily illustrated work of author, historian and journalist Graeme Hunt, By Skill and Spirit traces the history of the Officers’ Club Inc. from its foundation in 1903 as the Auckland Garrison Officers’ Club to the present day.

Hunt explains how the club inherited a tradition of idealism and fellowship from imperial officers’ messes in 19th-century Auckland, how its officer corps was depleted on the battlefields of Gallipoli and the Western Front and how the club has adapted and survived.

“It was an exciting book to write because it offered a window into Auckland’s military history from 1840, 63 years before the club began,” Hunt says.

“I was able to look into the lives of the club’s leaders and members –– a cross-section of Auckland civilian life as much as military life –– and provide a frank account of the club’s first 106 years.”

By Skill and Spirit: A History of the Auckland Officers’ Club
By Graeme Hunt
Published by Waddington Press Ltd, Auckland
176 pages softbound laminated cover
ISBN 978–0–473–14850–8
$40 retail

ENDS

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