1945 in Australia
The following lists events that happened during 1945 in Australia.
Incumbents
- Monarch – George VI
- Governor-General – Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Baron Gowrie, then the Duke of Gloucester
- Prime Minister – John Curtin, then Frank Forde, then Ben Chifley
- Chief Justice – Sir John Latham
State Premiers
- Premier of New South Wales – William McKell
- Premier of Queensland – Frank Cooper
- Premier of South Australia – Thomas Playford IV
- Premier of Tasmania – Robert Cosgrove
- Premier of Victoria – Albert Dunstan, then Ian MacFarlan, then John Cain
- Premier of Western Australia – John Willcock, then Frank Wise
State Governors
- Governor of New South Wales – John Loder, 2nd Baron Wakehurst
- Governor of Queensland – Sir Leslie Orme Wilson
- Governor of South Australia – Sir Charles Norrie
- Governor of Tasmania – Sir Ernest Clark, then Sir Hugh Binney
- Governor of Victoria – Sir Winston Dugan
- Governor of Western Australia – ''none appointed''
Events
- 30 January – Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester becomes Australia's first royal Governor-General.
- 31 January – A Stinson aircraft crashes in Victoria, killing all 10 on board.
- 9 May – Germany surrenders to the Allies, ending World War II in Europe.
- 26 June – Dr H. V. Evatt signs the United Nations Charter on behalf of Australia.
- 8 to 30 June – Perth receives of rain in twenty-three days, easily its heaviest monthly rainfall on record and unlikely to be approached due to anthropogenic global warming.
- 5 July – Prime Minister John Curtin dies in office from heart problems at The Lodge in Canberra.
- 6 July – Frank Forde is sworn in as Prime Minister of Australia, following the death of John Curtin. He will serve Australia's shortest term as prime minister, being replaced by Ben Chifley a week later.
- 7 July – The Australian 7th Division commences operations in the Battle of Balikpapan. Operations are completed by 21 July.
- 13 July – Ben Chifley is elected as leader of the Australian Labor Party, becoming the 16th Prime Minister of Australia.
- 15 August – Japan surrenders to the Allies, ending World War II. The day is known as V-P Day.
- 10 November – A general election is held in Victoria.
Science and technology
- 12 December – Howard Florey shares the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on penicillin.
Arts and literature
- June – Ern Malley hoax
- William Dargie wins the Archibald Prize with his portrait of Edmund Herring
- Russell Drysdale paints ''The Drover's Wife''
Film
- 1 May – The Australian National Film Board is established.
Sport
- 1 September – Eastern Suburbs defeats Balmain 22–18 in the final of the 1945 New South Wales Rugby Football League season. South Sydney finish in last place, claiming the wooden spoon.
- 29 September – The 1945 VFL Grand Final is held, and becomes known as the "Bloodbath" due to the wet, muddy conditions and frequent violence between players and amongst the spectators. Carlton defeats South Melbourne 15.13 to 10.15.
- 6 November – Rainbird wins the Melbourne Cup.
- 26 December – The first Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race begins. The British yacht Rani wins both line honours and the handicap, arriving in Hobart on 3 January.
Births
- 1 January – Peter Duncan, politician
- 2 January
- * Diane Fahey, poet
- * Byron Barnard Lamont, botanist
- 8 January – Jeannie Lewis, musician
- 10 January – John Fahey, 38th Premier of New South Wales
- 15 January – John Peard, rugby league player and coach
- 19 January – Judith Clingan, composer and musician
- 22 January – Arthur Beetson, rugby league player and coach
- 22 January – Ken Ticehurst, politician
- 26 January – John Coates, mathematician
- 28 January – Peter Cochran, politician
- 11 February
- * Ralph Doubell, Olympic athlete
- * Peter Blackmore, politician
- 23 February – Robert Gray, poet
- 26 February – Peter Brock, racing driver
- 3 March – George Miller, film director and producer
- 16 March – Michael Cobb, politician
- 28 March – Johnny Famechon, boxer
- 10 April – Kevin Berry, butterfly swimmer
- 13 April – Judy Nunn, actress, author
- 8 May – Janine Haines, politician
- 17 May – Tony Roche, tennis player
- 22 May – Bob Katter, politician
- 27 May – George Thompson, politician
- 29 May – Chris Barrie, Chief of the Defence Force
- 1 June – Kerry Vincent, chef and author
- 2 June – Michael Leunig, cartoonist
- 10 June – Martin Wesley-Smith, composer
- 13 July – Ashley Mallett, cricketer
- 17 July – Athena Starwoman, astrologer
- 18 July
- * Kevin Neale, Australian rules footballer
- * Max Tolson, soccer player
- 21 July – Geoff Dymock, cricketer
- 1 August – Ken Aldred, politician
- 2 August – Alex Jesaulenko, Australian rules football player
- 6 August – Tony Dell, cricketer
- 7 August
- * Graeme Blundell, actor
- * Graham Ramshaw, Australian rules football player
- 12 August – Mal Washer, politician
- 18 August – Gillian Bouras, writer
- 23 August – Ian McManus, politician
- 27 August – Kerry O'Brien, television journalist
- 22 October – Clover Moore, politician, 82nd Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney
- 25 October – Peter Ledger, illustrator
- 26 October – John Romeril, playwright
- 1 November – John Williamson, singer
- 15 November – Roger Donaldson, New Zealand film director
- 19 November – Barry Haase, politician
- 26 November – Roger Price, politician
- 27 November – Simon Townsend, journalist and television presenter
- 28 November – John Hargreaves, actor
- 5 December – Joanne Burns, poet
- 7 December – Bob Martin, politician
- 15 December – Thaao Penghlis, actor
- 21 December – Doug Walters, cricketer
- 22 December – Sam Newman, Australian rules football player and media personality
- 31 December – Vernon Wells, actor
Deaths
- 28 January – Samuel Dennis, Victorian politician
- 4 March – Sir Harry Chauvel, 11th Chief of the General Staff
- 5 March – Rupert Downes, soldier
- 6 April – Paddy Stokes, New South Wales politician
- 15 April – Thomas Collins, New South Wales politician
- 1 June – Walter Frederick Gale, banker and astronomer
- 5 June – Albert Piddington, New South Wales politician and High Court judge
- 5 July – John Curtin, Prime Minister of Australia
- 10 July – Jack Moses, bush poet
- 11 July – Frank Hill, New South Wales politician
- 29 July – Henry Burrell, naturalist
- 5 August – Alfred Reid, New South Wales politician
- 20 August – Sir Macpherson Robertson, confectioner
- 6 September – David Hall, New South Wales politician and barrister
- 15 September – William Calman Grahame, New South Wales politician
- 15 October – Tom Swiney, New South Wales politician
- 12 November – Reginald Weaver, New South Wales politician
- 6 December – Sir Edmund Dwyer-Gray, Premier of Tasmania