Admiral

Admiral (Australia)

Admiral is the highest active rank of the Royal Australian Navy and was created as a direct equivalent of the British Navy rank of Admiral. It is a four-star rank. Since World War II, in general, the only time the rank is held is when the Chief of the Defence Force is a Navy officer.Admiral is a...

 Christopher Alexander "Chris" Barrie AC (born 29 May 1945) is a retired senior officer of the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

, who served as Chief of the Defence Force

Chief of the Defence Force (Australia)

Chief of the Defence Force is the most senior appointment in the Australian Defence Force . The CDF commands the ADF under the direction of the Minister of Defence, in a coequal arrangement with the Secretary of Defence, the most senior public servant in the Department of Defence.The position is a...

 from 4 July 1998 to 3 July 2002.

Naval career

Born 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...

, Barrie was educated at North Sydney Boys High School

North Sydney Boys High School

North Sydney Boys High School is an academically selective, public high school for boys, located at Crows Nest in Sydney, Australia.- History :...

 and joined the Royal Australian Naval College in 1961. During his early Naval training, he completed service on HMAS Anzac

HMAS Anzac (D59)

HMAS Anzac was a Battle class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy . Named after the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, the destroyer was commissioned in 1951. The ship served on two tours of duty during the Korean War, and attempts to distinguish herself from British ships led to the...

, Vampire

HMAS Vampire (D11)

HMAS Vampire was the third of three Australian-built Daring class destroyers serving in the Royal Australian Navy . One of the first all-welded ships built in Australia, she was constructed at Cockatoo Island Dockyard between 1952 and 1959, and was commissioned into the RAN a day after...

 and Melbourne, which included service in the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation

Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation

Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation during 1962–1966 was Indonesia’s political and armed opposition to the creation of Malaysia. It is also known by its Indonesian/Malay name Konfrontasi...

, and a 23 day tour of duty in Vietnam

Vietnam

Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

. Postings to the Britannia Royal Naval College

Britannia Royal Naval College

Britannia Royal Naval College is the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy, located on a hill overlooking Dartmouth, Devon, England. While Royal Naval officer training has taken place in the town since 1863, the buildings which are seen today were only finished in 1905, and...

 at Dartmouth and HMS Excellent followed.

Barrie served at sea as part of the commissioning crew of HMAS Brisbane, which included a seven month tour of duty in Vietnam

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

, during 1969.

He also served as Commanding Officer HMAS Buccaneer, Operations and Navigating Officer on HMS Eastbourne

HMS Eastbourne (F73)

HMS Eastbourne was a Whitby-class or Type 12 anti-submarine frigate of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom.- Harbour training ship :In 1972, Eastbourne replaced as the 'afloat' training ship for the artificer apprentices at HMS Caledonia...

, HMAS Perth and HMAS Duchess

HMAS Duchess (D154)

HMAS Duchess was a Daring-class destroyer that served in the Royal Navy as HMS Duchess from 1952 to 1964, and in the Royal Australian Navy from 1964 to 1980....

, Executive Officer on HMAS Vampire

HMAS Vampire (D11)

HMAS Vampire was the third of three Australian-built Daring class destroyers serving in the Royal Australian Navy . One of the first all-welded ships built in Australia, she was constructed at Cockatoo Island Dockyard between 1952 and 1959, and was commissioned into the RAN a day after...

 and later as Commanding Officer HMAS Stuart.

In 1990-1991, Barrie held an appointment as Defence Adviser, New Delhi

New Delhi

New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 and following this post, he served as Director RAN Surface Warfare School and Commanding Officer HMAS Watson

HMAS Watson

HMAS Watson is a Royal Australian Navy base located on Sydney Harbour at South Head, near Watsons Bay, New South Wales. Commissioned in 1945 , the base served as the RAN's radar training school...

; Deputy Maritime Commander and Chief of Staff at Maritime Headquarters in Sydney; Deputy Chief of Naval Staff; and Vice Chief of the Defence Force in 1997-1998.

