Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

James Burston (1 May 1856 – 4 March 1920) was a business man, local body politician, and 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 who served in 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 ...

Early life

James Burston was born at Kilmore in the Australian state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

on 1 May 1856. He was the son of an English-born grocer, Samuel Burston, and his wife Sophia . The family moved to

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 ...

where his father purchased a

malting Malting is the process of steeping, germinating and drying grain to convert it into malt. The malt is mainly used for brewing or whisky making, but can also be used to make malt vinegar or malt extract. Various grains are used for malting, most ...

business, commercialising it as Samuel Burston & Co. When Burston was 14, he joined his father in working at the company.

Businessman and politician

Samuel Burston & Co. was a successful company, with its malt widely exported. By the age of 30, Burston was running the business along with his brother; their father had died in 1886. A fire in 1892 saw the company's factory having to be rebuilt but it continued to grow, soon acquiring Victoria Brewery Co.'s maltings. Burston was also involved in local body politics. He was elected to the

Melbourne City Council The City of Melbourne is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central city area of Melbourne. In 2018, the city has an area of and had a population of 169,961. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. The ci ...

in 1900 and served two terms as Lord Mayor from 1908 to 1910. He worked to improve the city's finances and the attractiveness of parks and gardens in the city. His resignation in 1912 ended his involvement with the council. The same year, Samuel Burston & Co. merged with a competing company to form Barrett Bros & Burston Co. Pty Limited, with Burston being a managing director of the new company. Samuel Burston & Co Limited remained a separate entity run by Burston's brother. Banking was another pursuit for Burston; as the president of the Melbourne Permanent Building Society, he oversaw its amalgamation with the Universal Permanent Building and Investment Society. He was also chairman of the

Bank of Victoria A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

for a time.

Military career

Burston had a keen interest in the military, joining the Victorian Volunteers, a

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

force, in 1873. By 1885, he was a captain, serving in the 2nd Infantry Battalion, and would be promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1895. Two years later, he was in London as Victoria's representative at the commemorative events for the Diamond Jubilee. By 1908, having received staff training in a course at

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alders ...

, which he self-funded, he was a staff officer attached to the Victoria Field Force. For his service in the militia, which by this time had evolved into 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 ...

, he was awarded the

Colonial Auxiliary Forces Officers' Decoration The Colonial Auxiliary Forces Officers' Decoration, post-nominal letters VD, was established in 1899 as recognition for long and meritorious service as a part-time commissioned officer in any of the organized military forces of the British Colo ...

. When the First World War broke out, Burston was without a military role but was called up for active duty despite being 58 years of age. He initially served several months on the Home Front as the chairman of the Officers' Selection Committee. In April 1915, he was enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force as a colonel and appointed commander of the 7th Brigade, which included the 25th to 28th Battalions. He departed Australia with the brigade in June and all elements had arrived in Egypt by early August. The next month, he was promoted to temporary brigadier general. In September, he led the brigade to

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 ...

to participate in the

fighting Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

there. His troops took over responsibility for the sector held by the

New Zealand and Australian Division The New Zealand and Australian Division was a composite army division raised for service in the First World War under the command of Major General Alexander Godley. Consisting of several mounted and standard infantry brigades from both New Zea ...

. However, his health could not withstand the rigors of the Gallipoli campaign and he was shortly replaced. He took a role as commander of reinforcement troops at

Mudros Moudros ( el, Μούδρος) is a town and a former municipality on the island of Lemnos, North Aegean, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lemnos, of which it is a municipal unit. It covers the entire eas ...

, a staging post for soldiers being sent to Gallipoli, for a time before travelling to England. He returned to Australia in 1916 and, having been promoted to

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 ...

, was placed on the reserve of officers. A final promotion to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

followed, upon which he retired in January 1920.

Later life

On 4 March 1920, Burston died of

cerebrovascular disease Cerebrovascular disease includes a variety of medical conditions that affect the blood vessels of the brain and the cerebral circulation. Arteries supplying oxygen and nutrients to the brain are often damaged or deformed in these disorders. The ...

. He was living in the inner Melbourne suburb of

Hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

at the time and was buried at St Kilda cemetery. He was survived by his wife, Marianne , and six children, one of whom, Roy Burston, served in the

Australian Army Medical Corps The Royal Australian Army Medical Corps (RAAMC) is the branch of the Australian Army responsible for providing medical care to Army personnel. The AAMC was formed in 1902 through the amalgamation of medical units of the various Australian coloni ...

during the First and Second World Wars, reaching the rank of major general.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burston, James 1856 births 1920 deaths Mayors and Lord Mayors of Melbourne Australian generals Australian military personnel of World War I Military personnel from Victoria (Australia)