Alec Jeffrey Hill (2 July 1916 – 27 August 2008) was an Australian

military historian Military history is the study of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, cultures and economies thereof, as well as the resulting changes to local and international relationships. Professional historians ...

and academic best known for his biography of General Sir Harry Chauvel and his work on the

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

Biography

Alec Jeffrey Hill was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, New South Wales on 2 July 1916. His father, who served in the

Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, died while Alec was a boy. Alec was educated at Sydney Grammar, the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

and

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

. He became a schoolteacher. He was commissioned in the

New South Wales Scottish Regiment The 30th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally formed in 1915 during the First World War as part of the all-volunteer Australian Imperial Force (AIF) and saw service on the Western Front before being dis ...

of the

Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

in 1936.

Hill joined the

Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was 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 initial strength of one ...

(AIF) on the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1939, receiving the

service number A service number or roll number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they also may be used in civilian organizations. National identificati ...

NX380. He commanded a company of the 2/13th Infantry Battalion during the retreat to

Tobruk Tobruk ( ; ; ) is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District (formerly Tobruk District) and has a population of 120,000 (2011 est.)."Tobruk" (history), ''Encyclop� ...

in 1941, and in the subsequent

Siege of Tobruk The siege of Tobruk () took place between 10 April and 27 November 1941, during the Western Desert campaign (1940–1943) of the World War II, Second World War. An Allies of World War II, Allied force, consisting mostly of the 9th Division ...

. He was a staff officer (GSO3) at 9th Division headquarters during the

Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...

. After the 9th Division returned to Australia, he fought in the

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

and

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

campaigns as brigade major of the 20th Infantry Brigade. For his war service, he was made a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1947. After the war Hill returned to his old profession, teaching

geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

and

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

at his old school, Sydney Grammar, becoming senior history master. He was involved with the

Australian Army Cadets The Australian Army Cadets (AAC) is the youth military program and organisation of the Australian Army, tasked with supporting participants to contribute to society, fostering interest in defence force careers, and developing support for the for ...

and the

Citizen Military Forces The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the military reserve force, reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citize ...

. He also served a term as Honorary aide de camp to the

Governor of New South Wales The governor of New South Wales is the representative of the monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia, Governor-General of Australia at the national level, the governor ...

. In 1966, he became a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

in history at the

Royal Military College, Duntroon The Royal Military College, Duntroon, also known simply as Duntroon, is the Australian Army's Officer (armed forces), officer training establishment. It was founded at Duntroon, Australian Capital Territory, Duntroon in Canberra, Australian Capi ...

, which was then in transition to becoming a university faculty as part of the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

. While there, he influenced a new generation of soldiers and military historians, including

David Horner David Murray Horner, (born 12 March 1948) is an Australian military historian and academic. Early life and military career Horner was born in Adelaide, South Australia, on 12 March 1948. He was raised in a military household—his father, Mur ...

, Peter Pedersen, Chris Coulthard-Clark and Brett Lodge. He also produced ''Chauvel of the Light Horse'', a biography of the General Sir Harry Chauvel, the commander of the

Desert Mounted Corps The Desert Mounted Corps was an army corps of the British Army during the First World War, of three mounted divisions renamed in August 1917 by General Edmund Allenby, from Desert Column. These divisions which served in the Sinai and Palestine ...

in the Great War. First published in 1978, it is said to be the first modern scholarly biography of a senior Australian military figure. It advanced Australian

military historiography Military history is the study of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, cultures and economies thereof, as well as the resulting changes to local and international relationships. Professional historians n ...

"through the then unfashionable notion that generals were at least as important as privates in winning battles." Hill was associated with the

(ADB) for more than 30 years, becoming a member of its Armed Forces Working Party on its formation in 1974, and was its chairman from 1982 to 1994. He wrote 38 articles on such prominent generals as

William Birdwood Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood (13 September 1865 – 17 May 1951), was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl ...

Frank Berryman Lieutenant general (Australia), Lieutenant General Sir Frank Horton Berryman, (11 April 1894 – 28 May 1981) was an Australian Army officer who served as a general during the Second World War. The son of an Railroad engineer, engine drive ...

Harry Chauvel General Sir Henry George Chauvel, (16 April 1865 – 4 March 1945) was a senior officer of the Australian Imperial Force who fought at Gallipoli and during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. He was ...

, Harold Elliott,

Leslie Morshead Lieutenant General Sir Leslie James Morshead, (18 September 1889 – 26 September 1959) was an Australian soldier, teacher, businessman, and farmer, whose military career spanned both world wars. During the Second World War, he led the Austra ...

Sydney Rowell Lieutenant general (Australia), Lieutenant General Sir Sydney Fairbairn Rowell, (15 December 1894 – 12 April 1975) was an Australian soldier who served as Chief of Army (Australia), Chief of the General Staff from 17 April 1950 to 15 Decembe ...

, and

George Wootten Major General Sir George Frederick Wootten, (1 May 1893 – 31 March 1970) was a senior Australian Army officer, public servant, right wing political activist and solicitor. He rose to the rank of temporary major general during the Second Wo ...

, in some cases drawing on his personal knowledge of the subject. For his work, he was awarded the ADB Medal in 2004. He was made a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

in the

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet and raising of the Flag of Great Britain, Union Flag of Great Britain by Arthur Phillip at Sydney Cove, a ...

honour's list in 2006 "for service to education in the field of Australian military history, to the Australian War Memorial as a writer and as a mentor to historians, and as a contributor to the Australian Dictionary of Biography." He died on 27 August 2008, survived by his wife, Patsy.

Bibliography

Books

* *

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Alec 1916 births Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Australian Army officers Australian military historians Australian Army personnel of World War II Members of the Order of Australia Members of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Sydney Grammar School Historians from Sydney University of Sydney alumni 2008 deaths 20th-century Australian historians Military personnel from Sydney