John Caligari
Encyclopedia
Major General
John Graham Caligari DSC
AM, is a senior officer of the Australian Army
. His current appointment is Head Modernisation and Strategic Plans – Army (HMSP-A).
in 1960. He graduated from Marist College Canberra
in 1978, and entered the Royal Military College, Duntroon
the following year where he undertook training to become an officer
in the Australian Army.
and was posted to the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
(1 RAR), an infantry unit that his father, Barry Caligari, commanded. In 1989, Caligari was in the Middle East as a United Nations observer on the Lebanese/Israeli border with UNTSO, and subsequently at at UNTSO Headquarters in Jerusalem (Operation Paladin
). He took his wife, Narelle, a nurse, and his twin sons, then aged nine months, with him to Israel. From late 1990, he was a rifle company commander in the 1st Battalion
. In 1993 he was an operations officer of the 1st Battalion Group deployed to Somalia as part of Operation Solace
, for which he was awarded a Chief of the Defence Force
Commendation. In June 2000, he deployed as Commander of the 1st Battalion Ready Group on HMAS Manoora for the evacuation of Australians from the Solomon Islands
(Operation Plumbob).
His next deployment was to East Timor after it achieved independence in 1999. "The highlight of his career" was commanding the 1st Battalion Group on operations along the Timor Leste-Indonesian border with the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), as part of Operation Tanager. For his command and leadership on this operation he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
. Caligari oversaw numerous reforms while Chief of Staff, Headquarters Training Command – Army in 2005–06, under Major General Richard Wilson.
In 2007–08 Caligari commanded of the Townsville-based 3rd Brigade, as a brigadier
. In January 2009 he was appointed Deputy Commander Joint Task Force 633 – Afghanistan as part of Operation Slipper
, a position he filled for six months. Promoted to major general
in mid-2009, his current appointment is as Head Modernisation and Strategic Plans – Army (HMSP-A).
He married a nurse, Narelle, circa 1987 and they have three children; twin sons and a girl. Caligari's twin sons Ben and David, aged 19, were inducted into the Australian Defence Force Academy
in 2008.
His daughter, Anne, is currently studying Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Canberra.
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...
John Graham Caligari DSC
Distinguished Service Cross (Australia)
The Distinguished Service Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force. It is awarded for distinguished command and leadership in action. The DSC was introduced in 1991 and is the highest distinguished service decoration in the Australian Honours System...
AM, is a senior officer of the 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...
. His current appointment is Head Modernisation and Strategic Plans – Army (HMSP-A).
Early life
Caligari was born in BrisbaneBrisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
in 1960. He graduated from Marist College Canberra
Marist College Canberra
Marist College Canberra is an all-boys independent Catholic school school founded in 1968. The college is situated on 15 hectares and located in the Australian Capital Territory, Canberra. The college provides boys from years 4-12 with a well-rounded education. Founded by Marist Brothers, it...
in 1978, and 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...
the following year where he undertook training to become an officer
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...
in the Australian Army.
Military career
Upon graduating from Duntroon in 1982, Caligari was assigned to the Royal Australian Infantry CorpsRoyal Australian Infantry Corps
The Royal Australian Infantry Corps is the parent corps for all infantry regiments of the Australian Army. It was established on 14 December 1948, with its Royal Corps status being conferred by His Majesty King George VI. At her coronation in 1953, Queen Elizabeth II became Colonel-in-Chief of the...
and was posted to the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is a regular light infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 1 RAR was first formed as the 65th Australian Infantry Battalion in 1945 and since then has been deployed on active service during the Korean War, the Malayan Emergency and the Vietnam War...
(1 RAR), an infantry unit that his father, Barry Caligari, commanded. In 1989, Caligari was in the Middle East as a United Nations observer on the Lebanese/Israeli border with UNTSO, and subsequently at at UNTSO Headquarters in Jerusalem (Operation Paladin
Operation Paladin
Operation Paladin is Australia's contribution to the UN Truce Supervision Organisation that was established in 1948 to supervise the truce agreed at the conclusion of the first Arab/Israeli War....
). He took his wife, Narelle, a nurse, and his twin sons, then aged nine months, with him to Israel. From late 1990, he was a rifle company commander in the 1st Battalion
1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is a regular light infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 1 RAR was first formed as the 65th Australian Infantry Battalion in 1945 and since then has been deployed on active service during the Korean War, the Malayan Emergency and the Vietnam War...
. In 1993 he was an operations officer of the 1st Battalion Group deployed to Somalia as part of Operation Solace
Operation Solace
Operation Solace was the Australian Defence Force's main contribution to the Unified Task Force which was a United States led, United Nations sanctioned, multinational force which operated in the Republic of Somalia from 9 December 1992 to 4 May 1993...
, for which he was awarded a 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...
