Eric Woodward
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General (Australia)
Lieutenant general is the second-highest active rank of the Australian Army and was created as a direct equivalent of the British military rank of lieutenant general. It is also considered a three-star rank....

 Sir Eric Winslow Woodward KCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....

, KCVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...

, 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...

 (21 July 189929 December 1967) was an Australian military officer and Viceroy. Following long service in the Australian Army, including terms as Deputy Chief of the General Staff and General Officer Commanding Eastern Command, he was appointed as the Governor of New South Wales from 1957 to 1965, thus becoming the first New South Wales-born Governor of the state.

Early life

Woodward was born in Hay, New South Wales
Hay, New South Wales
Hay is a town in the western Riverina region of south western New South Wales , Australia.  It is the administrative centre of Hay Shire Local Government Area and the centre of a prosperous and productive agricultural district on the wide Hay Plains....

 in July 1899, the third son of Victorian-born parents Albert William Woodward, a cattle station manager, and his wife Marie Woodward, née Reid. He and attended Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding grammar school for boys, in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia....

. At school he did well academically, becoming Captain of the swimming team and playing in the First XV Rugby Team. However, due to his family's financial concerns, he was unable to attend university. Therefore, in 1917 he entered the Royal Military College, Duntroon
Royal Military College, Duntroon
The Royal Military College, Duntroon is the Australian Army's officer training establishment. It was founded at Duntroon, in the Australian Capital Territory, in 1911 and is situated on picturesque grounds at the foot of Mount Pleasant near Lake Burley Griffin, close to the Department of Defence...

. He graduated and was commissioned a Lieutenant on 16 December 1920. Woodward first served twelve months with the 7th Queen's Own Hussars
7th Queen's Own Hussars
The 7th Queen's Own Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first formed in 1690. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated into The Queen's Own Hussars in 1958....

 in India from 1921-1922.

Following this service he returned to Australia and, in 1925, he transferred to the Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...

 and qualified as a pilot at No. 1 Flying Training School in Point Cook, Victoria
Point Cook, Victoria
Point Cook is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 25 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Wyndham. At the 2006 Census, Point Cook had a population of 14,162, now it is estimated that the population of Point Cook is 32,167...

. On 7 February 1927, 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...

, he married his cousin Amy Weller. Despite his apparent success as a pilot, Woodward reverted to the army service in 1928. In December 1928, he was promoted to Captain and became Adjutant and Quartermaster of the 19th Light Horse Regiment
4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse
The 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse is a cavalry regiment of the Australian Army. The regiment in its current composition was formed in 1948 when the Citizens Military Force was re-raised after the completion of the demoblisation process following the end of the Second World War and it was...

 (1928-1929), and of the 4th Light Horse Regiment
4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse
The 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse is a cavalry regiment of the Australian Army. The regiment in its current composition was formed in 1948 when the Citizens Military Force was re-raised after the completion of the demoblisation process following the end of the Second World War and it was...

 (1929-1934) before being posted to the Directorate of Military Training, Melbourne. In January 1937 he was sent to the Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army from 1802 to 1997, with periods of closure during major wars. In 1997 it was merged into the new Joint Services Command and Staff College.-Origins:...

 in England.

Second World War

Following the outbreak of the Second World War
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...

 in 1939, he 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...

 as Deputy Assistant Quartermaster-General for the 6th Division AIF, and left for the Middle East in April 1940. In the Middle East he gained distinction during the North Africa campaign from December 1940 to January 1941 and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) on 8 July 1941.Citation: ARMY - Distinguished service in the Middle East. He served in the Greece Campaign
Battle of Greece
The Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...

 from March to April 1941 as a Lieutenant-Colonel on General Sir Thomas Blamey's
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....

 staff and later served in the I Corps in the Syrian campaign
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...

. In May 1942 he was posted to the 9th Division AIF. He fought in the Battle of El Alamein
Battle of El Alamein
There were two battles of El Alamein in World War II, both fought in 1942. The Battles occurred in Egypt in and around an area named after a railway stop called El Alamein at .* First Battle of El Alamein – 1–27 July 1942...

 and 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...

 on 11 February 1943.Citation: ARMY - 6 Division Cavalry Commando. He was twice mentioned in dispatches for his work in the Middle East.

