George Steward

Lieutenant Colonel Sir George Charles Thomas Steward KBE, CMG (18 March 1865 – 11 May 1920) was a senior Australian public servant and officer in the Australian Army.[2] He held several notable positions during his career, including Official Secretary to five Governors-General, being the first to hold that title, and Chief Commissioner of the Victoria Police from 1919 until his death in 1920. During his time as Official Secretary, Steward founded the Australian branch of the Imperial Counter Espionage Bureau, later known as the Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB). This was Australia's first secret intelligence service.

Lieutenant Colonel
Sir George Charles Thomas Steward
KBE CMG
George Steward in civilian dress, circa 1914
Personal details
Born(1865-03-18)18 March 1865
Spitalfields, London, England
Died11 May 1920(1920-05-11) (aged 55)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Military service
AllegianceAustralia
Branch/serviceTasmanian Auxiliary Forces
Citizen Military Forces
RankLieutenant Colonel
1st Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia
In office
27 March 1903 – 28 February 1919
MonarchsEdward VII
George V
Governors-GeneralLord Tennyson,
Lord Northcote,
Lord Dudley,
Lord Denman,
Sir Ronald Munro Ferguson
Preceded byPost created
Succeeded byJohn Starling
7th Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police
In office
1 March 1919[1] – 11 May 1920
Preceded byAlfred Sainsbury
Succeeded bySir John Gellibrand

Career

Steward was a member of the civil service of the colony of Tasmania, in which he advanced rapidly. He was an officer in the Tasmanian Auxiliary Forces, and later the Australian Citizen Military Forces. He raised the first Mounted Infantry Corps of Tasmania.[3]

At Federation in 1901, there was a push from the newly formed states to have representatives from their former colonial civil services to take senior positions in the new Commonwealth Public Service. Steward was originally expected to become the Secretary of the Department of External Affairs. However, Sir Edmund Barton, Prime Minister and holding the portfolio of Minister for External Affairs, decided instead to appoint Atlee Hunt as the senior official in the Department. Steward instead served as Chief Clerk.[2]

Steward's grave at St Kilda Cemetery

In December 1902, Steward was appointed as the Official Secretary to the Governor General, Lord Tennyson. He was the first person to serve in this position which he held for seventeen years, under five Governors General.[4][5] When war broke out in 1914, Steward's civilian employment took precedence, and he was not released for military service despite his military experience. In 1916, as part of his role in the Governor General's office, Steward founded the Australian branch of the Imperial Counter Espionage Bureau, later known as the Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB).[6] This was Australia's first secret intelligence service.

Steward was appointed as Chief Commissioner of the Victoria Police in 1919, which attracted some controversy because he was not a police officer himself.[7] He served as Chief Commissioner until his death on 11 May 1920, after suffering a heart attack while driving. He is buried in the St Kilda Cemetery.[8]

Honours and awards

Steward was made Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George on the same day as Major General Sir William Throsby Bridges KCB CMG in 1909.[9]

Family

Steward was twice married. His first wife was Edith Jermyn (b. 1868) daughter of a fishmonger, whom he married in Stepney in December 1885. They had two sons Reginald George Steward (1886-1945) and Herbert Charles "Bertram" Steward (1888-1955). Edith and the children accompanied Steward to Tasmania in 1892 but left him and returned to London in about 1894. Steward later (1906) divorced Edith on grounds of adultery.[10] In February 1908 he married Anna Lucas Synnott of Geelong, Victoria. They had no children. She survived him and later remarried, dying in 1936.

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE)Awarded 1918[11]
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG)Awarded 1909[9]

References
  1. "About People". The Age. 3 March 1919. p. 6. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  2. Cunneen, Chris, "Steward, Sir George Charles Thomas (1865–1920)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 15 November 2021
  3. "NEW POLICE COMMISSIONER". Age. 14 February 1919. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  4. "Government Gazette Appointments and Employment". Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. 4 April 1903. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  5. "COMMONWEALTH PUBLIC SERVICE". Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. 27 February 1919. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  6. "History of Australian intelligence and security". www.naa.gov.au. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  7. "SIR GEORGE STEWARD". Australian Town and Country Journal. 19 February 1919. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  8. "LATE SIR GEORGE STEWARD". Argus. 14 May 1920. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  9. Titles Colonel Bridges, Major Steward, Judge Simpson, Thomas Garvin, William J. Scott, A Moncrieff M, General Barron, Lt/Col JG Davies, Judge Beckett, George Throssell. Prime Minister's Department. 1909.
  10. "1906/58 Steward v Steward & Bolland: Divorce" "Public Record Office of Victoria". Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  11. "Australian Honours Search Facility". honours.pmc.gov.au. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
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