Murray Bourchier
VD | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 5th Deputy Premier of Victoria | |
| In office 2 April 1935 – 24 June 1936 | |
| Preceded by | Wilfrid Kent Hughes |
| Succeeded by | Francis Old |
| Constituency | Goulbourn Valley |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 April 1881 Grazier, soldier |
Early life
Murray was the eldest son of Edward and Francis Bourchier, owners of the Woodland Park property near
Military career
World War I
Bourchier commanded a
While on Gallipoli he was appointed temporary captain on 1 July 1915 and adjutant of the 4th Light Horse Regiment on 7 September. He became the acting commander of "A" Squadron on 19 October 1915 and gained his substantive captaincy on 22 November. He was promoted to major on 20 January 1916. The recommendation for promotion noted that "he was always quite cool and collected, and this had a very good effect upon his men".[3] He assumed full command of "A" Squadron on 1 February 1916.
Bourchier was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 15 March 1917 and took command of the 4th Light Horse Regiment. On 31 October 1917 he led the 4th and 12th Regiments in the four-mile charge against Turkish positions at the Battle of Beersheba, capturing 15 of the 17 wells intact and taking over 700 prisoners. In a later report he summed up the effect of the attack:[4]
In commenting on the attack I consider that the success was due to the rapidity with which the movement was carried out. Owing to the volume of fire brought to bear from the enemy's position by Machine Guns and rifles, a dismounted attack would have resulted in a much greater number of casualties. It was noticed also that the morale of the enemy was greatly shaken through our troops galloping over his positions thereby causing his riflemen and machine gunners to lose all control of fire discipline. When the troops came within short range of the trenches the enemy seemed to direct almost all his fire at the horses.
He received the Distinguished Service Order on 4 November 1917:[5]
For the gallant and capable manner in which as Commanding Officer of the 4th Australian Light Horse regiment he personally directed his Regiment into action on the attack on BEERSHEBA on 31 October 1917. This officer, by his skilful handling of his Regiment and by his magnificent example of courage and determination, was very largely instrumental in the success of the attack and capture of the town.
In September 1918 Bourchier again commanded a joint force of the 4th and 12th Regiments ("Bourchier's Force") in the final advance on
In the face of a very heavy fire this officer led his regiment on 27 Sept. across the JORDAN below JISR BENAT YAKUB over a very difficult crossing and thus outflanked the enemy and compelled his to withdraw from the position. On 30 Sept. this officer was in command of the 4th and 12th A.L.H. [Light Horse] Regiments which formed the advanced guard of the [Australian Mounted] Division in its advance from SASA to DAMASCUS. He captured the enemy's position at KAUKAB by a spirited mounted charge of two Regiments without any delay and thus opened the way to DAMASCUS where his troops were the first to enter.
He took temporary command of 4th Light Horse Brigade in November–December 1918 while Brigadier William Grant was in temporary command of the ANZAC Mounted Division. During the war he was mentioned in dispatches three times.[7] The regiment returned to Australia in June 1919.
Post war
After the war Bourchier returned to his farm near
Political career
Bourchier was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly in 1920, representing the Victorian Farmers' Union in the electoral district of Goulburn Valley. His maiden speech was an attack on the Lawson government's neglect of ex-servicemen.[7]
He was re-elected as a
He resigned from Parliament in August 1936 and was appointed
Personal life
Of Irish Protestant descent, the Bourchier surname is of Anglo-Norman origin. He was also a
Legacy
Bourchier Street in
References
- ^ ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
- ^ First World War Embarkation Roll entry - Australian War Memorial
- ^ Recommendation - Australian War Memorial
- S2CID 159813243.
- ^ Citation - Australian War Memorial
- ^ Citation - Australian War Memorial
- ^ a b c d e "Sir Murray William James Bourchier". Re-Member: a database of all Victorian MPs since 1851. Parliament of Victoria. Archived from the original on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
- ^ Tony Bonner, imdb.com (without date).
External links
- Honours and awards (gazetted) - Australian War Memorial
