The Australian Instructional Corps (AIC) was a corps of the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), who ...

that existed between 1921 and 1955. Tasked with providing training to soldiers serving in Australia's part-time military force, the corps consisted of Permanent force warrant officers and senior non commissioned officers from all arms of service, who were posted to Citizen Force units as

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics) In political contexts a cadre (, , ) consists of a person recognized as a capable militant within a political ...

staff, filling various regimental and training appointments. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, the majority of the corps' personnel were transferred to the

Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the name given to the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initia ...

, and in the aftermath of the war the corps eventually became part of the fledgling Australian Regular Army. In the post-war years, as the focus of Australia's defence strategy shifted towards the maintenance of a strong Regular force, the corps' role declined and it was eventually disbanded in 1955.

History

Formed on 14 April 1921, the Australian Instructional Corps replaced the Administrative and Instructional Staff that had been in existence within the Army since Australia's Federation in 1901. It was raised in the aftermath of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

following the demobilisation of the Australian Imperial Force, when Australia's part-time military forces were reorganised to re-assume the main responsibility for the nation's defences. As part of the reorganisation, it was decided to raise a force of two cavalry divisions and five infantry divisions with various supporting arms to be maintained through a mixture of voluntary and compulsory service. Consisting of a small cadre of permanent force

warrant officer Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mo ...

s and senior

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

s, along with the

Australian Staff Corps The Australian Staff Corps was a small corps of Regular Army officers who were trained in staff duties and who were largely responsible for the training of the Militia, Australia’s part-time military force, during the inter-war period and in t ...

, the AIC was tasked with providing training to the part-time soldiers of the Citizen Force of all arms and services, including combat and technical branches. Upon formation, the corps had an establishment of around 600 personnel, which was a large portion of the small 1,600-strong permanent force. AIC members wore distinctive uniforms, with unique embellishments and badges of rank. Members were posted to units across Australia, filling various roles including acting as the

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

regimental sergeant major Regimental sergeant major (RSM) is an appointment that may be held by warrant officers class 1 (WO1) in the British Army, the British Royal Marines and in the armies of many other Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, including Australi ...

in many Citizen Force units, and were tasked with running promotion, qualification and specialisation courses for citizen soldiers and with administering school cadet units. AWM P00989

Although it had been intended that members would receive special instructional training, due to budgetary constraints there were no instructor training courses run until 1935 when small courses began at Randwick. At this time, concerns about the strategic outlook in Europe and Asia resulted in a slow move towards re-armament within Australia and the AIC's role in preparing Australia's military for war grew. However, the size of the corps remained the same until 1940–41 when, after the reintroduction of conscription – which had been suspended in 1929 – the corps was expanded to an authorised strength of 185 quartermasters and 1,039 warrant and non commissioned officers. Throughout the Second World War, the corps was largely subsumed into the

, as instructors volunteered to serve overseas; upon the conclusion of the war, the AIC became part of the Interim Army that was established as Australia moved towards the establishment of the Australian Regular Army that would have precedence over the part-time elements that had previously been the focus of Australia's defence strategy. After this, the role of the corps slowly diminished as various arms of the service raised their own schools, which became responsible for producing their own instructors and trainers. Around the same time, amidst the context of the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...

and the strategic exigencies of the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

, the training of part-time soldiers moved towards a more centralised scheme, further reducing the role of the AIC. The corps was officially disbanded on 19 May 1955, although according to historian Peter Dennis "for practical purposes it had ceased functioning several years earlier".

References

; Citations ;Bibliography * * * {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Defunct Australian Army Corps Military units and formations established in 1921 Military units and formations disestablished in 1955