Commendation. In June 2000, he deployed as Commander of the 1st Battalion Ready Group on HMAS Manoora for the evacuation of Australians from the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
(Operation Plumbob).
His next deployment was to East Timor after it achieved independence in 1999. "The highlight of his career" was commanding the 1st Battalion Group on operations along the Timor Leste-Indonesian border with the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), as part of Operation Tanager. For his command and leadership on this operation he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
Distinguished Service Cross (Australia)
The Distinguished Service Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force. It is awarded for distinguished command and leadership in action. The DSC was introduced in 1991 and is the highest distinguished service decoration in the Australian Honours System...
. Caligari oversaw numerous reforms while Chief of Staff, Headquarters Training Command – Army in 2005–06, under Major General Richard Wilson.
In 2007–08 Caligari commanded of the Townsville-based 3rd Brigade, as a 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 January 2009 he was appointed Deputy Commander Joint Task Force 633 – Afghanistan as part of Operation Slipper
Operation Slipper
Operation Slipper is the Australian Defence Force contribution to the war in Afghanistan. The operation commenced in late 2001 and is ongoing...
, a position he filled for six months. 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...
in mid-2009, his current appointment is as Head Modernisation and Strategic Plans – Army (HMSP-A).
Personal life
His father, Barry, retired as Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion in 1983. Caligari and his father hold the distinction of being the only father-son duo in the Australian Army to have commanded the same battalion. Caligari's father was his son's commanding officer for two months when he graduated from Duntroon in 1982.He married a nurse, Narelle, circa 1987 and they have three children; twin sons and a girl. Caligari's twin sons Ben and David, aged 19, were inducted into the Australian Defence Force Academy
Australian Defence Force Academy
The Australian Defence Force Academy is a tri-service military Academy that provides military and tertiary academic education for junior officers of the Australian Defence Force in the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force .Tertiary education is provided by the...
in 2008.
His daughter, Anne, is currently studying Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Canberra.
Educational and professional qualifications
- 1982 – Bachelor of Arts, University of New South WalesUniversity of New South WalesThe University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
, Royal Military College, Duntroon - 1998 – Master of Defence Studies, University of New South Wales, Australian Defence Force AcademyAustralian Defence Force AcademyThe Australian Defence Force Academy is a tri-service military Academy that provides military and tertiary academic education for junior officers of the Australian Defence Force in the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force .Tertiary education is provided by the...
- 1999 – Chief of Army’s Visiting Fellow at the Strategic and Defence Studies CentreStrategic and Defence Studies CentreThe Strategic and Defence Studies Centre is a university centre that was situated in the former Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the Australian National University. It is Australia's oldest-established centre for the study of strategic, defence and wider security issues and a...
, Australian National UniversityAustralian National UniversityThe Australian National University is a teaching and research university located in the Australian capital, Canberra.As of 2009, the ANU employs 3,945 administrative staff who teach approximately 10,000 undergraduates, and 7,500 postgraduate students... - 2004 – Master of Arts (Strategic Studies), Deakin UniversityDeakin UniversityDeakin 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...
- Graduate, US Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth
- Graduate, CDSS (Centre for Defence and Strategic Studies, Australian Defence CollegeAustralian Defence CollegeThe Australian Defence College comprises three tri-service educational organisations operated by the Australian Defence Force in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory:* the Centre for Defence and Strategic Studies ,...
, Canberra) - Graduate, Joint/Combined Land Component Commanders Course, US Army War College, Carlisle
- Graduate, Australian Institute of Company DirectorsAustralian Institute of Company DirectorsThe Australian Institute of Company Directors is Australia's leading membership body for directors in Australia and the leading Australian not-for-profit corporate governance organisation....
, having served as Chairman of the Army Credit Union and a member of the Board of Frontline Defence Services - 2006 – Completed the Harvard Australia Leadership Program
Honours and awards
- Distinguished Service Cross (Australia)Distinguished Service Cross (Australia)The Distinguished Service Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force. It is awarded for distinguished command and leadership in action. The DSC was introduced in 1991 and is the highest distinguished service decoration in the Australian Honours System...
(DSC), John Graham CALIGARI, -
_ribbon.png)
Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Military Division, Brigadier John Graham CALIGARI DSC, For exceptional performance of duties in command and senior Army staff appointments.
External links
- Presentation, by MAJGEN John Caligari DSC AM, to the Defence Reserves Association (DRA) Conference, 22 August 2009, www.dra.org.au
- Highlighting Strategic Plans To Modernise The Australian Army’s Fleet And Its Capabilities, Armoured Vehicles Australia Conference, 5–6 November 2009, Hyatt Hotel, Canberra, ACT
- Army – The Soldiers' Newspaper, Edition 1229, 18 Feb 2010, Pg 18: How well do you know your generals?
- Photo of Brigadier John Caligari by Andrew Taylor, 14 March 2008, Sydney Morning Herald.
