Distinguished Service Order : Lieutenant Colonel T J Daly, 9 Light Horse Regiment, AIF

Distinguished Service Order (Geo V). Unnamed as issued.

Thomas Joseph Daly, a 30 year old bank manager from Ballarat, enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 11 November 1914. For several years he had served with 19 Australian Light Horse, an Australian Military Force unit. Upon his enlistment in the AIF he was given the rank of major and placed with 9 Light Horse Regiment (LHR) as second-in-command. The unit sailed from Melbourne aboard HMAT Karroo on 11 February 1915 and saw service on Gallipoli. He served with 9 LHR in the Palestine campaign for most of the war and was promoted to Temporary Lieutenant Colonel for three periods of time in 1917 and 1918. In 1918 he temporarily commanded 9 LHR and for a period in 1918-1919 he also commanded 8 LHR. He was mentioned in Dispatches twice in 1918 and awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his leadership and actions in late 1917. The award was published in the London Gazette in June 1918 and the citation reads, ‘Near TEL EL SABA [near Beersheba] on the 31st October 1917, for making a personal reconnaissance over very heavily shell-swept country and selecting a route for the Regiment to move to support the New Zealand Rifles Brigade. This route was followed by the Regiment and Wadis crossed at places selected by Major DALY. So skilfully was the route selected that the Regiment was able to move into position travelling over a distance of more than 2000 yards without a single casualty. On 8th November 1917, near Huj he directed operations which resulted in the capture of a 15cm Howitzer by Lt Hargraves. Throughout the whole of the recent operations his work as Second in Command of the Regiment has been most valuable’. In October 1918 Daly led 9 LHR, a force about 100 strong, to capture a large Turkish force near Damascus. In an action which lasted little over an hour the Australians captured 91 officers, 318 cavalrymen, 1064 infantrymen and eight Germans. Also taken were three field guns, 26 machine guns and, among other material, the standard of the 46th Turkish Infantry Regiment, which can be seen in the Memorial's collection. Daly embarked for Australia on 3 July 1919. His son, also named Thomas Joseph Daly, pursued a distinguished career in the Army, served during the Second World War and became Chief of the General Staff in 1966.

• 1914-15 Star : Major T J Daly, 9 Light Horse Regiment, AIF
• British War Medal 1914-20 : Lieutenant Colonel T J Daly, 9 Light Horse Regiment, AIF
• Victory Medal : Lieutenant Colonel T J Daly, 9 Light Horse Regiment, AIF
• Colonial Auxiliary Forces Officer's Decoration : Lieutenant Colonel T J Daly
• Colonial Auxiliary Forces Long Service Medal : Lieutenant Colonel T J Daly