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Lionel Kenneth Osborn Shave, OBE (Mil) (1916–2009), was an Australian soldier, businessman, benefactor and patron of the arts. He served with distinction 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 ...
in
Tobruk Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near th ...
and
Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
, attaining the rank of
lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
. He was present at the surrender of the
Japanese First Army The was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army. It was raised and demobilized on three occasions. History The Japanese 1st Army was initially raised during the First Sino-Japanese War from 1 September 1894 – 28 May 1895 under the command of ...
in the Pacific in 1945. He received the Military OBE for his services in
intelligence Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can b ...
. Shave's career encompassed whaling, mining and advertising. He had a lifelong interest in the theatre, becoming chairman of The
Old Tote Theatre Company The Old Tote Theatre Company (1963–1978) was a New South Wales theatre company that began as the standing acting and theatre company of Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). It was the predecessor to the Sydney Theatre Company. ...
. He was a patron of the arts, a friend to many well-known Australian painters and councillor of The Arts Council of New South Wales.Tony Stevens, Obituary, SMH, (2009)


Early life

Lionel Kenneth Osborn Shave was born in 1916, the eldest child and only son of Lionel Charles Horace Shave and Doris Minnie Helena (née Long) in Mentone, Victoria, Australia. Shave had four sisters, Valerie, Helen, Penelope and Diana, of whom Helen died in infancy. At the age of five years Shave suffered osteomyelitis of the bone of his right arm. Rather than the usual procedure of amputation, Shave's surgeon,
Frank Kingsley Norris Major General Sir Frank Kingsley Norris, (25 June 1893 – 1 May 1984), commonly referred to as F. Kingsley Norris, was an Australian military officer and physician. Norris served in both the First World War and Second World War. Early life and ...
, employing revolutionary surgical techniques, removed sections of the bones of the lower arm leaving Shave's right arm shorter and weaker, but with the hand functional. Shave went on to play cricket and later to gain a gunners certificate. Shave was educated at Scotch College, Melbourne, and later at
The Scots College , motto_translation = O that we may be worthy of our forefathers , location = Bellevue Hill, Eastern Suburbs, Sydney , country = Australia , type = Independent single-sex primary a ...
, Sydney, where the family moved when Shave was about fourteen. He took a prize for
Divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine
but failed
Geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...
by drawing a caricature of the Geography master on his exam paper. Shave's father, Lionel Shave, was a journalist, playwright and a founder of Australia's oldest advertising agency, originally Griffin, Shave and Russell, later George Patterson. The family members all had a love of the theatre and performed in a number of stage productions. Shave's grandfather, Charles Osborn Shave, was Melbourne's leading couturier and it was anticipated that Kenneth would follow the family business. Returning to Melbourne, Shave discovered that he disliked ladies' tailoring. His grandfather was also interested in drilling for oil and Shave followed this interest. Together they drilled at Glenelg, Lakes Entrance and at Taranaki in New Zealand. His interest in the theatre led him to become a founding member of the National Theatre Movement of Victoria, where he was to meet his future wife, Phyllis Knight. As well as being involved in theatre management and stage production, he played a number of roles, including the dashing
Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical settings ...
in ''
The Barretts of Wimpole Street ''The Barretts of Wimpole Street'' is a 1930 play by the Dutch/English dramatist Rudolf Besier, based on the romance between Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett, and her father's unwillingness to allow them to marry. The play gave actress Ka ...
''.


