Commander James Cathal Boyd McManus (a.k.a. Tom, 11 March 1891 – 1972) was an officer in the

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

. He commanded the

Coastwatchers The Coastwatchers, also known as the Coast Watch Organisation, Combined Field Intelligence Service or Section C, Allied Intelligence Bureau, were Allied military intelligence operatives stationed on remote Pacific islands during World War II t ...

from 1943 until the end of

World War II 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 ...

Early life

Born to Margaret Helen Alexandrina Boyd and Arthur Corrigan McManus on 11 March 1891, McManus' brother Rondal Arthur was born two years later in 1893. The family lived in

Echuca Echuca ( ) is a town on the banks of the Murray River and Campaspe River in Victoria, Australia. The border town of Moama is adjacent on the northern side of the Murray River in New South Wales. Echuca is the administrative centre and largest ...

, Victoria in Australia. McManus' father died suddenly in 1894. His mother Margaret took her infant children James and Rondal to live near their uncle and aunt, John Reed McManus and Caroline McManus, in

Neutral Bay Neutral Bay is a suburb on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Neutral Bay is around 1.5 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of North Sydney Council. Neutral Bay takes ...

in New South Wales. McManus' uncle, John, sailed with the

China Navigation Company The China Navigation Company. Pte. Ltd. is registered in Singapore, with parent entity - The China Navigation Company Limited (CNCo), trading brands as Swire Shipping & Swire Bulk, is a merchant shipping company based in Singapore. It is part of ...

and inspired the young James McManus' lifelong love of the sea.

Family

McManus married Vera Spedding in 1915. They had two children, Terence and June. McManus was widowed in 1950 and married Louise Zimmerman in 1965. He is a cousin to

Emily MacManus Emily Elvira Primrose MacManus, CBE (18 April 1886 – 22 February 1978) was an Irish nurse who served in France during World War I and later matron at Bristol Royal Infirmary then at Guy's Hospital in London, serving at the latter during World ...

Service

McManus was an officer in the

World War I 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 ...

and

. During

he served in Naval Intelligence. The Director of Naval Intelligence was Commander R. B. M. Long. McManus was stationed at

HMAS Cerberus (naval base) HMAS ''Cerberus'' is a Royal Australian Navy (RAN) base that serves as the primary training establishment for RAN personnel. The base is located adjacent to Crib Point on the Mornington Peninsula, south of the Melbourne City Centre, Victori ...

HMAS Yarra Four ships of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) have been named HMAS ''Yarra'' after the Yarra River in Victoria. *, a River-class torpedo boat destroyer commissioned into the Australian Commonwealth Naval Forces in 1910, transferred to the RAN on ...

, HMAS Penguin, HMAS Melville (naval base), HMAS Basilisk and

HMAS Moreton HMAS ''Moreton'' is a Royal Australian Navy (RAN) base located in , Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, responsible for providing administrative support to RAN personnel and visiting warships. It was originally established as a naval base locate ...

. McManus took command of the

in 1943 after Commander

Eric Feldt Commander Eric Augustas Feldt (3 January 1899 – 12 March 1968) was an officer in the Royal Australian Navy and the director of the Coastwatchers organisation for much of the Second World War. Early life Feldt was born in Ingham, North Que ...

succumbed to illness. Feldt describes him in his book ''The Coast Watchers'' as Long's "... most experienced man ..." and as: The change of command came at a sensitive time, only months before the

MV Krait The MV ''Krait'' is a wooden-hulled vessel famous for its use during World War II by the Z Special Unit (Z Force) of Australia during the raid against Japanese ships anchored in Singapore Harbour. The raid was known as Operation Jaywick. The M ...

made its mission into Singapore Harbour for

Operation Jaywick Operation Jaywick was a special operation undertaken in World War II. In September 1943, 14 commandos and sailors from the Allied Z Special Unit raided Japanese shipping in Singapore Harbour, sinking six ships. Background Special Operations ...

. However, as Walter Lord notes in his book ''Lonely Vigil: Coastwatchers of the Solomons'', McManus was: McManus was awarded an OBE in 1946. His ashes were scattered from the

after his death in 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McManus, James Cathal Boyd People from Echuca People from Victoria (Australia) 1891 births 1972 deaths Australian military personnel of World War I Royal Australian Navy personnel of World War II Officers of the Order of the British Empire Royal Australian Navy officers Solomon Islands in World War II Special forces of Australia