Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Sir Charles Henry Gairdner, (20 March 1898 – 22 February 1983) was a senior

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer who later occupied two viceregal positions in Australia. Born in Batavia (now

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

) in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

, he was brought up in Ireland, and educated at

Repton School Repton School is a 13–18 Mixed-sex education, co-educational, Independent school (United Kingdom), independent, Day school, day and boarding school in the English Public school (United Kingdom), public school tradition, in Repton, Derbyshire, ...

and the

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers of the Royal Corps of Sig ...

, in England. Having served on active duty 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 ...

, in which he sustained a serious wound to his right leg, Gairdner spent time at the

Staff College, Camberley Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which i ...

in the interwar period, and served as commanding officer of the

10th Royal Hussars The 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army raised in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the First World War and Second World War but then amalgamated with the 11th Hussars (Prince A ...

, 6th Armoured Division and 8th Armoured Division during 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 ...

. He retired from the army in 1949 and was appointed

Governor of Western Australia The governor of Western Australia is the representative in Western Australia of the monarch of Australia, currently King Charles III. As with the other governors of the Australian states, the governor of Western Australia performs constitutional ...

in 1951, a position in which he served until 1963, when he assumed the role of

Governor of Tasmania The governor of Tasmania is the representative in the Australian state of Tasmania of the Monarch of Australia, currently King Charles III. The incumbent governor is Barbara Baker, who was appointed in June 2021. The official residence of the ...

until 1968. Gairdner died in Nedlands, at the age of 84, and was awarded a

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of Etiquette, protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive ...

.Boyce, P
'Gairdner, Sir Charles Henry (1898–1983)'
entry in Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University], accessed 29 February 2012.

Early life

Gairdner was born in Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia,

Netherlands East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

(now

, Indonesia) on 20 March 1898. Brought up in County Galway, Ireland, he was educated at

in England, and the

. He married the Hon. Evelyn Constance Handcock, daughter of

Albert Handcock, 5th Baron Castlemaine Albert Edward Handcock, 5th Baron Castlemaine (26 March 1863 – 6 July 1937), styled The Honourable from 1869 to 1892, was an Irish peer. He was a major landowner with {{convert, 12000, acre, km2, 0.{{cite book , title = Who is Who 1935 , publ ...

, in 1925.Statesmen & Scholars And other fascinating Western Australians: A Tour Guide for the Karrakatta Cemetery Historical Walk Trail 1
, Metropolitan Cemeteries Board (WA).

Military career

Upon graduation, Gairdner was commissioned a second lieutenant in the artillery in May 1916 and sent to the Western Front. In this campaign, he sustained a serious wound to the right leg which necessitated numerous operations throughout his life and eventual amputation in 1976. After the war he transferred to cavalry. He spent two years at the

from 1933 to 1934. As a lieutenant colonel, from 1937 to 1940 he was the commanding officer of the

, before being chief of staff of the 7th Armoured Division then General Officer Commanding of the 6th and 8th Armoured Divisions.Lieutenant-General Sir Charles Gairdner 1951–1963
at the Constitutional Centre of Western Australia. Gairdner was General Sir Harold Alexander's Chief of Staff during the planning stage of

Operation Husky Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

but was relieved and went on to become Prime Minister

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

's personal emissary to

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...

in the Far East. He was awarded the

Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, along with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by the president of the United States to recognize people who have made "an especially merit ...

by the United States on 16 January 1947. He was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1941,

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

in 1946 and

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

in 1948.

Governor of Western Australia and Tasmania

Gairdner's distinguished military career was rewarded in 1951 when he was appointed

. He was governor during a number of royal visits to Perth – the earliest being that of Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

in 1954. His long residency in Western Australia was during a time when

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

and Western Australia were undergoing significant post-war change. He was very popular with the Western Australian public. Gairdner's tenure was relatively free of political or constitutional crisis. When Labor's loss of the October 1955 Bunbury by-election resulted in the

Albert Hawke Albert Redvers George Hawke (3 December 1900 – 14 February 1986) was the 18th Premier of Western Australia. He served from 23 February 1953 to 2 April 1959, and represented the Labor Party. Hawke was born in South Australia, and began ...

government's losing its parliamentary majority, the possibility was raised that the governor might have to exercise his reserve powers. However the parliament remained in recess until Labor won the ensuing 1956 general election. The Perth Chest Hospital was renamed

Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital (SCGH) is a teaching hospital in Nedlands, Western Australia. Opened in 1958 as the Perth Chest Hospital and later named in honour of Sir Charles Gairdner, governor of Western Australia from 1951 to 1963, it is pa ...

in his honour in May 1963. Gairdner stepped down from his post on 26 June 1963. He lobbied for the position of

and on 23 September 1963 was appointed for five years. In February 1969 the Gairdners returned to Perth and settled at

Peppermint Grove Peppermint (''Mentha'' × ''piperita'') is a hybrid species of mint, a cross between watermint and spearmint. Indigenous to Europe and the Middle East, the plant is now widely spread and cultivated in many regions of the world.Euro+Med Plantbas ...

. Survived by his wife, Gairdner died on 22 February 1983 at Nedlands and was cremated after a state funeral. Gairdner was a freemason. During his terms as both Governor of Western Australia and Governor of Tasmania, he was also Grand Master of the respective Grand Lodges.

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Generals of World War II
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gairdner, Charles 1898 births 1983 deaths British Army lieutenant generals 10th Royal Hussars officers British Army generals of World War II Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery Companions of the Order of the Bath Governors of Tasmania Governors of Western Australia Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Medal of Freedom People from Batavia, Dutch East Indies Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley British Army personnel of World War I