General (Australia)

General (abbreviated GEN) is the second-highest rank, and the highest active rank, of the Australian Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of general; it is also considered a four-star rank.

For other countries which use this rank, see General.

General
The GEN insignia of Crown of St Edward above a star of the Order of the Bath above a crossed sword and baton, with the word 'Australia' at the bottom.
CountryAustralia
Service branch Australian Army
AbbreviationGEN
RankFour-star
NATO rankOF-9
Non-NATO rankO-10
Formation1917
Next higher rankField marshal
Next lower rankLieutenant general
Equivalent ranks

Prior to 1958, Australian generals (and field marshals) were only appointed in exceptional circumstances. In 1958, the position which is currently called Chief of the Defence Force was created, and since 1966, the rank of general has been held when an army officer is appointed to that position.

General is a higher rank than lieutenant general, but is lower than field marshal. General is the equivalent of admiral in the Royal Australian Navy and air chief marshal in the Royal Australian Air Force.

A general's insignia is St Edward's Crown above a star of the Order of the Bath (or 'pip') above a crossed sword and baton, with the word 'Australia' at the bottom.[1][note 1]

Australian generals

The following have held the rank of general in the Australian Army:

NameYear
promoted		BornDiedNotes
William Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood
GCB, GCSI, GCMG, GCVO, CIE, DSO		191718651951Appointed a general in the Australian Imperial Force in 1917, and made honorary field marshal in the Australian Army in 1925.[note 2]
Sir Harry Chauvel GCMG, KCB192918651945Chief of the General Staff (1923–30) and Inspector-in-Chief Volunteer Defence Corps (1940–45)
Sir John Monash GCMG, KCB, VD192918651931Australian Corps (1918)
Sir Brudenell White KCB, KCMG, KCVO, DSO194018761940Chief of the General Staff (1920–23, 1940)
Sir Thomas Blamey GBE, KCB, CMG, DSO, ED194118841951Promoted field marshal in 1951. Deputy Commander-in-Chief Middle East Command (1941–1942), General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Australian Military Forces (1942–45) and Commander of Allied Land Forces, South West Pacific Area (1942–45)
Sir John Wilton KBE, CB, DSO196819101981Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (1966–70)
Sir Frank Hassett AC, KBE, CB, DSO, LVO197519182008Chief of the Defence Force Staff (1976–77)
Sir Arthur MacDonald KBE, CB197719191995Chief of the Defence Force Staff (1977–79)
Sir Phillip Bennett AC, KBE, DSO19841928—Chief of the Defence Force (1984–87) and Governor of Tasmania (1987–95)
Peter Gration AC, OBE19871932—Chief of the Defence Force (1987–93)
John Baker AC, DSM199519362007Chief of the Defence Force (1995–98)
Sir Peter Cosgrove AK, CVO, MC20021947—Chief of the Defence Force (2002–05) and Governor-General of Australia (2014–19)
David Hurley AC, DSC20111953—Chief of the Defence Force (2011–14) and Governor of New South Wales (2014–19) and Governor-General of Australia (2019–)
Angus Campbell AO, DSC2018——Chief of the Defence Force (2018–)

In addition, John Northcott held the honorary rank of general while acting as Governor-General of Australia in 1951 and 1956.[2]

The following Australians have held the rank of general in the British Army:

NameYear promotedBornDiedNotes
Sir John Hackett GCB, CBE, DSO & Bar, MC196619101997Deputy Chief of the Imperial General Staff (1963–66) and Commander-in-Chief of the British Army of the Rhine (1966–68)

See also

Notes
  1. Australian Army officer rank insignia are identical to British Army officer rank insignia, with the difference that Australian Army insignia have the word "Australia" below them.
  2. When Birdwood was promoted to field marshal in the British Army in 1925, he was given the honorary rank of field marshal in the Australian Army. He is one of only three Australian field marshals.

References
  1. "Chapter 4: Badges and Emblems" (PDF). Army Dress Manual. Canberra, ACT: Australian Army. 6 June 2014. p. 48. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2015.
  2. Coates, Henry John (2000). "Northcott, Sir John (1890–1966)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Melbourne University Press. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 13 April 2009 – via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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