The Chief of Army is the most senior appointment in the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal 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 (CA), wh ...

, responsible to both the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) and the Secretary, Department of Defence (SECDEF). The rank associated with the position is

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 ...

( 3-star). Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, the incumbent Chief of Army, has held the post since 2 July 2022.

History

The first Commander of the Australian Army was titled General Officer Commanding, Australian Military Forces, in line with the usual British practice of the time. Experience soon showed that the position concentrated more power than the Ministers for Defence—of whom there were twelve in as many years in 1901–1913—liked. Moreover, the

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 ...

had encountered administrative problems in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

which led to the abolition of the position of

Commander-in-Chief of the Forces The Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, later Commander-in-Chief, British Army, or just the Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C), was (intermittently) the professional head of the English Army from 1660 to 1707 (the English Army, founded in 1645, was succ ...

there in 1904, and its replacement by an Army Board. In 1904, Minister for Defence

Anderson Dawson Andrew Dawson (16 July 1863 – 20 July 1910), usually known as Anderson Dawson, was an Australian politician, the Premier of Queensland for one week (1–7 December) in 1899. This short-lived premiership was the first Australian Labor Party go ...

commissioned a report which recommended a similar system for Australia, with a board consisting of four military members, the minister, and a finance member. This was implemented by his successor, James Whiteside McCay. Instead of creating a Chief of the General Staff as per the report, McCay's Military Board consisted of only three military members, the Deputy Adjutant General, the Chief of Ordnance, and the Chief of Intelligence. The post of Chief of the General Staff was finally created by the new Minister of Defence,

George Pearce Sir George Foster Pearce KCVO (14 January 1870 – 24 June 1952) was an Australian politician who served as a Senator for Western Australia from 1901 to 1938. He began his career in the Labor Party but later joined the National Labor Party, ...

, in 1909, with Colonel

William Bridges William or Bill Bridges may refer to: * William Bridges (author) (1933–2013), American writer and organizational consultant * William Bridges (general) (1861–1915), commander of the Australian Army's First Australian Imperial Force in 1 ...

becoming the first Chief of the General Staff. The military members of the Military Board then became the Chief of the General Staff, Adjutant General, Chief of Ordnance, and Quartermaster General. 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 opposi ...

, the threat of invasion led to a reversion to the old system. A Commander in Chief,

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Sir Thomas Blamey, was appointed, and the Military Board was suspended, with its powers being transferred to the Commander in Chief. The post of Chief of the General Staff remained, but was now subordinate to the Commander in Chief. This was successful from a military point of view but the problem of a concentration of power recurred and, after the war ended, the government decided to re-form the Military Board. Blamey was replaced by Lieutenant 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 M ...

in 1945 and the next year the post of Commander in Chief was again abolished, with Sturdee becoming Chief of the General Staff. The system continued until the reforms of

Arthur Tange Sir Arthur Harold Tange (18 August 1914 – 10 May 2001) was a prominent Australian senior public servant of the middle to late 20th century. A considerable intellect, he was one of the most influential people in the government of Australia f ...

in 1973. The three services were unified under the Department of Defence. The Military Board was abolished and the Chief of the General Staff became subordinate to the Chief of the Defence Force Staff and the Secretary of Defence. Reflecting this change from a staff to a command role, the post was renamed Chief of Army in 1997.

Appointees

The following table lists all those who have held the post of Chief of Army or its preceding positions. Ranks and honours are as at the completion of their tenure. , -style="text-align:center;" !colspan=6, General Officer Commanding Australian Military Forces , -style="text-align:center;" !colspan=6, Chief of the General Staff , -style="text-align:center;" !colspan=6, Chief of Army

References

Citations

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chief Of Army (Australia) Australia Australian Army Leadership of the Australian Defence Force Military appointments of Australia

History

Appointees

See also

References

Citations

Sources