General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Sir Phillip Harvey Bennett, (born 27 December 1928) is a retired senior officer of the

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 ...

who served as

Chief of the Australian Defence Force The Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and is the principal military advisor to the National Security Committee and the Minister for Defence. The c ...

from 1984 to 1987, and later as

Governor of Tasmania The governor of Tasmania is the representative in the Australian state of Tasmania of the Monarch of Australia, currently King Charles III. The incumbent governor is Barbara Baker, who was appointed in June 2021. The official residence of the ...

from 1987 to 1995.

Early life

Bennett was born in

Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, and educated at

Perth Modern School , motto_translation = Knowledge is Power , location = Subiaco, Perth, Western Australia , country = Australia , coordinates = , mapframe-stroke-colour = #C60C30 , mapframe-marker-co ...

and the

Royal Military College, Duntroon lit: Learning promotes strength , established = , type = Military college , chancellor = , head_label = Commandant , head = Brigadier Ana Duncan , principal = , city = Campbell , state = ...

, from which he graduated as a

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 ...

on 14 December 1948. With 13 other new officers, he was posted in March 1949 to 67 Infantry Battalion, The Australian Regiment, then in the

British Commonwealth Occupation Force The British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) was the British Commonwealth taskforce consisting of Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand military forces in occupied Japan, from 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952. At its peak, t ...

, Japan.

Military career

Bennett served in Japan until September 1950 and then embarked with the

3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment The 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) is a mechanised infantry battalion of the Australian Army, based in Kapyong Lines, Townsville as part of the 3rd Brigade. 3 RAR traces its lineage to 1945 and has seen operational serv ...

for

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

where he served for a year during which he was wounded in action on 14 October 1950, remaining on duty, and

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

in 1951. He served again for 12 months in Korea from 1 September 1952 as Senior Instructor, then Chief Instructor, with the 25th Canadian Infantry Brigade Junior NCO School while posted as Tactics Instructor at the School of Infantry in

Seymour, Victoria Seymour () is a historic railway township located in the Southern end of the Goulburn Valley in the Shire of Mitchell, Victoria, Australia and is located north of Melbourne. At the , Seymour had a population of 6,569. The township services t ...

Four officers of Support Company, 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in Korea

On return to Australia in 1953, Bennett became the Adjutant of the 1st Battalion, Pacific Islands Regiment in PNG. In 1954 he was Adjutant with the 16th Infantry Battalion (CMF) and in 1956 Staff Captain A in HQ Western Command. In 1957–58 he served in the United Kingdom with the Royal Marine Commandos and saw duty in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, and operational service in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

. He then served as OC 2nd Commando Company from July 1958 to June 1961, and after attending the Australian Staff College, became the Senior Instructor, then Chief Instructor, at

Officer Cadet School, Portsea The Officer Cadet School, Portsea (sometimes referred to as OCS Portsea) was an officer training establishment of the Australian Army. Established at Portsea in Victoria, Australia, in 1951 to provide training to officer cadets prior to commissio ...

from 1962 to 1965. He was then posted until 10 July 1967 to Army HQ which had moved to

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 ...

in the early 1960s from

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 ...

. Bennett then commanded the

1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1 RAR) is a regular motorised infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 1 RAR was first formed as the 65th Australian Infantry Battalion of the 34th Brigade (Australia) on Balikpapan in 1945 and since ...

, where he was a key commander in the

Battle of Coral–Balmoral The Battle of Coral–Balmoral (12 May – 6 June 1968) was a series of actions fought during the Vietnam War between the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) and the North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) 7th Infantry Division (V ...

. This battle was the largest unit-level action of the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

for the Australians and today the battle is considered one of the most famous actions fought by the

during the war. For his service in Vietnam in 1968–69, Bennett was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

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 ...

(Supplement) no. 44818, page 3365
28 March 1969. (Distinguished Service Order) On return from UK Joint service training in 1971 he became Colonel Coordination in the office of

Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ( United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Af ...

and in April 1974 was 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 ...