Arriving back in Australia in February 1943, in March Woodward was promoted to the rank of 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 was posted to the headquarters of the Northern Territory Force
Northern Territory Force
Northern Territory Force was an Australian Army force responsible for protecting the Northern Territory during World War II. Most units assigned to the Northern Territory Force were based near Darwin and were responsible for defending the important naval and air bases in and around the town against...

 until December 1943. He then served in various administrative positions until the end of the war. From July 1945 to March 1946 he was appointed Deputy Adjutant and Quartermaster-General, at headquarters on Morotai
Battle of Morotai
The Battle of Morotai, part of the Pacific War, began on September 15, 1944, and continued until the war ended in August 1945. The fighting began when United States and Australian forces landed on the south-west corner of Morotai, a small island in the Netherlands East Indies , which the Allies...

.

Post-war career

In 1948 he attended the Imperial Defence College and remained in London as Australian army representative for the High Commission of Australia in London. In December 1949 he was at Army Headquarters in Melbourne and implemented the new National Service scheme, and fought for improvements in soldiers' pay and conditions. In 1950 and 1951 he reported directly to Prime Minister Robert Menzies
Robert Menzies
Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....

 as head of a special staff which planned counter-measures in the event of the government's attempt to ban the Communist Party of Australia
Communist Party of Australia
The Communist Party of Australia was founded in 1920 and dissolved in 1991; it was succeeded by the Socialist Party of Australia, which then renamed itself, becoming the current Communist Party of Australia. The CPA achieved its greatest political strength in the 1940s and faced an attempted...

 leading to industrial unrest. On 20 February 1951 Woodward was made Deputy Chief of the General Staff, but requested not be put forward as a candidate for Chief of the General Staff. In 1952 he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). Promoted to Lieutenant-General and General Officer Commanding Eastern Command in December 1953, he was elevated to the same role his great-grandfather Charles William Wall had held from 1823 to 1825. He was further appointed as a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in 1956.Citation: General Officer Commanding Eastern Command. Woodward was further promoted as a Lieutenant General in December 1953.

Governor of New South Wales

When Sir John Northcott's
John Northcott
Lieutenant General Sir John Northcott KCMG, KCVO, CB was an Australian Army general who served as Chief of the General Staff during World War II, and commanded the British Commonwealth Occupation Force in the Occupation of Japan...

 term as Governor of New South Wales drew to a close, the Premier, Joseph Cahill
Joseph Cahill
John Joseph Cahill was Premier of New South Wales in Australia from 1952 to 1959. He is best remembered as the Premier who approved construction on the Sydney Opera House, and for his work increasing the authority of local government in the state.-Early years:Joe Cahill, as he was popularly known,...

, sought another Australian-born military officer to succeed him and chose Woodward, who assumed office on 1 August 1957. The thirty-first governor of New South Wales, he was the first to have been born in the state. As Governor he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1958 and a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in 1963.Citation: Governor of New South Wales 1957-65. For part of his term in office, as the longest-serving Governor, he acted as Administrator of the Commonwealth of Australia from 16 June to 30 August 1964 in the absence of the Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General of Australia
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...

, The Viscount De L'Isle
William Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle
William Philip Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle and 6th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley VC KG GCMG GCVO KStJ PC , was the 15th Governor-General of Australia and the final non-Australian to hold the office...

.

In recognition of his service as Governor, he was awarded honorary doctorates by various universities, including an honorary Doctor of Science (Hon.DSc) from the University of New South Wales
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

 (1958), an honorary Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...

 (Hon.DLitt) on 29 April 1959 by 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...

. and New England
University of New England (Australia)
The University of New England is an Australian public university with approximately 18,000 higher education students. Its original and main campus is located in the city of Armidale in northern New South Wales....

 (1961). On 30 June 1961, he officially opened Vaucluse Boys' High School
Vaucluse High School
Vaucluse High School , known from 1960-1981 as Vaucluse Boys' High School , is a former high school in the eastern Sydney suburb of Vaucluse, New South Wales, Australia...

. On 24 October 1964, he officially opened The Forest High School and laid the foundation for International House, University of New South Wales
International House, University of New South Wales
International House UNSW is a multi-cultural college located in the lower campus of the University of New South Wales, founded in 1968. The College offers accommodation and a supportive environment in order to assist students to reach their full intellectual and academic potential during their...

 on 13 February 1965. Woodward retired on 31 July 1965 and he and his wife moved to Wahroonga
Wahroonga, New South Wales
Wahroonga is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Wahroonga is located 22 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Council and Hornsby Shire....

