Major General Selwyn Havelock Watson Craig Porter, (23 February 1905 – 9 October 1963) was an

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 ...

officer and Chief Commissioner of

Victoria Police Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It was formed in 1853 and currently operates under the ''Victoria Police Act 2013''. , Victor ...

Early life

Born on 23 February 1905 in Tintaldra, Victoria, Porter was educated at Wangaratta High School before taking up a position as a clerk in the State Savings Bank of Victoria.

Military career

Porter began his military career in 1924 when he was commissioned as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the Citizens Military Force, serving with the 58th Battalion. By 1936 he had reached the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. Upon 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 ...

, Porter 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 ...

that was raised for overseas service and was allocated to the 2/5th Battalion as second in command. Deployed to the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

, he temporarily commanded the 2/6th Battalion and led them as the Australians advanced past Derna, for which he was

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. Later he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and given full command of the 2/31st Battalion and led them through the Syria-Lebanon Campaign, for which he later received 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 ...

, before being wounded in the thigh. He then returned to Australia and was promoted to the temporary rank of

brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

and sent to

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...

where he was placed in command of the 30th Brigade, which had been sent there in response to

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

's entry into the war. Following the Japanese landing at Buna, Porter led the 30th Brigade and then during August 1942 temporarily commanded Maroubra Force along the Kokoda Track, before handing over to Brigadier Arnold Potts. He later commanded the 30th Brigade around Sanananda. In November 1943 Porter took command of the 24th Brigade and led them through the fighting at Finschhafen. In early 1945 he was attached to the 9th Division's planning staff, before leading his brigade during the invasion of North Borneo. Following the end of the war, Porter returned to Australia and briefly returned to civilian life. In 1947 he was appointed a

Commander 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 ...

. When the Citizens Military Force was re-raised in 1948, Porter was given command of the 6th Brigade and then later promoted to major general in command of the 3rd Division. During 1953–1954 he took up a position on the Military Board as the CMF representative.

Later life

In 1955 he was appointed as chief commissioner of

, a post that he held until his death on 9 October 1963 from a coronary occlusion.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Selwyn 1905 births 1963 deaths Military personnel from Victoria (state) Australian bankers Australian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Australian Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Australian generals Australian Lieutenants of the Royal Victorian Order Australian Army personnel of World War II Chief Commissioners of Victoria Police People from Victoria (state) University of Melbourne alumni