, Chief of Staff at HQ Field Force Command in

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 ...

until December 1975. Bennett attended senior officer training at the Australian Staff College first long course in 1960–61, Joint Services Staff College in UK as a student then exchange instructor 1969–71, and then the Royal College of Defence Studies in UK in 1976. He commanded the 1st Division 1977–79, became Assistant Chief of Defence Staff 1979–82,

1982–84 and Chief of the Defence Force in 1984 (the position having been changed from Chief of the Defence Staff). He retired from the Army in April 1987.

Governor of Tasmania

During his period as governor, Bennett was called on to be the adjudicator of a sensitive constitutional problem following the inconclusive Tasmanian state election in 1989. The Liberal Government of Premier Robin Gray had suffered a two-seat swing, leaving it one seat short of a majority. The opposition Labor Party led by Michael Field then garnered the support of the five

Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...

members of the House of Assembly for a minority government in what was known as the Labor-Green Accord. Gray refused to resign, initially intending to stay in office until defeated in the House. When he learned of the Labor-Green agreement, he asked Bennett to dissolve the legislature and call new elections. Under normal circumstances, Bennett would have been bound by convention to honour this request. However, Bennett refused to do so. He believed that Gray was no longer in a position to govern, and therefore had lost the right to ask for a dissolution. He'd also been privately assured before the formal accord was signed that the Greens would back a Labor government. Gray was thus forced to resign, and Bennett commissioned Field as premier. Bennett on several occasions also became Administrator of the Commonwealth during overseas visits by the then

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Bill Hayden William George Hayden (born 23 January 1933) is an Australian politician who served as the 21st governor-general of Australia from 1989 to 1996. He was Leader of the Labor Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1977 to 1983, and served as ...

Retirement

After retiring from the governorship, Bennett served as inaugural Chairman of 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 ...

Foundation. He has been the Patron of the 2 Commando Association (now the Australian Commando Association Victoria) since 1985, Patron of The St John Ambulance in the ACT since 1996, and a past President of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

Association (elected National President of the Order of Australian Association in March 1997). He is also the inaugural National Patron of the

Royal Australian Regiment The Royal Australian Regiment (RAR) is the parent administrative regiment for regular infantry battalions of the Australian Army and is the senior infantry regiment of the Royal Australian Infantry Corps. It was originally formed in 1948 as a t ...

Association. A biography of Bennett's life, ''The Last Knight'' by Robert Lowry, was published in 2011.

Awards and honours

Bennett was appointed a

Companion of the Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

(DSO) in 1969 for service as Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in Vietnam. Bennett was made an Officer in the Military Division of the

(AO) in 1981,Officer of the Order of Australia
(AO), 8 June 1981, It's an Honour. a Knight Commander in the Military Division of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(KBE) in 1982,

(Supplement) no. 49213, page 44
30 December 1982. (Knight Commander in the Military Division of the Order of the British Empire) and was promoted to

Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AC) in 1985.Companion of the Order of Australia
(AC), 10 June 1985, It's an Honour. He was

for; 'During the period, 9 November 1950 to June 1951, this officer performed the duty of mortar platoon commander through that period. His support of battalion attacks was of the highest order etc.' In 1983 he was made a Commander of the US Legion of Merit, and in 1985 was awarded the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...

Order of National Security Medal. He was awarded an Honorary LLD (NSW) in October 1995 for his contribution to military education and the Australian Defence Force Academy. He was made a Knight of St John in 1988

(Supplement) no. 51204, page 687
21 January 1988 (Knight of St John) and awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, by the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first pro ...

in 1992. He was awarded the

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or go ...

in 2001.

References

External links

Korean War Nominal RollVietnam War Nominal Roll
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Phillip 1928 births Living people Military personnel from Western Australia Australian generals Australian military personnel of the Korean War Australian military personnel of the Malayan Emergency Australian military personnel of the Vietnam War Australian Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Companions of the Order of Australia Royal Military College, Duntroon graduates Governors of Tasmania Australian Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Centenary Medal People from Perth, Western Australia People educated at Perth Modern School Order of National Security Merit members Chiefs of the Defence Force (Australia) Chiefs of Defence Force Staff (Australia) Commanders of the Legion of Merit Australian monarchists Chiefs of Army (Australia) Alumni of the Royal College of Defence Studies