Barrie was promoted to Admiral

Admiral (Australia)

Admiral is the highest active rank of the Royal Australian Navy and was created as a direct equivalent of the British Navy rank of Admiral. It is a four-star rank. Since World War II, in general, the only time the rank is held is when the Chief of the Defence Force is a Navy officer.Admiral is a...

, and assumed the post of Chief of the Defence Force, on 4 July 1998. He held this post until his retirement in 2002; he was succeeded by 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....

 Peter Cosgrove

Peter Cosgrove

General Peter John Cosgrove AC, MC is a retired Australian Army officer. He was the Chief of the Defence Force from 3 July 2002 to 3 July 2005, when he retired from active service...

.

Through part-time study, Barrie obtained a Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in 1983, with a special focus on International Relations and Politics, and was awarded a Master of Business Administration

Master of Business Administration

The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...

 degree in 1996 by Deakin University

Deakin University

Deakin University is an Australian public university with nearly 40,000 higher education students in 2010. It receives more than A$600 million in operating revenue annually, and controls more than A$1.3 billion in assets. It received more than A$35 million in research income in 2009 and had 835...

.

As the Chief of the Defence Force, Admiral Barrie became involved in the "Children Overboard Affair

Children overboard affair

The Children Overboard affair was an Australian political controversy involving public allegations by Howard government ministers in October 2001, in the lead-up to a federal election, that sea-faring asylum seekers had thrown children overboard in a presumed ploy to secure rescue and passage to...

" of 2001, a high-level political controversy which occurred during the Australian federal election campaign. Barrie was the last Australian Government official to publicly support Prime Minister John Howard

John Howard

John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....

's assertion that refugees had thrown their children overboard from their sinking vessel.

Awards

	Companion of the Order of Australia (AC)	(2001)Citation: For eminent service to the Australian Defence Force as Chief of the Defence Force.
	Officer of the Order of Australia (AO)	(1998)Citation: For distinguished service to the Australian Defence Force as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff and Vice Chief of the Defence Force.
	Member of the Order of Australia (AM)	(1994)Citation: In recognition of service to the Royal Australian Navy, particularly as Deputy Maritime Commander and Chief of Staff, Maritime HQ.
	Australian Active Service Medal 1945-1975 Australian Active Service Medal 1945-1975 The Australian Active Service Medal 1945–1975 recognises the service of Australian Defence Force and certain other persons in prescribed warlike operations in the period after World War II, and prior to February 1975...
	General Service Medal General Service Medal (1962) The General Service Medal , was introduced in 1962 to combine the General Service Medal , as awarded to the Army and RAF, and the Naval General Service Medal...
	Vietnam Medal Vietnam Medal The Vietnam Medal was a joint Australian and New Zealand campaign medal awarded for service in the Vietnam War.The medal was jointly developed by Australia and New Zealand, although there were separate Royal authorisation warrants for each country....
	Australian Service Medal 1945-1975 Australian Service Medal 1945-1975 The Australian Service Medal 1945–1975 recognises service in peacekeeping or non-warlike operations in the 30-year period following World War II, and prior to February 1975. The medal was established on 22 February 1995...
	Centenary Medal Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the Centenary of Federation of Australia and to honour people who have made a contribution to Australian society or government...	(2001)Citation: For service to Australian society as Chief of the Australian Defence Force.
	Defence Force Service Medal Defence Force Service Medal The Defence Force Service Medal is an Australian Military award given for long service by permanent members of the Australian Defence Force...  with Federation Star	(40–44 years service)
	National Medal National Medal National Medal can refer to:* National Medal * National Medal of Arts* National Humanities Medal* National Medal of Science* National Medal of Technology and Innovation...	(1978)
	Australian Defence Medal Australian Defence Medal The Australian Defence Medal is an Australian military decoration which recognises current and former Australian Defence Force personnel who completed an initial enlistment period, or four years service...
	Vietnam Campaign Medal Vietnam Campaign Medal The Vietnam Campaign Medal is a military recognition awarded by the Republic of Vietnam, , to any member of the United States, Australian, New Zealand and allied military forces serving six months or more in support of Republic of Vietnam military operations.Established in 1966, the decoration is...  (Republic of Vietnam South Vietnam South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon... )