Peter John Cosgrove | |
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Peter Cosgrove at the 2008 National Anzac Day service at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra |
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Nickname | Cos |
Born | 28 July 1947 Sydney, Australia |
Allegiance | Australia |
Service/branch | Australian Army |
Years of service | 1965–2005 |
Rank | General |
Commands held | Chief of the Defence Force Chief of Army INTERFET Deployable Joint Force Land Command 1st Infantry Division School of Infantry 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment |
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 (New Zealand) Commander of the Legion of Merit (United States) Distinguished Service Order (Military) (Singapore) Officer of the Legion of Honour (France) Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Henry (Portugal) |
Other work | Author Leader, Cyclone Larry Task Force Chancellor, Australian Catholic University Board member, Qantas and numerous other publicly listed companies |
General Peter John Cosgrove AC, MC (born 28 July 1947) is a retired Australian Army officer. He was the Chief of the Defence Force from 3 July 2002 to 3 July 2005, when he retired from active service. In May 2010 he was appointed Chancellor of the Australian Catholic University,[1] taking up this post on 28 November 2010.
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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, Royal Australian Regiment, where he served with great distinction, receiving the Military Cross in 1971.[2] In 1980 he was awarded the National Medal.[3] In the mid-1980s he commanded the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment.[4]
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.[5] He 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).[6]
In 2004, then Foreign Minister Alexander Downer queried the judgement of Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty.[7] 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.[8] On 3 July 2005, Cosgrove's three 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.[9] He consequently wrote an autobiography, My Story,[8] which was a bestseller in Australia.
On 23 March 2006, 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.[10]
"In recognition of the important contribution General Cosgrove made to the community of North Queensland following Cyclone Larry", on 11 October 2008, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh announced that the new residential suburb in the Bohle Plains area of Townsville will be named Cosgrove.[11][12][13]
Peter 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 Lynne and has three adult sons and lives in Sydney.
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Peter_Cosgrove Peter Cosgrove] at Wikimedia Commons
Copyright pictures of Peter Cosgrove:
Australian of the Year | 2001[8] |
Military offices | ||
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Preceded by Lieutenant General Frank Hickling |
Chief of Army 2000–2002 |
Succeeded by Lieutenant General Peter Leahy |
Preceded by Admiral Chris Barrie |
Chief of Defence Force 2002–2005 |
Succeeded by Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston |
Awards | ||
Preceded by Sir Gustav Nossal |
Australian of the Year Award 2001 |
Succeeded by Patrick Rafter |
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