Charles Henry Brand CB CMG CVO (1873 - 1961)

Formative years

Charles Henry Brand was born on 4th September 1873 at Mount Radford Reserve, Ipswich, Queensland (Australia). He was the third son of Charles Hayman Brand, a farmer, and his wife, Elizabeth Elliott. ^[1] His father was a native of Exeter, England, and his mother of Londonderry, Ireland. The family moved to the Wide Bay region of Queensland, where Charles was educated at Bundaberg and Maryborough State Schools.

Charles married Ella Armstrong, a school teacher from Ballarat who he had met at Charters Towers, on 25th June 1906 in the Methodist parsonage at Bondi, New South Wales. ^[2]

Educator

Brand joined the Queensland Department of Public Instruction as a teacher in November 1887. He taught initially at Bundaberg North, before transferring to Brisbane. He continued to teach until 1900, when he went overseas to serve in the Boer War (see below). When he returned to Australia from that war, Brand briefly resumed his pre-war career as a teacher, teaching in North Queensland at Charters Towers State School from 1903 to 1904. It was here that he met his future wife, a fellow teacher. With fifteen years teaching experience behind him, he then returned to full-time military service.

Military service

Lt Charles Henry Brand

On 17th February 1898, Brand was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Queensland Volunteer Infantry, a militia unit. On the outbreak of the Second Boer War in South Africa, he enlisted in the 3rd Queensland Mounted Infantry. ^[3] After promptly being promoted to Sergeant, he was commissioned as a Lieutenant on 25th June 1900. He served in the Transvaal, the Orange Free State and the Cape Colony. He returned to Australia with the unit in June 1901, but in May 1902 volunteered for a second tour.

He was promoted to Captain and given command of a squadron of the 7th Commonwealth Light Horse, however, peace was declared before the unit reached South Africa. ^[4] The 7th was under the command of (later General Sir) Harry Chauvel.

Returning to the militia as a Captain in the Queensland Volunteer Infantry on 27th March 1903, he served as adjutant until 30th November 1905. In 1905, Brand joined the permanent forces as a Lieutenant and joined the Administrative and Instructional Corps located in Melbourne. He was promoted to Captain, yet again, in July 1909. In 1910, he was sent to India on an officer exchange. He also attended the transport and musketry schools in 1911. Brand returned to Australia in September 1911 holding the position of general staff officer (third grade) (GSO3) in Adelaide until 26th November 1913. In late 1913 Brand took temporary command of the 4th Military District (South Australia); returning in June 1914, to his previous post of GSO3.

Brand transferred to the Australian Imperial Force on 15th August 1914. ^[5] Major General William Throsby Bridges selected Brand as the brigade major of the 3rd Infantry Brigade. Major Brand departed for Egypt on board the Orvieto on 21st October 1914. During his stay in Egypt Brand became a recognisable sight, going about his duties on a donkey when other transport was scarce. The 3rd Brigade was the first unit to hit the beaches at Gallipoli on 25th April 1915. During that day he 'took charge of leaderless groups of men, carried messages under fire and disabled three enemy guns; actions that were noticed by his superiors and for which he was appointed Companion of the the Distinguished Service Order (DSO); becoming the first Australian in the Gallipoli Campaign to be so decorated. ^[6]

On 20th May he was transferred to command the 8th Infantry Battalion, being promoted Lieutenant Colonel in July. ^[7] The following day he was wounded when a German naval shell struck battalion headquarters; but remained on duty. The 8th Battalion relieved the 6th and 7th Battalions at Steele's Post on 18th July so that they could participate in the attack on Lone Pine; holding Steele's Post for the rest of the campaign.