.

Death and legacy

Woodward died on 29 December 1967 at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital
Royal Prince Alfred Hospital
The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital is a major public teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Missenden Road in Camperdown...

, Camperdown
Camperdown, New South Wales
Camperdown is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Camperdown is located 4 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Inner West region...

 and was given a state funeral with full military honours. Lady Woodward survived him, as did their daughter and son, Sir Edward Woodward, who became a Judge of the Federal Court of Australia
Federal Court of Australia
The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court of record which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law , along with some summary criminal matters. Cases are heard at first instance by single Judges...

. The Sir Eric Woodward Memorial School for children with intellectual and physical disabilities was established in 1971 and named in his honour. In 1970, the Public Transport Commission
Sydney Ferries
Sydney Ferries is an agency of the New South Wales Government Department of Transport, providing ferry services on Sydney Harbour and the Parramatta River in Sydney, Australia....

 in charge of Sydney Ferries commissioned a new ship for the "Lady class" of ferries. Launched at the New South Wales State Dockyard
State Dockyard, Newcastle, New South Wales
The State Dockyard at Dykes Point, Newcastle was built by the New South Wales Government from 1938 until 1941 and opened in 1942 during World War II. The dockyard was constructed using much of the plant and buildings from the former Walsh Island Dockyard and Engineering Works which had ceased...

 in Newcastle in 1970, it was named the "Lady Woodward" to commemorate their service in office. The Lady Woodward was sold in 1993 and now operates as a privately owned craft in Tin Can Bay, Queensland
Tin Can Bay, Queensland
Tin Can Bay is a town in south east Queensland, Australia. The seaside town is located on a deep but narrow sheltered inlet in the Gympie Local Government Area, 218 kilometres north of the state capital, Brisbane...

.

Honours









Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....

 (KCMG)
1958
Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...

 (KCVO)
1963
Companion 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...

 (CB)
1956
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...

 (CBE)
1952
Officer 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...

 (OBE)
1941
Companion of 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...

 (DSO)
1943
Knight of Justice of the Venerable Order of St John of Jerusalem (KStJ) 1958
1939–45 Star 
Africa Star
Africa Star
The Africa Star was a campaign medal of the British Commonwealth, awarded for service in the Second World War.The Star was awarded for a minimum of one day service in an operational area of North Africa between 10 June 1940 and 12 May 1943...

 
MID
Pacific Star
Pacific Star
The Pacific Star was a campaign medal of the British Commonwealth, awarded for service in World War II. It was also awarded to certain foreign servicemen, such as Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz of the United States.-Entitlement:...

 
Defence Medal 
War Medal 1939–1945
War Medal 1939–1945
The War Medal 1939–1945 was a British decoration awarded to those who had served in the Armed Forces or Merchant Navy full-time for at least 28 days between 3 September 1939 and 2 September 1945. In the Merchant Navy, the 28 days must have been served at sea...

 
MID
Australia Service Medal 1939-45
Australia Service Medal 1939-45
The Australia Service Medal 1939-45 recognises service by Australia's armed forces, Mercantile Marine and Volunteer Defence Corps during World War II....

 
King George VI Coronation Medal
King George VI Coronation Medal
The King George VI Coronation Medal was a commemorative medal made to celebrate the coronation of King George VI.-Issue:For Coronation and Jubilee medals, the practice up until 1977 was that United Kingdom authorities decided on a total number to be produced, then allocated a proportion to each of...

 
1937
Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal
Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal was a commemorative medal made to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.-Issue:For Coronation and Jubilee medals, the practice up until 1977 was that United Kingdom authorities decided on a total number to be produced, then allocated a proportion to...

 
1953

Honorary degrees

In 1958, he was appointed a Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science , usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D. or Dr.Sc., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries Doctor of Science is the name used for the standard doctorate in the sciences, elsewhere the Sc.D...

 (honoris causa) (Hon.DSc) by the University of New South Wales
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

. On 29 April 1959, he was appointed a Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...

 (honoris causa) (Hon.DLitt) of 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...

. In 1961, Cutler was conferred admitted as an Honorary Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...

 (Hon.DLitt) by the University of New England
University of New England
University of New England may refer to:* University of New England , in New South Wales* University of New England , in Biddeford, Maine...

.
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