William "Rusty" Ruthven, VC (21 May 1893 – 12 January 1970) was an Australian soldier and

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

politician. For actions 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 ...

he was an Australian recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

forces.

Early life

Born in

Collingwood, Victoria Collingwood is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3km north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Yarra local government area. Collingwood recorded a population of 9,179 at the 2021 ce ...

, William Ruthven was educated locally at the Vere Street State School. He became a mechanical engineer and was employed in the timber industry prior to his enlistment in the Australian Imperial Force in April 1915 for service in the

. He stood only tall, just above the minimum height requirement.

First World War

Ruthven was 24 years old, and a

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

in the 22nd Battalion, 2nd Division, when at

Ville-sur-Ancre Ville-sur-Ancre (; pcd, Ville-su-Inke) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. See also *Communes of the Somme department The following is a list of the 772 communes of the Somme department of France. ...

on 19 May 1918 the following deed took place for which he was awarded the

. The full citation for his actions appeared in a supplement to the ''

London Gazette London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

'' on 11 July 1918: (Victoria Cross) He was wounded in June 1918 and in July was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

. Later in the war he returned to Australia and was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

and campaigned with other VC winners on a recruiting drive. He was demobilised in December 1918. In early 1919, his VC was stolen from his home, along with several other items. Police arrested the culprits and the medal was returned with a note apologising for the theft. VC Anzac Day 1927 P02349

Later years

Ruthven was the timekeeper for the

Collingwood Football Club The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed the Magpies or colloquially the Pies, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The club w ...

from 1939 until his death. His nephew

Allan Ruthven Allan Gordon Ruthven (17 April 1922 – 14 March 2003) was an Australian rules footballer in the (then) Victorian Football League. He played his entire 222 game career with Fitzroy. In 1950, Ruthven won the prestigious Brownlow medal. Playing ...

played for

Fitzroy Fitzroy or FitzRoy may refer to: People As a given name *Several members of the Somerset family (Dukes of Beaufort) have this as a middle-name: **FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan (1788–1855) ** Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beau ...

. During the Second World War, Ruthven served in Australia with several garrison units, including the 3rd Australian Garrison Battalion, and was based at Murchison, which was the largest prisoner of war camp in Victoria. He achieved the rank of

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

. He was elected a councillor in the Melbourne municipality of Collingwood, and in 1945 was elected as

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

. He sat in the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...

from 1945 until 1955 as the Labor Party member for the

electoral district of Preston The electoral district of Preston is an electoral district of the Victorian Legislative Assembly. It currently centres on the northern Melbourne suburbs of Preston and Reservoir. It has always been a safe Labor Party seat. The most prominent ...

, then following a redistribution, represented the

electoral district of Reservoir Electoral district of Reservoir was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Victoria. Members Election results See also * Parliaments of the Australian states and territories * List of members of the ...

until his retirement in 1961. His Victoria Cross is displayed at 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 ...

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

. The Ruthven Soldiers' Club in Broadmeadows was opened in his honour in 1959, and in 1963 the

Ruthven railway station Ruthven railway station is located on the Mernda line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the northern Melbourne suburb of Reservoir, and it opened on 5 August 1963. History Ruthven station opened on 5 August 1963, and was named after William ...

near Reservoir was named after him.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruthven, William 1893 births 1970 deaths Military personnel from Melbourne 20th-century Australian politicians Australian Army officers Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Politicians from Melbourne People from Collingwood, Victoria