Peter Cosgrove
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| Peter John Cosgrove | |
|---|---|
| 28 July 1947 - | |
 Peter Cosgrove, immediate past Chief of the Defence Force (Australia) at the 2008 National Anzac Day service, Australian War Memorial, Canberra. |
|
| Nickname | Cos |
| Place of birth | Sydney, Australia |
| Allegiance |  Australia |
| Service/branch | Australian Army |
| Years of service | 1965-2005 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held | Australian Defence Force Australian Army INTERFET Joint Deployable Force Land Command 1st Infantry Division School of Infantry |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War International Force for East Timor |
| Awards | Companion Of The Order Of Australia Military Cross Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit Commander of the United States Legion of Merit. |
| Other work | Leader of the Cyclone Larry Task Force |
General Peter John Cosgrove AC, MC (born 28 July 1947) is an Australian general. He was the Chief of the Australian Defence Force from 3 July 2002 to 3 July 2005, when he retired from active service.
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[edit] Military service
Cosgrove was educated at Waverley College, then followed his father, a Warrant Officer, into the Australian Army by attending the Royal Military College, Duntroon in 1965. Early in his career, Cosgrove fought in Vietnam with the 9th Battalion of The Royal Australian Regiment, where he served with great distinction, receiving the Military Cross in 1971.[1]
In 1980 he was awarded the national medal.[2] In the mid-1980s he commanded the 1st Battalion[3]
Cosgrove came to national fame in 1999 when, as a Major General, he led the international forces (INTERFET) in a peacekeeping mission to East Timor. The mission's success made Cosgrove one of Australia's most respected and popular military leaders.[4]
Cosgrove was promoted in 2000 to Lieutenant General as Chief of the Army (CA) and in 2002 to General as Chief of the Defence Force (CDF).[5]
In 2004, then Foreign Minister Alexander Downer queried the judgement of Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty.[6] Following a joint interview with then Defence Minister Robert Hill, Cosgrove was accused of "playing politics" when he said that, on this occasion, he disagreed with Keelty's point of view. However, Cosgrove expressed strong support for the Police Commissioner in his memoir published in 2006.[7]
On 3 July 2005, Cosgrove's 3 year appointment as Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) was completed, and he was succeeded by then-Chief of Air Force (CAF) Air Marshal Angus Houston.
There was some speculation that after retirement he would take up the post of Governor-General of Australia, or run for parliament. He has firmly ruled out all such possibilities.[8] Instead he wrote an autobiography, My Story[7], which was a bestseller in Australia.
[edit] Cyclone Larry Taskforce
On 23 March 2006, retired General Peter Cosgrove was selected to lead the Queensland Government taskforce of rebuilding communities damaged by Cyclone Larry, a Category 5 tropical cyclone that devastated the Innisfail region of northern Queensland.[9]
[edit] Personal
Cosgrove is on the board of Australia's main airline QANTAS and is on numerous other boards as Chairman or member.
He is married with three adult sons and lives in Sydney.
[edit] Awards
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Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) | 25 March 2000[4] |
| Member of the Order of Australia (AM) | 26 January 1985[3] | |
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Military Cross (MC) | 12 February 1971 for gallantry in Vietnam.[1] |
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Australian Active Service Medal 1945-1975 | |
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Vietnam Medal | |
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Australian Active Service Medal | |
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International Force East Timor Medal (INTERFET) | |
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Australian Service Medal 1945-1975 | |
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Centenary Medal | 01 January 2001[5] |
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Defence Force Service Medal with Federation Star | (40-45 years service) |
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National Medal | 16 October 1980[2] |
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Australian Defence Medal | |
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Vietnam Campaign Medal (Republic of Vietnam) | |
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Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM) | |
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Commander of the United States Legion of Merit | |
_ribbon.png/80px-Tong-il_Medal_(South_Korea)_ribbon.png){kind=small} |
Tong-il Medal (South Korea) | within the Order of National Security Merit |
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Darjah Utama Bakti Cemerlang (Tentera) (Singapore) | Distinguished Service Order (Military) 7 September 2004[10] |
- Other awards not worn on ADF uniform
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Officer of the Légion d'honneur (France) | |
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Grand Cross of the Order of Infante D. Henrique (GCIH) Grã-Cruz Ordem do Infante D. Henrique (Portugal) |
28 May 2002[11] |
| Australian of the Year | 2001[12] |
[edit] References
- ^ a b It's an honour entry - Military Cross - 12 February 1971 Citation: Infantry - 9 RAR - Vietnam
- ^ a b It's an honour entry - National Medal - 16 October 1980
- ^ a b It's an honour entry - Member of the Order of Australia - 26 January 1985 Citation: In recognition of service as Commanding Officer 1st Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment
- ^ a b It's an honour entry - Companion of the Order of Australia - 25 March 2000 Citation: For eminent service to the Australian Defence Force as the Commander of the International Force East Timor
- ^ a b It's an honour entry - Centenary Medal - 1 January 2001 Citation: For service to Australian society as Chief of the Defence Force
- ^ Honest copper emerges victor, The Age, 2004-03-18. During a "doorstop" interview, Downer said Mr Keelty was "expressing a view which reflects a lot of the propaganda we're getting from al-Qaeda".
- ^ a b My Story (HarperCollins Publishers Australia, October 2006, ISBN 0732283841)
- ^ http://bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=140889 ACP Magazines have shut down The Bulletin website; new reference needed.
- ^ General Cosgrove to lead Cyclone Larry taskforce, Premier of Queensland press release, 2006-03-23.
- ^ MINDEF Singapore, President Nathan Confers Top Military Award on Chief of the Australian Defence Force, 7 September 2004, retrieved 19 April 2008.
- ^ Annual Portuguese Honorary Orders, Foreign citizens 1910- 2006, 2006, retrieved 19 April 2008, p111 Portugeuse.
- ^ 2001 Australian of the Year Awards
[edit] External links
- Cosgrove bio, Australian War Memorial
- Cosgrove bio, www.icmi.com.au
- Pictorial bio, www.diggerhistory.info
Copyright pictures of Peter Cosgrove:
- 2007 picture in civies from transcript of ABC Talking Heads interview
- 2006 picture from Cosgrove admits he was wrong about Iraq, news.com.au, 15 October 2006 - promoting release of Cosgrove's autobiography.
- 2005 (June), Pre-retirement - signing MOA with Steve Gumley (CEO of DMO) and Ric Smith (former Secretary, Australian DoD) - from New Era for DMO and Defence, Defence Annual Report 2004-2005
- 2005 picture from ABC interview on release of Cosgrove's autobiography, 2 Nov 2006.
- 2004 Official portrait
- 2002 picture at the Australian Chief of Defence Change of Command Ceremony.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Admiral Chris Barrie AC, RAN |
Chief of Defence Force 2002–2005 |
Succeeded by Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston AC, AFC |
| Preceded by Lieutenant General Frank Hickling AO, CSC |
Chief of the Army 2000-2002 |
Succeeded by Lieutenant General Peter Leahy AC |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by Sir Gustav Nossal |
Australian of the Year 2001 |
Succeeded by Patrick Rafter |
