1950, Sir Thomas Blamey becomes Field Marshal in Australian

On this day during on June 8, 1950, Sir Thomas Blamey becomes the Field Marshal in Australian. However, Sir Thomas is the first and so far only Australian-born field marshal in Australian history. The Field Marshal Sir Thomas Albert Blamey, was an Australian general of the first and second World Wars. However, he is the only Australian to attain the rank of field marshal.

Firstly, Sir Thomas Blamey joined the Australian Army as a regular soldier during in 1906, and attended the Staff College at Quetta. He resigned from the regular Army during in 1925 to become Chief Commissioner of the Victoria Police. Meanwhile, Blamey remained in the Militia, rising to command the 3rd Division in 1931.

Blamey became seriously ill and received his field marshal’s baton from McKell in a bedside ceremony at the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital. In March 1925, Sir William Birdwood became the first Field Marshal appointment in Australia.

The Field marshal is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointe to it. It is consider as a five-star rank (OF-10) in modern-day armed forces in many countries.

On March 22, 2015, Sarath Fonseka became the first Field Marshal in Sri Lanka and he is the only Sri Lankan officer to hold the rank.

Reference

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Blamey
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_marshal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_marshalcountries