Arthur Samuel Allen
Encyclopedia
Major General
Arthur Samuel "Tubby" Allen CB
CBE
DSO
VD
(10 March 1894 – 25 January 1959) was an Australian soldier
. During World War II
he reached the rank of Major General and commanded Allied
forces in the Syria-Lebanon
and New Guinea campaign
s. Allen was frequently referred to during World War II by the nickname "Tubby"; an indication of his stocky build and the affection with which he was regarded by both soldiers and the Australian public.
, in Sydney
. He attended Hurstville Superior Public School before gaining work as an audit clerk with the New South Wales Government Railways
. Allen also joined the cadets and then the 39th Battalion of the Militia
.
(AIF) on 24 June 1915. Allen embarked for Egypt with reinforcements for the 13th Battalion in August. In March 1916 he was promoted to captain
and assigned to the 45th Battalion. He arrived in France on 8 June 1916 and fought at the Battle of Pozières
in August. Allen remained in the front line on the Somme
into 1917 and led his men through the Battle of Messines
in June. His leadership amidst heavy losses earned Allen the Distinguished Service Order
and a promotion to Major
in July. He continued to lead men in combat, at the Battle of Dernancourt in April 1918, and then as an acting Lieutenant Colonel
, in charge of the 48th Battalion, at Battle of Monument Wood
.
In June 1918, Allen went to England to attend the Senior Officer
s’ Course at Aldershot
. Less than two weeks after the war ended — at the age of 24 — he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and given command of the 13th Battalion. He was awarded the French Croix de Guerre
for his service on the Western Front
. His appointment with the AIF ended on 10 November 1919.
, in charge of the 14th Brigade. Five years later, in 1938, he became a Brigadier
.
In October 1939, Allen was given command of the 16th Brigade in the Second AIF
's 6th Division. Later in 1940, Allen was in North Africa
, where his brigade fought at Bardia and Tobruk
. In March, Allen and the brigade left North Africa for the ill-fated Greek campaign, following which he was awarded the Greek War Cross
.
He was then given command of the 7th Division, and commanded it in the invasion of Syria and Lebanon
, against Vichy French
forces. Allen was officially promoted to Major General
in August 1941.
Following the outbreak of war with Japan
, Allen returned to Australia in March 1942, and in August took charge of operations against the Japanese advance along the Kokoda Track
. Although he was successful, Allen nevertheless came under what many consider unfair criticism from the Allied commander in the South West Pacific Area, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur
and the Allied land forces commander, the Australian General
Thomas Blamey
, for moving too slowly in pursuit of the Japanese across the Owen Stanley Ranges. He was relieved of his command on 29 October 1942. Lesser appointments followed, but in October 1944, Blamey recommended Allen be made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE), although Allen was never appointed.
Major General (Australia)
Major General is a senior rank of the Australian Army, and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of Major General. It is the third-highest active rank of the Australian Army, and is considered to be equivalent to a two-star rank...
Arthur Samuel "Tubby" Allen CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
VD
Volunteer Decoration
The Volunteer Officers' Decoration was created by Royal Warrant under command of Queen Victoria on 25 July 1892 to reward 'efficient and capable' officers of the Volunteer Force who had served for twenty years...
(10 March 1894 – 25 January 1959) was an Australian soldier
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he reached the rank of Major General and commanded Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
forces in the Syria-Lebanon
Syria-Lebanon campaign
The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
and New Guinea campaign
New Guinea campaign
The New Guinea campaign was one of the major military campaigns of World War II.Before the war, the island of New Guinea was split between:...
s. Allen was frequently referred to during World War II by the nickname "Tubby"; an indication of his stocky build and the affection with which he was regarded by both soldiers and the Australian public.
Early life
Allen was born at HurstvilleHurstville, New South Wales
Hurstville is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hurstville is located 16 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the St George area. Hurstville is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of...
, in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. He attended Hurstville Superior Public School before gaining work as an audit clerk with the New South Wales Government Railways
New South Wales Government Railways
The New South Wales Government Railways was the government department that operated the New South Wales Government's railways until the establishment of the Public Transport Commission in 1972. Although later known officially as the Department of Railways, New South Wales, it was still generally...
. Allen also joined the cadets and then the 39th Battalion of the Militia
Australian Army Reserve
The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen Military Forces, the Militia and, unofficially, the...
.
World War I
He was commissioned in 1913 and joined the Australian Imperial ForceAustralian Imperial Force
The Australian Imperial Force was the name given to all-volunteer Australian Army forces dispatched to fight overseas during World War I and World War II.* First Australian Imperial Force * Second Australian Imperial Force...
(AIF) on 24 June 1915. Allen embarked for Egypt with reinforcements for the 13th Battalion in August. In March 1916 he was promoted to captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
and assigned to the 45th Battalion. He arrived in France on 8 June 1916 and fought at the Battle of Pozières
Battle of Pozières
The Battle of Pozières was a two week struggle for the French village of Pozières and the ridge on which it stands, during the middle stages of the 1916 Battle of the Somme. Though British divisions were involved in most phases of the fighting, Pozières is primarily remembered as an Australian battle...
in August. Allen remained in the front line on the Somme
Somme
Somme is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardy region of France....
into 1917 and led his men through the Battle of Messines
Battle of Messines
The Battle of Messines was a battle of the Western front of the First World War. It began on 7 June 1917 when the British Second Army under the command of General Herbert Plumer launched an offensive near the village of Mesen in West Flanders, Belgium...
in June. His leadership amidst heavy losses earned Allen the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
and a promotion to Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in July. He continued to lead men in combat, at the Battle of Dernancourt in April 1918, and then as an acting Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
, in charge of the 48th Battalion, at Battle of Monument Wood
Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux
The Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux came during the period of the battle of Lys, 24–27 April 1918, but was launched against the British lines in front of Amiens.The Germans developed a small number of tanks, and used them in this offensive...
