Arthur MacDonald

{{Infobox military person

|name= Sir Arthur MacDonald

|image= Korea AWM044755.jpg

|alt=

|caption= MacDonald (far left) with other senior Australian officers in Korea, May 1953

|birth_date= {{birth date|1919|01|30|df=yes}}

|birth_place= Rockhampton, Queensland

|death_date= {{Death date and age|1995|01|20|1919|01|30|df=yes}}

|death_place= Brisbane, Queensland

|placeofburial=

|allegiance= Australia

|branch= Australian Army

|serviceyears= 1939–1979

|rank= General

|servicenumber= 18

|unit=

|commands= Chief of the Defence Force Staff (1977–79)
Chief of the General Staff (1975–77)
Australian Forces Vietnam (1968–69)
Deputy Chief of the General Staff (1966–67)
Papua New Guinea Command (1965–66)
3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1953–54)

|battles=

|awards= Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Companion of the Order of the Bath
Mentioned in Despatches
Officer of the National Order of Vietnam
Cross of Gallantry with Palm (Vietnam)

|relations=

|laterwork= Colonel Commandant of the Royal Australian Regiment (1981–85)

}}

General Sir Arthur Leslie MacDonald, {{post-nominals|country=AUS|size=100%|sep=,|KBE|CB}} (30 January 1919 – 20 January 1995) was a senior officer in the Australian Army, who served in the positions of Chief of the General Staff from 1975 to 1977, then Chief of the Defence Force Staff from 1977 to 1979; the professional head of the Australian Army and Australian Defence Force respectively.

Military career

MacDonald was born in Rockhampton, Queensland, on 30 January 1919.{{cite web|url=http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/Veteran.aspx?serviceId=A&veteranId=575064|title=MacDonald, Arthur Leslie|access-date=25 July 2014|work=World War II Nominal Roll|publisher=Commonwealth of Australia|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303225901/http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/Veteran.aspx?serviceId=A&veteranId=575064|url-status=dead}} Entering the Royal Military College, Duntroon, he graduated as a lieutenant in 1939, and was posted to the 2/15th Battalion the following year for active service during the Second World War. MacDonald remained with the unit until the end of the war,{{cite web |url=http://www.awm.gov.au/units/people_252.asp |title=1/8 General Arthur Leslie MacDonald, KBE CB |access-date=28 February 2009 |work=3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment – Commanding Officers: Korean War |publisher=Australian War Memorial}} which included seeing action at El Alamein during the North African Campaign, and New Guinea in the South West Pacific theatre.{{cite web |url=http://www.awm.gov.au/units/unit_11266.asp |title=2/15th Battalion |access-date=28 February 2009 |work=Australian Military Units |publisher=Australian War Memorial}}

In the 1953 New Year Honours, MacDonald was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for his service with the Australian Staff Corps.{{London Gazette |issue=39734 |date=1 January 1953 |page=40 |supp=y }} On 14 March 1953, MacDonald was posted to Korea and assumed command of the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment.{{cite web |url=http://www.koreanroll.gov.au/veteran.aspx?id=1223356 |title=MacDonald, Arthur Leslie |access-date=28 February 2009 |work=Korean War Nominal Roll |publisher=Commonwealth of Australia}} During his command of the unit, MacDonald was Mentioned in Despatches for his "personal example and professional ability".{{cite web |url=http://www.awm.gov.au/cms_images/awm192/00201/002010632.pdf |title=Recommendation for Arthur Leslie Macdonald to be awarded a Mention in Despatches |access-date=28 February 2009 |work=Index to Recommendations: Korean War |publisher=Australian War Memorial}}{{London Gazette |issue=40025 |date=24 November 1953 |page=6379 }} He returned to Australia during February 1954, and was posted as Director of Military Operations.

