Studio portrait of Captain (Capt) John Austin Chapman, 30th Battalion. Capt Chapman graduated ...

Studio portrait of Captain (Capt) John Austin Chapman, 30th Battalion. Capt Chapman graduated from the Royal Military College, Duntroon, in June 1915 and commissioned as a Lieutenant with 30th Battalion. While acting as the brigade major of the 8th Brigade, he reconnoitred the front line, under heavy fire, near the village of Estrées, France, on 28 August 1918, and for his actions was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). Capt Chapman continued as a member of the Permanent Military Forces (PMF) after the First World War. At the outbreak of the Second World War, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was posted to the British 52nd (Lowland) Division before transferring to the Australian Imperial Forces (AIF) as a Colonel and Chief of Staff of the 7th Division in the Middle East. For his efforts during the Syrian campaign he was awarded a Bar to his DSO. In August 1941 he took command of the AIF's Base Area in the Middle East. He was later posted to Advanced Land Headquarters, Brisbane, Qld, as deputy-adjutant and quartermaster general, he was promoted to major general on 1 September 1942 and by October 1944 had become deputy chief of the General Staff. After the Second World War he was a member of the United Nations' (UN) commission of inquiry into incidents on the Greek frontier and he travelled to the Balkans. He also completed a period of duty in the United States (US) and was awarded the US Legion of Merit in 1949. He returned to Australia in February 1950 where he took the position of General Officer Commanding (GOC), Central Command. In February 1951 he was appointed as the Quartermaster General and third member of the Military Board in Melbourne until he retired from the military in December 1953. He died in Sydney on 19 April 1963, aged 67 years.