BLAMEY, Thomas Albert
| Service Numbers: | Officer, VX1 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 October 1914, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Last Rank: | Field Marshal |
| Last Unit: | Headquarters (2nd AIF) |
| Born: | Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, 24 January 1884 |
| Home Town: | Wagga Wagga, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Wagga Wagga Superior Public School |
| Occupation: | Soldier |
| Died: | Natural causes (cerebral haemorrhage), Heidelberg, Victoria, 27 May 1951, aged 67 years |
| Cemetery: |
Fawkner Memorial Park Cemetery, Victoria Cremated |
| Memorials: | Russell Field Marshal Thomas Blamey Square, Wagga Wagga Field Marshal Sir Thomas Blamey Memorial Tree, Wagga Wagga Methodist Church Roll of Honour, Wagga Wagga Victory Memorial Arch |
World War 1 Service
| 20 Oct 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Major, Melbourne, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Oct 1914: | Embarked AIF WW1, Major, Headquarters Staff, HMAT Orvieto, Melbourne | |
| 22 Oct 1914: | Involvement AIF WW1, Major, Officer, Headquarters Staff, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '1' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Orvieto embarkation_ship_number: A3 public_note: '' | |
| 25 Apr 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Major, Headquarters Staff, ANZAC / Gallipoli | |
| 26 Jul 1915: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lieutenant Colonel, Headquarters Staff | |
| 1 Dec 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Colonel, Headquarters Staff | |
| 1 Jun 1918: | Promoted AIF WW1, Brigadier General, 1st Division Headquarters |
World War 2 Service
| 13 Oct 1939: | Enlisted Lieutenant General, VX1, Headquarters (2nd AIF), Melbourne, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 13 Oct 1939: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), General, VX1 | |
| 1 Dec 1941: | Promoted General, Headquarters (2nd AIF) | |
| 31 Jan 1946: | Discharged |
Non Warlike Service
| 8 Jun 1950: | Promoted Australian Army (Post WW2), Field Marshal |
|---|
Help us honour Thomas Albert Blamey's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Kathleen Bambridge
Field marshall Blamey was a trustee for the RSL Nationally from 1931 to 1951.
Biography contributed by John Edwards
"Sir Thomas Albert Blamey (1884-1951), army officer and commissioner of police, was born on 24 January 1884 at Lake Albert, near Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, seventh child of Richard Henwood Blamey, butcher, and his native-born wife Margaret Louisa, née Murray. Born in Cornwall, England, Richard had come to Australia in 1862 at the age of 16. Having worked as a cattleman in Queensland, he moved to the Wagga Wagga district where he took up a small property, and also found jobs as a contract drover and as an overseer of shearing-sheds.
Educated at Wagga Wagga Superior Public School, Thomas was employed from 1899 as a local pupil-teacher and participated enthusiastically in the school cadets. In July 1903 he became an assistant-teacher at Fremantle Boys' School, Western Australia. There he continued to develop his leadership skills, particularly in the cadets. He attended Claremont Methodist Church, organized church activities and preached occasional sermons. By early 1906 he had been offered the post of probationary minister at Carnarvon, 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 appointed lieutenant on the Administrative and Instructional Staff in November, and posted to Melbourne.
Throughout the next five years he applied himself to his work with the cadets and endeavoured to improve his military knowledge. On 8 September 1909 he married 34-year-old Minnie Caroline Millard with Anglican rites in her parents' home, Hylands, at Toorak. They were to have two sons: Charles, known as 'Dolf' (b. 1910), died in an aeroplane crash in 1932 while serving with the Royal Australian Air Force; Thomas (b. 1914) became a solicitor and served in the Australian Imperial Force in World War II. In 1910 their father had transferred to the Australian Military Forces and was promoted captain..." - READ MORE LINK (adb.anu.edu.au)
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