Thomas Eastick
Encyclopedia
Sir Thomas Charles Eastick CMG
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....

, 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...

, ED
Efficiency Decoration
The Efficiency Decoration is a defunct medal of Britain and the Commonwealth awarded for long service in the Territorial Army of the UK, the Indian Volunteer Forces and Colonial Auxiliary Forces....

 (3 May 1900–1988) was an Engineer, and, during the Second World War, an Australian soldier
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...

. Eastick rose to the rank of (temporary) 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 military governor of Sarawak
Sarawak
Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , Sarawak is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia followed by Sabah, the second largest state located to the North- East.The administrative capital is Kuching, which...

 in 1945-46.

Early Life

Eastick was born in Hyde Park, South Australia
Hyde Park, South Australia
Hyde Park is an inner-southern suburb of Adelaide in the City of Unley.It features King William Road, a popular shopping and dining destination, and Victoria Avenue, a street containing large houses built between the two World Wars....

. He was an engineer by profession and was living in Reade Park, SA
Colonel Light Gardens, South Australia
Colonel Light Gardens is a model garden suburb, featuring wide, tree-lined streets, rounded street corners, and lots of open space, located within the City of Mitcham in the greater City of Adelaide, capital of South Australia. The area is 1.58 km²....

 when war broke out. He was married to Ruby Eastick.

Military Career

He served with the Royal Australian Artillery (RAA) during World War II. From 1 November 1939, as a Lieutenant Colonel, he commanded the 13th Field Brigade, RAA. From 26 April 1940 he commanded the 2/7th Field Regiment, and led it during 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 Battle of El Alamein
Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. The battle took place over 20 days from 23 October – 11 November 1942. The First Battle of El Alamein had stalled the Axis advance. Thereafter, Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery...

. Eastick was Mentioned in Despatches on 15 December 1942. On 18 February 1943 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...

 (DSO).

In 1943 Eastick returned to Australia, and on 22 June he was appointed commander of artillery for the 7th Division during 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:...

. In 1944 he assumed the same position with the 9th Division.

By September 1945 Eastick had been appointed commander of Kuching
Kuching
Kuching , officially the City of Kuching, and formerly the City of Sarawak, is the capital and most populous city of the East Malaysian state of Sarawak. It is the largest city on the island of Borneo, and the fourth largest city in Malaysia....

 Force, a detachment of the 9th Division which supervised the Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...

 surrender in the territory of Sarawak, on the island of Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....

. Eastick oversaw the liberation and repatriation of Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...

 prisoners of war and internees
Internment
Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...

 in Sarawak, including the large Batu Lintang camp
Batu Lintang camp
Batu Lintang camp at Kuching, Sarawak on the island of Borneo was a Japanese internment camp during the Second World War. It was unusual in that it housed both Allied prisoners of war and civilian internees...

. He was military governor of Sarawak from 10 September 1945 until January 1946, when the territory returned to civilian rule. Eastick was subsequently made a Companion of the Star of Sarawak by the last White Rajah of Sarawak
White Rajahs
White Rajahs refers to a dynasty that founded and ruled the Kingdom of Sarawak from 1841 to 1946, namely the Brookes, who came originally from England. A Rajah is a monarch in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.-Rulers:...

, Charles Vyner Brooke
Charles Vyner Brooke
Vyner, Rajah of Sarawak, GCMG was the third and final White Rajah of Sarawak.-Early life:...

.

Eastick left the army on 27 February 1946 with the substantive rank of 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...

.

Post-war Career

He was later president of the RSL
Returned and Services League of Australia
The Returned and Services League of Australia is a support organisation for men and women who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force ....

 (the main Australian veterans' organisation) in South Australia, and was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in the 1953 Coronation
Coronation of the British monarch
The coronation of the British monarch is a ceremony in which the monarch of the United Kingdom is formally crowned and invested with regalia...

 Honours List for his work with this organisation.

The announcement of Eastick's knighthood
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...

 was made in the 1970 New Year Honours
New Year Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the New Year annually in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen Elizabeth II...

 List. It was conferred on him in person by Queen Elizabeth II on 24 April 1970 at Government House, Canberra
Government House, Canberra
Government House, Canberra, commonly known as Yarralumla, is the official residence of the Governor-General of Australia. It is located in the suburb of Yarralumla, in the City of Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory....

.
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