Captain Barber surprising a Turkish sentry 1916

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

Charles Stanley Barber, (6 July 1888 – 4 October 1965) was an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

officer. He served in the Australian Imperial Force during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, rising to the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

and being awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

. He served in the

Citizens Military Force The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen ...

between the wars, and in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

rose to the rank of brigadier.

Early life and career

Barber was born in

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is a ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, the son of Charles Deynes Barber and Margaret Anne (Maggie) McLean. He attended

Camberwell Grammar School , motto_translation = By our deeds may we be known , established = , type = Independent, single sex, Anglican primary and secondary day school , denomination = Anglican , slogan ...

and Scotch College, and completed a Bachelor of

Mining Engineering Mining in the engineering discipline is the extraction of minerals from underneath, open pit, above or on the ground. Mining engineering is associated with many other disciplines, such as mineral processing, exploration, excavation, geology, and ...

at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

. While at University, he joined the Melbourne University Rifles in 1910 and was commissioned a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in 1913.

First World War

On the outbreak of the First World War, Barber was working in Broken Hill as a mining engineer when he joined the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) on 29 August 1914 for active service overseas. He was appointed a second lieutenant in the 3rd Field Company

Engineers Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

. On 22 September 1914 he embarked from Melbourne for

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

with the 3rd Field Company. Promoted lieutenant on 1 February 1915, Barber trained in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

, where his company built and maintained a

pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports limits the maxi ...

over the

Suez canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

, until embarking for

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

from Alexandria on 5 April 1915. Barber arrived at Anzac Cove about 10:30am on 25 April 1915, about five hours after the first troops landed to attack Turkish positions. On 27 July he transferred to 4th Field Company Engineers and was promoted to captain. By 12 September 1915 he was leading the 4th Field company at Lone Pine. On 19 October he was conducting tunnelling operations. On 29 January 1916 Barber was awarded the

. On 31 January 1916 he transferred to hospital with

enteric fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several d ...

, and then developed a related thrombosis in his leg and spent some time in Alexandria, where he was joined by his mother and his sister who helped with his nursing. He returned to Australian aboard HT ''Nestor on 13 March, and was discharged from the AIF on 30 July.

Interbellum

Barber joined his brother-in-law, Rene Vanderkelen, in a Melbourne Jewel Import Business where his mining qualification assisted in gem valuations. He married Mary Winifred Ware Hickling Forbes on 6 July 1926 at

Scots' Church, Melbourne The Scots' Church is a Presbyterian church in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was the first Presbyterian church to be built in the Port Phillip District (now the state of Victoria) and is located on Collins Street. It is a congregation of the ...

. They lived in Armadale, Melbourne, and had two children: David Deynes Barber (5 November 1928) and Jane Forbes Barber (22 May 1930). Between the wars Barber worked to keep the militia active, and in 1920 was promoted to captain. In 1926 he was appointed to command the 2nd Artillery Survey Company. In 1928 he was promoted to major. In 1935 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and transferred to command the 59th Battalion. In August 1939 he was appointed to the command of the 29th Battalion, and was in charge of planning the defence of the

Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to the mainland in the north. Geogra ...

, Victoria. His son remembered Saturday car trips around the peninsula when crossroads were studied with a view to gun emplacements and tank traps.

Second World War

At the outbreak of the

, Barber was involved with the training of the 4th Infantry Brigade stationed in

Bonegilla, Victoria Bonegilla is a bounded rural locality of the City of Wodonga local government area in north-east Victoria, Australia, east of Wodonga, and around north-east of Melbourne. At the , Bonegilla and the surrounding area had a population of 610. H ...

. On 24 June 1940 he was promoted to colonel in command of the 4th Infantry Brigade. On 5 July 1941 he was promoted to brigadier. In November 1941 he commenced full-time duty with 4th Infantry Brigade at Bonegilla. In March 1942 he moved the 4th Infantry Brigade to

Warwick, Queensland Warwick ( ) is a town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in southeast Queensland, Australia, lying south-west of Brisbane. It is the administrative centre of the Southern Downs Region Local government in Australia, local governme ...

and, in May, to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

where he was joined by his wife. In October 1942 Barber volunteered for service with the

Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the name given to the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial ...

(a legal requirement before service overseas), and in February 1943 he was transferred to 4th Brigade headquarters in

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

while the Brigade was sent to

Milne Bay Milne Bay is a large bay in Milne Bay Province, south-eastern Papua New Guinea. More than long and over wide, Milne Bay is a sheltered deep-water harbor accessible via Ward Hunt Strait. It is surrounded by the heavily wooded Stirling Range to t ...

. In July 1943 he was transferred to the headquarters of the 3rd Division. On 19 August 1943, for medical reasons, Barber relinquished command of the 4th Brigade and returned to Melbourne, seconded to the Citizens Military Force. In September 1943 he left service with the honorary rank of brigadier.

Post-war

Barber lived at 60 Close St, South Yarra, Melbourne until about 1960, then moved to Terrara Rd, Mitcham, Melbourne. Barber died from a heart attack while driving on 4 October 1965, and was cremated.

References

External links

Barber, Charles Stanley, Brigadier
www.generals.dk {{DEFAULTSORT:Barber, Charles Stanley 1888 births 1965 deaths Australian brigadiers Australian civil engineers Australian military personnel of World War I Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian recipients of the Military Cross Engineers from Melbourne Military personnel from Melbourne University of Melbourne alumni People from Kew, Victoria People educated at Scotch College, Melbourne People educated at Camberwell Grammar School