Harry Harcourt

Who was Harry Harcourt?

Harry Gladwyn Harcourt, DSO & Bar, OBE, MC was an officer in the British Army and later the Australian Army who commanded an Australian commando unit during the Second World War.

Harcourt's military career began in 1914 when he was commissioned into the British Army. During the First World War he served on the Western Front, commanding a machine gun unit. He gained promotion quickly, advancing to the rank of major by the end of the war. He also received a number of notable decorations. Later, Harcourt served during the Russian Civil War before emigrating to Australia in 1929. Following this, he worked as a public servant in Tasmania before the outbreak of the Second World War when he joined the Australian Army and subsequently went on to serve in the Australian commandos, taking part in the fighting in New Guinea and Borneo.

Following the end of the war, Harcourt retired from the military and returned to working for the Tasmanian government. He died in 1970 at the age of 75.