In 1965, MacDonald was posted as Commander Papua New Guinea Command. He returned to Australia the following year, and was posted as Deputy Chief of the General Staff and later as Adjutant General to the Australian Army. On 26 January 1968, MacDonald arrived in Vietnam and assumed command of the army component of the Australian forces in the country. He served in this position until February 1969, at which time he was re-posted as Adjutant General.{{cite web |url=http://www.vietnamroll.gov.au/VeteranDetails.aspx?VeteranId=1238542 |title=MacDonald, Arthur Leslie |access-date=28 February 2009 |work=Vietnam War Nominal Roll |publisher=Commonwealth of Australia}} For his services in Vietnam, MacDonald was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath,{{London Gazette |issue=44810 |date=18 March 1969 |page=2903 }} an Officer of the National Order of Vietnam and awarded the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry with Palm.{{Harvnb|Barnes|1974|p=84}}.

In 1975, MacDonald was promoted to lieutenant general and assumed the position of Chief of the General Staff; the professional head of the Australian Army. Two years later, he was promoted to general and appointed Chief of the Defence Force Staff (CDFS) on 21 April 1977 in succession to General Sir Frank Hassett.{{cite web|url=http://www.defence.gov.au/cdf/past_chiefs.htm |title=Previous Chiefs |access-date=28 February 2009 |work=Chief of the Defence Force |publisher=Department of Defence |location=Australia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130082835/http://defence.gov.au/cdf/past_chiefs.htm |archive-date=30 January 2009 |url-status=dead }} In the 1978 New Years Honours, MacDonald was knighted as a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.{{London Gazette |issue=47419 |date=30 December 1977 |page=39 |supp=y }}

Later life

MacDonald retired from the Australian Army on 20 April 1979 and was succeeded as CDFS by Admiral Sir Anthony Synnot. In retirement, he served as Colonel Commandant of the Royal Australian Regiment from 1981 to 1985 and was part of the Defence Review Committee in 1981 to 1982.{{cite web|url=http://www.oxfordreference.com.rp.nla.gov.au/view/10.1093/acref/9780195517842.001.0001/acref-9780195517842-e-718?rskey=qhBH1u&result=1|title=MacDonald, General Sir Arthur Leslie|access-date=29 September 2015|author=Dennis, Peter|author2=Jeffrey Grey|author3=Ewan Morris|author4=Robin Prior|author5=Jean Bou|name-list-style=amp|work=The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History|publisher=Oxford Reference Online}}{{Dead link|date=June 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Aged 75, MacDonald died on 20 January 1995. A military funeral was held in St. John's Cathedral, Brisbane, on 2 February.{{cite web|url=http://www.anglicanarchives.org.au/HDMS-HTML/MUMES170.htm |title=Series MUMES170-1 |access-date=8 June 2009 |work=The Anglican Records and Archives Centre Guide to Records |publisher=Anglican Archives |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091012154753/http://anglicanarchives.org.au/HDMS-HTML/MUMES170.htm |archive-date=12 October 2009 }} He is remembered as one who "possessed a fierce temper and an often irascible nature, which, combined with considerable intelligence and a capacity for hard work, made him a sometimes difficult superior."

Notes

References

{{cite book|last=Dennis|first=Peter|last2=Grey|first2=Jeffrey|last3=Morris|first3=Ewan|last4=Prior|first4=Robin|last5=Bou|first5=Jean|title=The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History|edition=2nd|year=2008|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Melbourne, Australia|isbn=978-0-19-551784-2}}
{{cite book|last=Barnes|first=I.L.|title=Australian Gallant and Distinguished Service, Vietnam 1962–1973: Being a Record of British and Foreign Decorations Awarded to Australian Servicemen|year=1974|publisher=Military Historical Society of Australia|location=Canberra, Australia|isbn=0909859108}}

{{succession box|

title=Chief of the Defence Force Staff|

before=General Sir Frank Hassett|

after=Admiral Sir Anthony Synnot|

years=1977–1979|

}}

{{succession box|

title=Chief of the General Staff|

before=Lieutenant General Frank Hassett|

after={{nowrap|Lieutenant General Sir Donald Dunstan}}|

years=1975–1977|

}}