Murray William James Bourchier
Encyclopedia
Brigadier
Sir Murray William James Bourchier CMG DSO
VD
MLA
(4 April 1881 – 16 December 1937) was an Australian soldier and former Deputy Premier of Victoria
from April 1935 until June 1936.
. He was educated privately in Melbourne
and afterwards worked at Woodland Park.
from 1909 to 1914. At the outbreak of World War I
he was commissioned into the 4th Light Horse Regiment and left with the first contingent of the First Australian Imperial Force
. He served with the Regiment in the Gallipoli
, Egyptian, Sinai, Palestine and Syrian campaigns.
While on Gallipoli he was appointed temporary Captain on 1 July 1915 and adjutant of the 4th Light Horse Regiment on 7 September. He became the acting commander of "A" Squadron on 19 October 1915 and gained his substantive Captaincy on 22 November. He was promoted to Major on 20 January 1916. The recommendation for promotion noted that "he was always quite cool and collected, and this had a very good effect upon his men". He assumed full command of "A" Squadron on 1 February 1916.
Bourchier was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel
on 15 March 1917 and took command of the 4th Light Horse Regiment. On 31 October 1917 he led the 4th and 12th Regiments in the four-mile charge against Turkish positions at the Battle of Beersheba, capturing 15 of the 17 wells intact and taking over 700 prisoners. In a later report he summed up the effect of the attack:
He received the Distinguished Service Order
on 4 November 1917:
In September 1918 Bourchier again commanded a joint force of the 4th and 12th Regiments ("Bourchier's Force") in the final advance on Damascus
, capturing 12,000 Turks. He was awarded the Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George on 3 June 1919 for the following recommendation:
He took temporary command of 4th Light Horse Brigade in November-December 1918 while Brigadier William Grant was in temporary command of the ANZAC Mounted Division. During the war he was mentioned in dispatches
three times. The Regiment returned to Australia in June 1919.
. He remained an officer in the Australian Citizens Military Forces, becoming Colonel
in command of the 5th Cavalry Brigade in 1921 and Brigadier
in command of the 2nd Cavalry Division in 1931.
in 1920, representing the Victorian Farmers' Union in the electoral district of Goulburn Valley
. His maiden speech was an attack on the Lawson
government's neglect of ex-servicemen.
He was re-elected as a Country Party
candidate in 1921 and re-elected (unopposed) several times until his resignation in 1936. He was deputy leader of the Country Party in 1927-1930, leader in 1933-1935 and deputy leader again in 1935-1936. During his political career he served as Minister of Agriculture and Markets in the Allan
government and the Chief Secretary
, Minister of Labour and Deputy Premier of Victoria
in the early years of the Dunstan
government.
He resigned from Parliament in August 1936 and was appointed Victorian
Agent-General. While in this position he represented Victoria at the coronation of King George VI. He died in London from pernicious anaemia and cancer on 16 December 1937. He was knight
ed posthumously in January 1938.
He married Minona Francis Madden, daughter of politician Sir Frank Madden
, on 16 June 1921. They had a daughter and two sons.
is named after Lieutenant Colonel Bourchier. In the 1987 film The Lighthorsemen
and a 1993 episode of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
, both depicting the Battle of Beersheba, Bourchier was portrayed by Tony Bonner
.
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....
Sir Murray William James Bourchier CMG 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...
MLA
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
(4 April 1881 – 16 December 1937) was an Australian soldier and former Deputy Premier of Victoria
Deputy Premier of Victoria
The Deputy Premier of Victoria is the second-most senior officer in the Government of Victoria. The Deputy Premiership has been a ministerial portfolio since , and the Deputy Premier is appointed by the Governor on the advice of the Premier....
from April 1935 until June 1936.
Early life
Murray was the eldest son of Edward and Francis Bourchier, owners of the Woodland Park property near Strathmerton, VictoriaStrathmerton, Victoria
Strathmerton is a small country town in Victoria, Australia.It is located in the Shire of Moira Local Government Area on the Murray Valley Highway, about west of Cobram and previously known as the most northerly point in Victoria North of Melbourne at the start of the Goulburn Valley Highway...
. He was educated privately in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and afterwards worked at Woodland Park.
World War I
Bourchier commanded a CMF light horse troop at Numurkah, VictoriaNumurkah, Victoria
Numurkah is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Goulburn Valley Highway, north of Shepparton, in the Shire of Moira. At the 2006 census, Numurkah had a population of 4,643.- History :...
from 1909 to 1914. At the outbreak of 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...
he was commissioned into the 4th Light Horse Regiment and left with the first contingent of the First Australian Imperial Force
First 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...
. He served with the Regiment in the Gallipoli
Battle of Gallipoli
The Gallipoli Campaign, also known as the Dardanelles Campaign or the Battle of Gallipoli, took place at the peninsula of Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire between 25 April 1915 and 9 January 1916, during the First World War...
, Egyptian, Sinai, Palestine and Syrian campaigns.
While on Gallipoli he was appointed temporary Captain on 1 July 1915 and adjutant of the 4th Light Horse Regiment on 7 September. He became the acting commander of "A" Squadron on 19 October 1915 and gained his substantive Captaincy on 22 November. He was promoted to Major on 20 January 1916. The recommendation for promotion noted that "he was always quite cool and collected, and this had a very good effect upon his men". He assumed full command of "A" Squadron on 1 February 1916.
