Victor Windeyer
Encyclopedia
Major General
Sir William John Victor Windeyer KBE CB DSO and Bar
PC KC (28 July 190023 November 1987) Australia
n judge, soldier and educator, was a Justice of the High Court of Australia
.
Windeyer was born in Sydney
, into a legal family: his father, William Archibald Windeyer, was a Sydney solicitor
, his uncle, Richard Windeyer
, was a King's Counsel, his grandfather, William Charles Windeyer
, was twice Attorney-General of New South Wales and Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales
, and his great-grandfather, Sir Richard Windeyer
, was a barrister
and member of the first elected Parliament of New South Wales
, sitting in the New South Wales Legislative Council
. Windeyer studied at Sydney Grammar School
and later at the University of Sydney
, from where he graduated with a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws in 1922. He also won the university's Medal in History.
In 1925, Windeyer was admitted to the New South Wales Bar Association. From 1929 to 1940, he lectured at the University of Sydney, teaching equity and commercial law
, and until 1936, legal history. He was also Deputy-Chancellor of the university from 1955 to 1958. In 1944 he had been created a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
, and in 1949 he was made a King's Counsel. In 1953 he was made a Commander of the Order of the Bath
.
His military career began in 1918, although he did not see active service during World War I
. In 1922 he was commissioned
as a lieutenant
in the Militia and attached to the Sydney University Scouts
, being promoted to the rank of captain two years later. In 1929 he was promoted to major
and in 1937, upon being promoted to lieutenant colonel
he took command of the Sydney University Regiment
. In 1940, following the outbreak of World War II
, Windeyer volunteered for overseas service and joined the Second Australian Imperial Force
. Holding the rank of lieutenant colonel, he was tasked with raising and commanding the 2/48th Australian Infantry Battalion
, part of the Australian 9th Division
. The 9th Division fought in the North African Campaign
, including the Siege of Tobruk
, the New Guinea Campaign
and the Borneo Campaign
. He was later promoted to brigadier
, and commanded the 20th Australian Infantry Brigade
, during which time he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
. Following the war, Windeyer returned to the Citizens Military Force and from 1950 to 1952 he commanded the Australian 2nd Division after being promoted to major general
.
After returning to Australia, Windeyer continued to practise as a barrister and was appointed to the bench of the High Court on 8 September 1958. Later that year he was created a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE). He was elevated to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
in 1963. He sat on the bench of the High Court until his retirement on 29 February 1972.
Windeyer died in 1987. His son, William Victor Windeyer, is a Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales.
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...
Sir William John Victor Windeyer KBE CB DSO and Bar
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...
PC KC (28 July 190023 November 1987) 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...
n judge, soldier and educator, was a Justice of the High Court of Australia
High Court of Australia
The High Court of Australia is the supreme court in the Australian court hierarchy and the final court of appeal in Australia. It has both original and appellate jurisdiction, has the power of judicial review over laws passed by the Parliament of Australia and the parliaments of the States, and...
.
Windeyer was 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...
, into a legal family: his father, William Archibald Windeyer, was a Sydney solicitor
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
, his uncle, Richard Windeyer
Richard Windeyer
Richard Windeyer was a journalist, barrister and Australian politician.-Early life:Richard Windeyer was born in London, the eldest of nine children...
, was a King's Counsel, his grandfather, William Charles Windeyer
William Charles Windeyer
Sir William Charles Windeyer was an Australian politician and judge.As a New South Wales politician he was responsible for the creation of Belmore Park , Lang Park , Observatory Park Sir William Charles Windeyer (29 September 1834 – 11 September 1897) was an Australian politician and judge.As a...
, was twice Attorney-General of New South Wales and Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales
Supreme Court of New South Wales
The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales...
, and his great-grandfather, Sir Richard Windeyer
Richard Windeyer
Richard Windeyer was a journalist, barrister and Australian politician.-Early life:Richard Windeyer was born in London, the eldest of nine children...
