Major General Bruce Alexander McDonald, (23 March 1925 – 23 March 1993) was a senior officer in the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is 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 ...

, seeing service in 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 ...

, the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation and the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

Early life and education

McDonald was born in

Geelong, Victoria Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

, on 23 March 1925, to Angus Alexander and Olive McDonald (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Penny).

Military career

McDonald graduated from 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 ...

in December 1944 and was posted to the 2/5th Battalion. He served in the later stages of the Second World War and was awarded a

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

for bravery and leadership while commanding a platoon during heavy fighting with the Japanese at Ulupu in

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 ...

in July 1945, in which he was wounded. Following the war McDonald served in a number of staff and regimental appointments. From 1963 to 1966, he commanded the

3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment The 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) is the armoured infantry battalion of the Australian Army, based in Kapyong Lines, Townsville as part of the 3rd Brigade (Armoured Amphibious). 3 RAR traces its lineage to 1945 and has seen ...

(3 RAR), including operations in

West Malaysia Peninsular Malaysia, historically known as Malaya and also known as West Malaysia or the Malaysian Peninsula, is the western part of Malaysia that comprises the southern part of the Malay Peninsula on Mainland Southeast Asia and the nearby isla ...

in 1964 and in

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 ...

in 1965 during the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, for which he was appointed an

Officer 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 ...

.The Order of the British Empire – Officer (Military)
(OBE(M)), Date granted: 1 January 1966, Citation: ''ARMY – Infantry – Distinguished service in Borneo'' During this period 3 RAR took part in the top secret

Operation Claret Claret was the code name given to operations conducted from about July 1964 until July 1966 from East Malaysia (Sarawak and Sabah) across the border in Indonesian Kalimantan during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation. They were instigated ...

, executing a number of cross border actions including several highly successful ambushes against Indonesian forces. From early 1971, McDonald commanded the

1st Australian Task Force The 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) was a brigade-sized formation which commanded Australian Army, Australian and New Zealand Army units deployed to South Vietnam between 1966 and 1972. 1 ATF was based in a rubber plantation at Nui Dat, north ...

in South Vietnam until its withdrawal in early 1972, leading the formation during counter-insurgency operations against the

Viet Cong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the communist-driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, and ...

and North Vietnamese during the Vietnam War. For this service he was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

.Distinguished Service Order
(DSO), Date granted: 1 September 1972, Citation: ''1 Australian Task Force Vietnam – Commanding'' He commanded the 1st Division in Queensland from 1975 to 1977, and later served as

General Officer Commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

Training Command. McDonald was appointed an

Officer 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 1979.Officer of the Order of Australia (Military)
, (AO), Date granted: 11 June 1979, Citation: ''For service in positions of great responsibility, including General Officer Commanding, Training Command''

Retirement

McDonald died in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, on 23 March 1993. He was buried on 26 March 1993 in Pinnaroo cemetery, Brisbane.

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McDonald, Bruce Alexander 1925 births 1993 deaths Military personnel from Victoria (state) Australian generals Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian military personnel of the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation Australian military personnel of the Vietnam War Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Officers of the Order of Australia Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Geelong Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Military College, Duntroon graduates Burials at Pinnaroo Cemetery, Brisbane