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...
on 15 March 1917 and took command of the 4th Light Horse Regiment. On 31 October 1917 he led the 4th and 12th Regiments in the four-mile charge against Turkish positions at the Battle of Beersheba, capturing 15 of the 17 wells intact and taking over 700 prisoners. In a later report he summed up the effect of the attack:
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...
on 4 November 1917:
In September 1918 Bourchier again commanded a joint force of the 4th and 12th Regiments ("Bourchier's Force") in the final advance on Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, capturing 12,000 Turks. He was awarded the Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George on 3 June 1919 for the following recommendation:
He took temporary command of 4th Light Horse Brigade in November-December 1918 while Brigadier William Grant was in temporary command of the ANZAC Mounted Division. During the war he was mentioned in dispatches
Mentioned in Dispatches
A soldier Mentioned in Despatches is one whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which is described the soldier's gallant or meritorious action in the face of the enemy.In a number of countries, a soldier's name must be mentioned in...
three times. The Regiment returned to Australia in June 1919.
Post war
After the war Bourchier returned to his farm near Strathmerton, VictoriaStrathmerton, Victoria
Strathmerton is a small country town in Victoria, Australia.It is located in the Shire of Moira Local Government Area on the Murray Valley Highway, about west of Cobram and previously known as the most northerly point in Victoria North of Melbourne at the start of the Goulburn Valley Highway...
. He remained an officer in the Australian Citizens Military Forces, becoming Colonel
Colonel
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 command of the 5th Cavalry Brigade in 1921 and 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....
in command of the 2nd Cavalry Division in 1931.
Political career
Bourchier was elected to the Victorian Legislative AssemblyVictorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
in 1920, representing the Victorian Farmers' Union in the electoral district of Goulburn Valley
Goulburn Valley
The Goulburn Valley is a region of Victoria, Australia. The region consists of those areas in the catchment of the Goulburn River and other nearby streams, and is part of the Murray-Darling Basin. The Goulburn Valley is bordered on the south by the Great Dividing Range and to the north by the...
. His maiden speech was an attack on the Lawson
Harry Lawson
Sir Harry Sutherland Wightman Lawson KCMG , Australian politician, was the 27th Premier of Victoria.Lawson was born in Dunolly, the son of a Presbyterian clergyman of Scottish descent. He was educated at a local school and then briefly Scotch College in Melbourne. He was a noted Australian rules...
government's neglect of ex-servicemen.
He was re-elected as a Country Party
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
candidate in 1921 and re-elected (unopposed) several times until his resignation in 1936. He was deputy leader of the Country Party in 1927-1930, leader in 1933-1935 and deputy leader again in 1935-1936. During his political career he served as Minister of Agriculture and Markets in the Allan
John Allan (Australian politician)
John Allan , Australian politician, was the 29th Premier of Victoria. He was born near Lancefield, where his father was a farmer of Scottish origin, and educated at state schools. He took up wheat and dairy farming at Wyuna and was director of a butter factory at Kyabram...
government and the Chief Secretary
Chief Secretary
The Chief Secretary is the title of a senior civil servant in members of the Commonwealth of Nations, and, historically, in the British Empire. Prior to the dissolution of the colonies, the Chief Secretary was the second most important official in a colony of the British Empire after the...
, Minister of Labour and Deputy Premier of Victoria
Deputy Premier of Victoria
The Deputy Premier of Victoria is the second-most senior officer in the Government of Victoria. The Deputy Premiership has been a ministerial portfolio since , and the Deputy Premier is appointed by the Governor on the advice of the Premier....
in the early years of the Dunstan
Albert Dunstan
Sir Albert Arthur Dunstan, KCMG was an Australian politician. A member of the Country Party , Dunstan was the 33rd Premier of Victoria. His term as Premier was the second-longest in the state's history, behind Sir Henry Bolte...
government.
He resigned from Parliament in August 1936 and was appointed Victorian
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
Agent-General. While in this position he represented Victoria at the coronation of King George VI. He died in London from pernicious anaemia and cancer on 16 December 1937. He was knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
ed posthumously in January 1938.
Personal life
Bourchier was of Irish Protestant descent. The Bourchier surname is of Anglo-Norman origin. He was also a Freemason.He married Minona Francis Madden, daughter of politician Sir Frank Madden
Frank Madden
Francis A. "Frank" Madden was a Major League Baseball catcher who played in two games for the Pittsburgh Rebels in . He collected one hit in two at bats, with one run batted in in his game career.-External links:...
, on 16 June 1921. They had a daughter and two sons.
Legacy
Bourchier Street in Shepparton, VictoriaShepparton, Victoria
Shepparton is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River in the north east of Victoria, Australia approximately north-east of Melbourne. It is the fifth largest city in Victoria, Australia. The estimated population of Shepparton's statistical area is 48,926.It began as a sheep station...
is named after Lieutenant Colonel Bourchier. In the 1987 film The Lighthorsemen
The Lighthorsemen (film)
The Lighthorsemen is a 1987 Australian feature film about the men of a World War I light horse unit involved in the 1917 Battle of Beersheeba...
and a 1993 episode of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 4, 1992, to July 24, 1993. The series explores the childhood and youth of the fictional character Indiana Jones and primarily stars Sean Patrick Flanery and Corey Carrier as the title character, with...
, both depicting the Battle of Beersheba, Bourchier was portrayed by Tony Bonner
Tony Bonner
Tony Bonner is an Australian television, film and stage actor and singer. Bonner became famous in the 1960s children's television series Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, later moving on to lead roles in the dramas Cop Shop and Skyways.-Early life:Bonner was born in Manly, a northern beach suburb of Sydney...
.
External links
- Sir Murray William James Bourchier at the 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....
- Honours and awards (gazetted) - Australian War Memorial