.
In June 1918, Allen went to England to attend the Senior Officer
Senior Officer (rank)
Senior officer is a rank used in HM Prison Service, the Scottish Prison Service and the Northern Ireland Prison Service, as well as other prison services around the world. It is senior to an ordinary prison officer, but junior to a principal officer. Senior officers traditionally headed shifts in...
s’ Course at Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
. Less than two weeks after the war ended — at the age of 24 — he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and given command of the 13th Battalion. He was awarded the French Croix de Guerre
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
for his service on the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
. His appointment with the AIF ended on 10 November 1919.
Between the wars
He became an accountant after the war and in December 1921 married Agnes Blair. Allen returned to accounting, but remained active in the Militia. In 1933 he became a full ColonelColonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
, in charge of the 14th Brigade. Five years later, in 1938, he became a Brigadier
Brigadier
Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....
.
World War II
Second Australian Imperial Force
The Second Australian Imperial Force was the name given to the volunteer personnel of the Australian Army in World War II. Under the Defence Act , neither the part-time Militia nor the full-time Permanent Military Force could serve outside Australia or its territories unless they volunteered to...
's 6th Division. Later in 1940, Allen was in North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
, where his brigade fought at Bardia and Tobruk
Operation Compass
Operation Compass was the first major Allied military operation of the Western Desert Campaign during World War II. British and Commonwealth forces attacked Italian forces in western Egypt and eastern Libya in December 1940 to February 1941. The attack was a complete success...
. In March, Allen and the brigade left North Africa for the ill-fated Greek campaign, following which he was awarded the Greek War Cross
Greek War Cross
The War Cross is a military decoration of Greece, awarded for heroism in wartime to both Greeks and foreign allies. There have been two versions of the cross, the 1917 version covering World War I and the 1940 version the Second World War and the Greek Civil War.- 1917 version :- Establishment and...
.
He was then given command of the 7th Division, and commanded it in the invasion of Syria and Lebanon
Syria-Lebanon campaign
The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
, against Vichy French
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
forces. Allen was officially promoted to Major General
Major General (Australia)
Major General is a senior rank of the Australian Army, and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of Major General. It is the third-highest active rank of the Australian Army, and is considered to be equivalent to a two-star rank...
in August 1941.
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
, Allen returned to Australia in March 1942, and in August took charge of operations against the Japanese advance along the Kokoda Track
Kokoda Track campaign
The Kokoda Track campaign or Kokoda Trail campaign was part of the Pacific War of World War II. The campaign consisted of a series of battles fought between July and November 1942 between Japanese and Allied—primarily Australian—forces in what was then the Australian territory of Papua...
. Although he was successful, Allen nevertheless came under what many consider unfair criticism from the Allied commander in the South West Pacific Area, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
and the Allied land forces commander, the Australian General
General (Australia)
General 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....
Thomas Blamey
Thomas Blamey
Field Marshal Sir Thomas Albert Blamey GBE, KCB, CMG, DSO, ED was an Australian general of the First and Second World Wars, and the only Australian to date to attain the rank of field marshal....
, for moving too slowly in pursuit of the Japanese across the Owen Stanley Ranges. He was relieved of his command on 29 October 1942. Lesser appointments followed, but in October 1944, Blamey recommended Allen be made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE), although Allen was never appointed.
Later life
After the war Allen became a senior partner in a Sydney accountancy firm. He died on 25 January 1959 and was given a military funeral before being cremated. He was survived by his wife and two sons.Military awards
- Distinguished Service OrderDistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
; 1917 - Mentioned in Despatches; once in 1917 (World War I), and once in 1941 (World War II)
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire; 1941
- Companion of the Order of the Bath; 1941
- Croix de GuerreCroix de guerreThe Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
(France); 1919 - Greek War CrossGreek War CrossThe War Cross is a military decoration of Greece, awarded for heroism in wartime to both Greeks and foreign allies. There have been two versions of the cross, the 1917 version covering World War I and the 1940 version the Second World War and the Greek Civil War.- 1917 version :- Establishment and...
- First Class; 1942
See also
- Battle of DamourBattle of DamourThe Battle of Damour was the final major operation of the Australian forces during the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of World War II.-Background:In 1941, Damour was the French administrative capital...
- List of Australian Generals
- Kokoda Commander:The Life of Major-General ‘Tubby’ Allen by Stuart Braga Oxford University Press, Australia, 2004 ISBN 0-19-551638-9
External links
- AS Allen, Bio at www.generals.dk
- Major General Arthur Samuel 'Tubby' Allen, CB, CBE, DSO, VD, Biography at www.awm.gov.au
- Official Portrait being painted by William DargieWilliam DargieSir William Alexander Dargie CBE was an Australian painter, known especially for his portrait paintings. He holds the record for the most Archibald Prize wins; eight. He was an official Australian War Artist during World War II.- Biography :William Dargie was born in Footscray, Victoria, the first...
- Photo, March 1942
- A. J. Sweeting, 'Allen, Arthur Samuel (1894 - 1959)', Australian Dictionary of BiographyAustralian Dictionary of BiographyThe Australian Dictionary of Biography is a national, co-operative enterprise, founded and maintained by the Australian National University to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's history....
, Volume 13, Melbourne University Press, 1993, pp 32–33.