The 8th Battalion moved to the Western Front during March 1916. In June, Brand was acting commander of the 6th Infantry Brigade, standing in for Brigadier General John Gellibrand, who had been wounded. After this, Brand was marked for the next brigade appointment, and on 10th July 1916, he succeeded Brigadier General John Monash in command of the 4th Infantry Brigade, and was promoted to Colonel and temporary Brigadier General. Brand led the brigade at Pozières in July 1916. He was a vocal opponent of the attack on Bullecourt during the Battle of Arras in April 1917 which cost his brigade 2,339 casualties out of 3,000 engaged, of whom about 1,000 became prisoners. It has been said that Brand and Lieutenant General William Birdwood later apologised to the brigade with tears in their eyes. Brand was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) for his leadership. ^[8]

The brigade took part in the Battle of Messines in June 1917. On 6th July 1917, the staff of the 4th Brigade was sitting down to dinner when a German 5.9 inch shell landed among them. Lieutenant Markam, the brigade intelligence officer, was killed and Brand, his brigade major, Major Johnston, staff captain, Captain Thomson, and signal officer, Lieutenant Beazley, were all wounded. Brand rejoined the brigade on 18th July and led it at the third battle of Ypres. From 9th to 25th July 1918, Brand was acting commander of the 4th Division. He was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) for his leadership of the brigade. ^[9]

Leaving the front on 5th October 1918 for leave in Australia, Brand was required to make a diversion to London - to Buckingham Palace to be precise - for investiture by King George V with the CB, CMG and DSO. During the war, he had also been Mentioned in Despatches eight times. He embarked for home leave on 10th October 1918, arriving in Australia on 21st December 1918. His appointment to the AIF was terminated on 21st February 1919.

From 1919 to 1920, Brand was commandant of the 3rd Military District (Victoria). He was confirmed in the rank of Brigadier General on 1st April 1920 and was base commandant of the 2nd Military District (New South Wales) from 1921 to 1925. He became the second Chief of the General Staff (CGS) and a member of the Military Board in 1926. In 1927, he was appointed Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) following his services during the Duke and Duchess of York's visit to Australia to open the new Federal capital in Canberra. ^[10] From 1928 to 1933 he was Quartermaster General. Brand retired from the army in 1933 at 60 years of age with the rank of Major General.

Political office

Announcing that he was entering politics because he was physically fit, had no business or other ties and wished to continue serving his country, Brand was endorsed by the United Australia Party in 1934 as a Senate candidate for Victoria. He believed that the policies of J A Lyons’ United Australia Party (UAP) government were leading Australia out of the Great Depression and keeping ‘the door to communism’ closed.

In 1934, Brand won an Australian Senate seat representing Victoria, as a member of the UAP, and took his seat on 1st July 1935. He was re-elected in September 1940, this time with an absolute majority. Aged 73 years, he was defeated at the 1946 election and exited office on 30th June 1947. In office, he was most concerned with defence policy and veterans' affairs. In the 1930s he stressed the need for Australia to become more self-reliant and to take greater responsibility for its security, noting that ‘that bulwark of defence’, the Royal Navy, ‘is no longer available to us’. Brand passed his ideas to Curtin, with whom he often discussed defence issues, annoying UAP members. When Japan, in 1941, created the Pacific Theatre of the Second World War, he unsuccessfully argued that the Australian Imperial Force and the Citizen Military Forces (the Army's two major but independent forces) should be amalgamated as an operational necessity.

The twenty-eight returned servicemen from all parties (excluding four men then serving overseas) unequivocally recognised Brand’s standing as a spokesman for service and defence matters by unanimously electing him chairman of the Parliamentary Ex-Servicemen's Committee, which he took as a sign that he ‘still had a little initiative, energy and common sense’. He held that position until 1947.

He is on record as stating in 1943: "It makes my blood boil when I hear politicians who have never done a day’s soldiering ... who have always opposed the training of any one to defend this country, and who never raised their voice, or lifted a finger, to help us in the first World War, airing their views on military strategy and battle tactics." ^[11]

Although Brand had been known in parliament as ‘the General’, Labor Senator N E McKenna recalled that he was no militarist. ^[12]

Brand's nephew, Jack Pizzey, was later Education Minister in Queensland from 1957 to 1968 and, ever-so-briefly, Premier of Queensland.

Retirement

Brand retained close links with the ex-service community: president of the South African Soldiers’ Association for 35 years, and chairman of the Sailors’ and Soldiers’ War Widows’ Homes Trust for 33 years. He was patron of the Limbless Soldiers’ Association, the Totally and Permanently Incapacitated Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Association and the Bendigo Legacy Club, as well as the Victorian Rugby Union.

Survived by his wife and daughters, Charles Brand passed away, aged 87 years, on 31st July 1961 at his Toorak home, Victoria, Australia. He was cremated with full military honours.