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Field Marshal Sir Thomas Blamey GBE KCB CMG CStJ DSO ED was a highly-decorated Australian General of the First and Second World Wars, and the only Australian to attain the rank of Field Marshal, in a career that spanned five decades. He was also a Chief Commissioner of the Victoria Police for ten years, during which time he dealt with the issues that had led to a prior police strike and introduced several far-reaching innovations.
Thomas Albert Blamey was born on 24th January 1884 at Lake Albert, New South Wales (Australia). He was the seventh of nine children, and fourth son, of Richard Henwood Blamey and Margaret Louisa Murray.[1] Young Thomas was just five years of age when his eldest brother William, passed away as a teenager. Educated at Wagga Wagga Superior Public School, Thomas was employed from 1899 as a local pupil-teacher. In July 1903 he became an assistant-teacher at Fremantle Boys' School, Western Australia. He attended Claremont Methodist Church, organised church activities and preached occasional sermons. In early 1906 he was offered the post of probationary minister at Carnarvon, Western Australia, but, before accepting, saw an advertisement inviting applications for commissions in the Commonwealth Cadet Forces. In an Australia-wide military examination Blamey was placed third. He was subsequented commissioned as a Lieutenant on the Administrative and Instructional Staff in November, and posted to Melbourne.
He married Minnie Carol Millard on 8th September 1909 in her family's home, Hylands, in Toorak, Victoria.[2] Minnie was nine years older than Thomas. They had two sons, both born prior to the war:
In 1910 he transferred to the Australian Military Forces and was promoted Captain. After graduating from the Staff College at Quetta in India in 1913, he was seconded to England for further experience. His wife and son sailed home to Victoria. In England when the First World War began (and missing his second son's birth in Victoria), Blamey was posted to the general staff of the 1st Australian Division in Egypt. Whilst in England, he visited his aunt, Jane Cardell, in Cornwall, meeting her for the first time. He had missed meeting his grandmother by less than six months.[3]
During The Great War, Blamey[4] participated in the landing at Anzac Cove on 25th April 1915, and served as a staff officer in the Gallipoli Campaign, where he was mentioned in despatches for a daring raid behind enemy lines. He later served on the Western Front, where he distinguished himself in the planning for the Battle of Pozières. He rose to the rank of Brigadier General, and served as Chief of Staff of the Australian Corps under Lieutenant General Sir John Monash, who credited him as a factor in the Corps' success in the Battle of Hamel, the Battle of Amiens and the Battle of the Hindenburg Line.
After the war, Blamey was Deputy Chief of the General Staff, and was involved in the creation of the Royal Australian Air Force.
He resigned from the regular Army in 1925 to take up the appointment of Chief Commissioner of the Victoria Police, but remained in the militia, rising to command the 3rd Division in 1931. Although considered by some to be confrontational, violent, ruthless and controversial, Blamey dealt with the grievances that had led to the 1923 Victorian Police strike and implemented innovations such as police dogs and equipping vehicles with radios. An attempt to protect the man's reputation by covering up the details of the shooting of the Superintendent of the Criminal Investigation Branch led to his forced resignation in 1936.
It has been argued that his latter years as commissioner was affected greatly by two very close-to-home deaths. His son, Dolf, a Royal Australian Air Force Flying Officer, was killed in an air crash at RAAF Base Richmond in October 1932.[5] Receiving a knighthood in the 1935 New Year Honours in recognition of his invaluable service as police chief commissioner was bitter-sweet however as Lady Minnie Blamey, invalided since 1930, passed away in October 1935.
Concentrating once more on militia service Blamey was appointed chairman of the Commonwealth Government's Manpower Committee and Controller General of Recruiting in 1938, heading a successful recruiting campaign which doubled the size of the part-time volunteer militia immediately prior to Australia's greatest war.
Sir Thomas and Lady (Olga) Blamey. |
On 5th April 1939, Blamey married a second time, to 36-year-old artist Olga Ora Farnsworth, in St John's Church of England, Toorak. Olga immediately became entitled as Lady Olga Blamey. Throughout the war, from Palestine to Changi, Olga acted as a hospital visitor for the Red Cross; comforting the wounded, writing letters home for those unable to write for themselves and generally catering for the day-to-day needs of Australia’s troops. She was made Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1945 for her unstinting voluntary work.
During the Second World War Blamey commanded the Second Australian Imperial Force (AIF) and the I Corps in the Middle East. Receiving army serial number VX1 on 13th October 1939, he was the first Victorian to volunteer for the 2nd AIF.[6] He was the first General Officer Commanding 6th Division, seeing it formed, trained and then acclimatised in Egypt. He was appointed Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Middle East Command in 1941 and was promoted to General. In 1942, he returned to Australia as Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Military Forces and Commander of Allied Land Forces in the South West Pacific Area. He assumed personal command of New Guinea Force during the Kokoda Track campaign, relieving Lieutenant General Sydney Rowell and Major General Arthur Allen under controversial circumstances out of his control. Blamey also planned and carried out the significant and victorious Salamaua–Lae Campaign. He signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on behalf of Australia at Japan's ceremonial surrender in Tokyo Bay on 2nd September 1945, and later personally accepted the Japanese surrender at Morotai on 9th September.[7]
1941 Buick sedan used by Blamey as his staff car. |
Having just turned 62 years of age, Blamey went on the Retired List on 31st January 1946.[8] A farewell party was held in Melbourne, which was attended by 66 brigadiers and generals. The Deputy Prime Minister, Francis Forde, asked Blamey if he wanted anything in way of recognition for his services, to which Blamey responded, "Knighthoods for my generals". As Forde could not arrange this (knighthoods being against Labour party policy) he instead gave Blamey the 1941 Buick sedan he had used during the war as his staff car, which had clocked up 50,000 miles (80,000 km) in the Middle East and the South West Pacific.
Blamey returned to Melbourne, where he devoted himself to business affairs, to writing, and to promoting the welfare of ex-service personnel. His interests beyond military and public affairs included involvement in the early discussions to found the Australian National University. He was promoted to Field Marshal in the King's Birthday Honours List on 8th June 1950; Australia's first and only 'home-grown' Field Marshal. He received his Field Marshal's baton from Governor-General, William McKell, in Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital.
Sir Thomas Blamey passed away of hypertensive cerebral haemorrhage, aged just 67 years and only five years after concluding the aftermath of the Second World War, on 27th May 1951 in the Repatriation Hospital, Heidelberg, Victoria.[9] Crowds estimated at 250,000 lined the streets of Melbourne at his state funeral. His ashes are interred in the Fawkner Crematorium and Memorial Park.[10]
Sir Thomas Blamey medal set. |
Blamey was highly decorated during his lifetime:
Sir Thomas Blamey statue, Melbourne. |
Sir Thomas Blamey is honoured in Australia through:
See also;
Featured German connections: Thomas is 21 degrees from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 25 degrees from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 25 degrees from Lucas Cranach, 24 degrees from Stefanie Graf, 21 degrees from Wilhelm Grimm, 24 degrees from Fanny Hensel, 27 degrees from Theodor Heuss, 19 degrees from Alexander Mack, 36 degrees from Carl Miele, 13 degrees from Nathan Rothschild, 18 degrees from Hermann Friedrich Albert von Ihering and 18 degrees from Ferdinand von Zeppelin on our single family tree. Login to see how you relate to 33 million family members.
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