Military service

Prior to the commencement of the Second World War in 1939, Shave joined the Victoria Scottish Battalion. At the outbreak of war, Shave presented himself to the medical tribunal headed by Major General Sir Frank Kingsley Norris who had saved his arm as a child, and who proudly pronounced him fit for military service. In 1940 he was posted to the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
with the 2/5th Battalion as an intelligence officer and was mentioned several times in dispatches. He took part in the North African campaign of 1941, fighting "with skill and distinction" in the action which took Bardia from the Italians. At
Tobruk Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near th ...
, Shave was wounded in a night action behind enemy lines. While he was hospitalised he bought a 9mm Beretta automatic pistol that had been taken from an Italian officer. After his return to the battlefront, a convoy in which he was travelling was ambushed by Germans who ordered the Australians from the vehicles. Shave lay on the floor of a vehicle, then used the souvenired pistol to rescue the other members of the party. The battalion left Tobruk in 1942. On his arrival in Australia, Shave married Phyllis Knight. After a brief week's honeymoon Shave went to Toowoomba to assist in preparations for the New Guinea campaign in which he was attached to General
Vernon Sturdee Lieutenant General Sir Vernon Ashton Hobart Sturdee, (16 April 1890 – 25 May 1966) was an Australian Army commander who served two terms as Chief of the General Staff. A regular officer of the Royal Australian Engineers who joined the Mi ...
's intelligence corps. The Japanese later stated that they were amazed at "the extent of intelligence the Australians possessed on Japanese units, movements and personalities". On 2 September 1945, the war ended. Shave was present with General Sturdee on board the aircraft carrier ''HMS Glory'' of the British Pacific Fleet when the Japanese General Imamura and Vice-Admiral Kusaka of the Japanese First Army surrendered
Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...
. Shave was awarded the military OBE. The
Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...
holds a copy of Shave's memoirs: "The ramblings of a World War II army intelligence officer" by Lt-Col L. K. Shave OBE, ED. (Ret).


Career

After the war Shave was invited to become military attache to the Australian Embassy in Nanking. This did not proceed, as Prime Minister Ben Chifley decided not to send military attaches. In 1948 he was offered a job with the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
in
Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
but was unable to travel overseas at the time because of his wife's ill health. He then joined Burns Philp & Co, and then a new company, Whale Products, becoming the general manager. A whaling station was established at Tangalooma Point on
Moreton Island Moreton Island (Mulgumpin) is an island on the eastern side of Moreton Bay on the coast of South East Queensland, Australia. The Coral Sea lies on the east coast of the island. Moreton Island lies northeast of the Queensland capital, Brisbane. ...
, soon becoming the most successful coastal whaling station in the world, and expanding its interests into mining, agriculture and a coffee plantation in
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 ...
. The Australian whaling industry was closely controlled with quotas and seasons. Not so the whaling of some other countries, which brought about a sudden shortage of previously-numerous species, and the closure of the whaling station. Shave then moved to
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, where he and Phyl lived at
Darling Point Darling Point is a harbourside eastern suburb of Sydney, Australia. It is 4 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of Woollahra Council. Darling Point is bounded by Sydney Harbour to t ...
with their two daughters, Margaret and Jillian. He worked for a time with George Pattersons advertising agency, then the construction and mining company McDonald Industries, and finally as a director of Robe River, retiring at 68.


Patron of the arts

Shave grew up in a family that fostered an interest in the work of local artists. It became a lifelong interest of Ken and Phyl Shave to support Australian painters. Many well-known Australian artists such as the Blackmans,
Margaret Olley Margaret Hannah Olley (24 June 192326 July 2011) was an Australian painter. She was the subject of more than ninety solo exhibitions. Early life Margaret Olley was born in Lismore, New South Wales. She was the eldest of three children of Jo ...
and Cedric Flower became friends. Shave was a councillor on the Arts Council of New South Wales. The Shaves also retained a lifelong interest in the theatre with Ken becoming chairman of the Old Tote Theatre Company. He was also a committeeman with the Lords Taverners and the honorary Librarian, historian and archivist of the Union Club, a role he held until the age of 91.


References

* Tony Stevens, ''Officer Outwitted Germans''
Sydney Morning Herald, Obituaries
28 May 2009, (Retrieved 30 May 2009)


External links

*Australian War Memorial
Honours and Awards
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shave, Kenneth Australian colonels 1916 births 2009 deaths Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Military personnel from Melbourne People educated at Scots College (Sydney) People educated at Scotch College, Melbourne People from Mentone, Victoria 20th-century Australian businesspeople Australian art patrons