Phillip Harvey Bennett (1928 - 2023)

Born 27 Dec 1928 in Perth, Western Australia, Australia

Ancestors

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Biography

Phillip Bennett is Notable.

General Sir Phillip Harvey Bennett AC KBE DSO is a retired senior officer of the Australian Army who served as Chief of the Australian Defence Force from 1984 to 1987, and as Governor of Tasmania from 1987 to 1995.

Philip Harvey Bennett was born on 27th December 1928 in Perth, Western Australia, Australia. He is the son of Cyril Bennett and Sheila Harvey. ^[1] He was educated at Perth Modern School and the Royal Military College, Duntroon, from which he graduated as a Lieutenant in the Australian Army on 14th December 1948.

Military career

Philip's military career included service in the in the British Commonwealth Occupation Force, Japan; the Korean War and the Vietnam War. During the latter, he was a key commander in the Battle of Coral–Balmoral; the largest unit-level action of the Vietnam War for Australians and considered one of the most famous actions fought by the Australian Army during the war. His senior appointments included command of the 1st Division 1977–79, Assistant Chief of Defence Staff 1979–82, Chief of the General Staff 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

From 1987 to 1995 Philip was Her Majesty The Queen's representative in Tasmania. During this period as governor, he was called on to be the adjudicator of a sensitive constitutional problem following the inconclusive Tasmanian state election in 1989. On several occasions he also became Administrator of the Commonwealth during overseas visits by the then Governor-General.

Post Vice-Regal appointment

Philip has continued to serve his community after retiring from the governorship, being appointed inaugural Chairman of the Australian War Memorial Foundation, Patron of the 2nd Commando Association (now the Australian Commando Association Victoria), Patron of The St John Ambulance in the ACT and National President of the Order of Australian Association. Philip is also the inaugural National Patron of the Royal Australian Regiment Association.

Honours and awards

• Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), 1969
• Officer in the Military Division of the Order of Australia (AO), 1981
• Knight Commander in the Military Division of the Order of the British Empire (KBE), 1982
• Companion of the Order of Australia (AC), 1985
• Mentioned in Despatches (equivalent to today's Commendation for Gallantry), 1951
• Commander of the US Legion of Merit, 1983
• Republic of Korea Order of National Security Medal, 1985
• Honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD), 1995
• Knight of the Order of St John, 1988
• Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, by the University of Tasmania, 1992
• Centenary Medal, 2001

A biography of Philip's life, The Last Knight: A Biography of General Sir Phillip Bennett AC, KBE, DSO, was published in 2011 by Robert Lowry. ^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ Western Australia Birth Index #18/1929
2. ↑ ISBN 978 09808 140 40

• Researched from family records and anecdotes and online sources by William Myers 2018

See also

• Wikipedia: Philip Bennett.