, was a barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
and member of the first elected Parliament of New South Wales
Parliament of New South Wales
The Parliament of New South Wales, located in Parliament House on Macquarie Street, Sydney, is the main legislative body in the Australian state of New South Wales . It is a bicameral parliament elected by the people of the state in general elections. The parliament shares law making powers with...
, sitting in the New South Wales Legislative Council
New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
. Windeyer studied at Sydney Grammar School
Sydney Grammar School
Sydney Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, selective, day school for boys, located in Darlinghurst, Edgecliff and St Ives, all suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
and later at the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
, from where he graduated with a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws in 1922. He also won the university's Medal in History.
In 1925, Windeyer was admitted to the New South Wales Bar Association. From 1929 to 1940, he lectured at the University of Sydney, teaching equity and commercial law
Commercial law
Commercial law is the body of law that governs business and commercial transactions...
, and until 1936, legal history. He was also Deputy-Chancellor of the university from 1955 to 1958. In 1944 he had been created a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
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...
, and in 1949 he was made a King's Counsel. In 1953 he was made a Commander of the Order of the Bath
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...
.
His military career began in 1918, although he did not see active service during 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...
. In 1922 he was commissioned
Officer (armed forces)
An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
as a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in the Militia and attached to the Sydney University Scouts
Sydney University Regiment
Sydney University Regiment is an officer training regiment of the Australian Army Reserve. It can trace its lineage back to 1900 when the University Volunteer Rifle Corps was raised as a unit of the colonial New South Wales Defence Force. Over time this unit has undergone a number of name and role...
, being promoted to the rank of captain two years later. In 1929 he was promoted 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. ...
and in 1937, upon being promoted to 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...
he took command of the Sydney University Regiment
Sydney University Regiment
Sydney University Regiment is an officer training regiment of the Australian Army Reserve. It can trace its lineage back to 1900 when the University Volunteer Rifle Corps was raised as a unit of the colonial New South Wales Defence Force. Over time this unit has undergone a number of name and role...
. In 1940, following the outbreak of 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...
, Windeyer volunteered for overseas service and joined the Second Australian Imperial Force
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...
. Holding the rank of lieutenant colonel, he was tasked with raising and commanding the 2/48th Australian Infantry Battalion
2/48th Battalion (Australia)
The 2/48th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army which served during the Second World War. Raised in Adelaide in South Australia in August 1940, the battalion formed part of the 26th Brigade and was initially assigned to the 7th Division, although it was later transferred to...
, part of the Australian 9th Division
Australian 9th Division
The 9th Division was a division of the Australian Army that served during World War II. It was the fourth division of the Second Australian Imperial Force and was formed in the United Kingdom in late 1940 from infantry brigades and support units which had been previously raised in Australia and...
. The 9th Division fought in the North African Campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
, including the Siege of Tobruk
Siege of Tobruk
The siege of Tobruk was a confrontation that lasted 240 days between Axis and Allied forces in North Africa during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War...
, the 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:...
and the Borneo Campaign
Borneo campaign (1945)
The Borneo Campaign of 1945 was the last major Allied campaign in the South West Pacific Area, during World War II. In a series of amphibious assaults between 1 May and 21 July, the Australian I Corps, under General Leslie Morshead, attacked Japanese forces occupying the island. Allied naval and...
. He was later promoted to 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....
, and commanded the 20th Australian Infantry Brigade
20th Brigade (Australia)
The 20th Brigade was a brigade-sized infantry unit of the Australian Army. The brigade was raised for service during the World War II on 7 May 1940 as part of the 7th Division. The brigade was transferred to the 9th Division in 1941...
, during which time he was awarded 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...
. Following the war, Windeyer returned to the Citizens Military Force and from 1950 to 1952 he commanded the Australian 2nd Division after being promoted to major general
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
.
After returning to Australia, Windeyer continued to practise as a barrister and was appointed to the bench of the High Court on 8 September 1958. Later that year he was created a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE). He was elevated to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. Established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King in Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is one of the highest courts in the United...
in 1963. He sat on the bench of the High Court until his retirement on 29 February 1972.
Windeyer died in 1987. His son, William Victor Windeyer, is a Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales.