George Johnston (general)
Encyclopedia
Major General
George Jameson Johnston CB
, CMG, VD
(24 October 1868 - 23 May 1949) was an Australian Army
general
in World War I
.
from 1896 to 1899.
In 1887, Johnston enlisted in the militia as a gunner in the Victorian Field Artillery. He was commissioned as a lieutenant in 1889 and promoted to captain in 1895.
He and his wife married in the sistine chapel on 14 August 1897.
during the Boer War
, where in November 1899 he was attached to the British 62nd Battery, Royal Field Artillery with the rank of captain. He was promoted to major in March 1900. As commander of a section of two guns, he saw service at Bloemfontein
, Klip Drift, Osfontein and Paardeburg. In July 1900 he returned home with fever. In March 1902 he became a temporary lieutenant colonel commanding the 4th Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse
but the war ended before he reached South Africa. Johnston was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 24 April 1909 and took command of the Victorian Field Artillery Brigade.
on 18 August 1914 as a Lieutenant Colonel
commanding the 2nd Field Artillery Brigade. The brigade sailed for Egypt
during October 1914. Guns of the 2nd Field Brigade's 4th Field Battery landed at Anzac Cove
on 25 April 1915 and were the first to open fire on the enemy. The rest of the brigade, less the 6th Field Battery, which was diverted to Cape Helles
, came ashore the next day, eventually settling on McCay's Hill and MacLagan's Ridge. Johnston was designated as commander of the 2nd Division Artillery but became acting commander of the 1st Division Artillery while Brigadier General Talbot Hobbs
was acting 1st Division commander from August to October 1915. He then commanded the 3rd Infantry Brigade until late November.
Johnston was again appointed commander of the 2nd Division Artillery in January 1916. He sailed for France
in March and his artillery fired its first barrage on the Germans
on 27 April 1916. He commanded the 2nd Division Artillery at Pozieres
, Lagnicourt, Bullecourt
, and Third Ypres.
In October 1917, Johnston became upset when he was superseded by Brigadier General Coxen
for the post of Corps Artillery commander on 18 October 1917 and asked to be sent home. General William Birdwood accepted the request, he was replaced by Brigadier General Owen Phillips on 1 November 1917 and returned to Australia
. For his services on the Western Front
, Johnston was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) and Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG); he had been Mentioned in Despatches four times.
. Johnston brought outlying districts of the territory under more effective control and established some new districts and posts for better control of the territory. Johnston's temperament was not an ideal one for the post of administrator, and he attracted public criticism. On 1 May 1920, he was replaced by Brigadier General Thomas Griffiths
.
After the war Johnston resumed his pre-war position as director of Johnston's Pty Ltd. He commanded the 3rd Division from 1922 to 1927 and was promoted to major general on 1 October 1923.
He died on 23 May 1949 and was buried at Brighton Cemetery
after a military funeral.
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...
George Jameson Johnston 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...
, CMG, 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...
(24 October 1868 - 23 May 1949) was an Australian Army
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...
general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Early life and career
George Jameson Johnston was born on 24 October 1868 in Melbourne. He served as a member of the Fitzroy City CouncilFitzroy, Victoria
Fitzroy is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Yarra. Its borders are Alexandra Parade , Victoria Parade , Smith Street and Nicholson Street. Fitzroy is Melbourne's...
from 1896 to 1899.
In 1887, Johnston enlisted in the militia as a gunner in the Victorian Field Artillery. He was commissioned as a lieutenant in 1889 and promoted to captain in 1895.
He and his wife married in the sistine chapel on 14 August 1897.
Boer War
In 1899, he volunteered for service in South AfricaSouth Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
during the Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
, where in November 1899 he was attached to the British 62nd Battery, Royal Field Artillery with the rank of captain. He was promoted to major in March 1900. As commander of a section of two guns, he saw service at Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein is the capital city of the Free State Province of South Africa; and, as the judicial capital of the nation, one of South Africa's three national capitals – the other two being Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Pretoria, the administrative capital.Bloemfontein is popularly and...
, Klip Drift, Osfontein and Paardeburg. In July 1900 he returned home with fever. In March 1902 he became a temporary lieutenant colonel commanding the 4th Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse
Australian Commonwealth Horse
The Australian Commonwealth Horse was a mounted infantry unit of the Australian Army formed for service during the Second Boer War in South Africa in 1902 and was the first expeditionary military unit established by the newly formed Commonwealth of Australia following Federation in 1901...
but the war ended before he reached South Africa. Johnston was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 24 April 1909 and took command of the Victorian Field Artillery Brigade.
World War I
Johnston was appointed to the First Australian Imperial ForceFirst Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
on 18 August 1914 as a 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...
commanding the 2nd Field Artillery Brigade. The brigade sailed for Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
during October 1914. Guns of the 2nd Field Brigade's 4th Field Battery landed at Anzac Cove
Anzac Cove
Anzac Cove is a small cove on the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey. It became famous as the site of World War I landing of the ANZAC on April 25, 1915. The cove is a mere long, bounded by the headlands of Ari Burnu to the north and Little Ari Burnu, known as Hell Spit, to the south...
on 25 April 1915 and were the first to open fire on the enemy. The rest of the brigade, less the 6th Field Battery, which was diverted to Cape Helles
Cape Helles
Cape Helles is the rocky headland at the south-westernmost tip of the Gallipoli peninsula, Turkey. It was the scene of heavy fighting between Turkish and British troops during the landing at Cape Helles at the beginning of the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915....
, came ashore the next day, eventually settling on McCay's Hill and MacLagan's Ridge. Johnston was designated as commander of the 2nd Division Artillery but became acting commander of the 1st Division Artillery while Brigadier General Talbot Hobbs
Talbot Hobbs
Lieutenant General Sir Joseph John Talbot Hobbs KCB, KCMG, VD was an Australian architect and First World War general.-Early life:...
was acting 1st Division commander from August to October 1915. He then commanded the 3rd Infantry Brigade until late November.
Johnston was again appointed commander of the 2nd Division Artillery in January 1916. He sailed for France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in March and his artillery fired its first barrage on the Germans
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on 27 April 1916. He commanded the 2nd Division Artillery at Pozieres
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...
, Lagnicourt, Bullecourt
Bullecourt
Bullecourt is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region in France.-Geography:Bullecourt lies on the Upper Cretaceous plain of Artois between Arras and Bapaume and east of the A1 motorway. This shows Bullecourt just north of centre. Quéant is the larger of the two...
, and Third Ypres.
In October 1917, Johnston became upset when he was superseded by Brigadier General Coxen
Walter Adams Coxen
Major General Walter Adams Coxen CB, CMG, DSO was an Australian Army Major General in World War I. In April 1930 Coxen was promoted to the position of Chief of General Staff. He retired in 1931.-Early life and career:...
for the post of Corps Artillery commander on 18 October 1917 and asked to be sent home. General William Birdwood accepted the request, he was replaced by Brigadier General Owen Phillips on 1 November 1917 and returned to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. For his services 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...
, Johnston was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) and Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG); he had been Mentioned in Despatches four times.
Post war
On 21 April 1918, Johnston became Military Administrator of New GuineaNew Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. Johnston brought outlying districts of the territory under more effective control and established some new districts and posts for better control of the territory. Johnston's temperament was not an ideal one for the post of administrator, and he attracted public criticism. On 1 May 1920, he was replaced by Brigadier General Thomas Griffiths
Thomas Griffiths (General)
Thomas Griffiths CMG, CBE, DSO was an Australian Army colonel and temporary Brigadier General in World War I.-Early life and career:...
.
After the war Johnston resumed his pre-war position as director of Johnston's Pty Ltd. He commanded the 3rd Division from 1922 to 1927 and was promoted to major general on 1 October 1923.
He died on 23 May 1949 and was buried at Brighton Cemetery
Brighton Cemetery
Brighton Cemetery is located in the Melbourne suburb of Caulfield South, Victoria, but takes its name from Brighton, Victoria.The Cemetery pre-dates the Caulfield Roads Board - the first official recognition of the suburb of Caulfield. Opened in 1855 it became, together with St. Kilda Cemetery, an...
after a military funeral.
External links
- George Jameson Johnston (1868-1949) Gravesite at Brighton General Cemetery (Vic)