James Whiteside McCay
Politician
1864 – 1930
Who was James Whiteside McCay?
Lieutenant General Sir James Whiteside McCay KCMG, KBE, CB, VD was an Australian general and politician.
A graduate of the University of Melbourne, where he earned Master of Arts and Master of Laws degrees, McCay established a successful legal practice, McCay & Thwaites. He was a member of the Victorian Parliament for Castlemaine from 1895 to 1899, where he was a champion of women's suffrage and federation. He lost his seat in 1899 but became a member of the first Australian Federal Parliament in 1901. He was Minister for Defence from 1904 to 1905, during which he implemented long-lasting reforms, including the creation of the Military Board.
As a soldier, McCay commanded the 2nd Infantry Brigade in the landing at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915, during the Gallipoli Campaign of the Great War. He was later wounded in the Second Battle of Krithia and invalided to Australia, but returned to command the 5th Division, which he led in the Battle of Fromelles in 1916, dubbed "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history."
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- Born
- Dec 21, 1864
Ballynure - Children
- Religion
- Presbyterianism
- Nationality
- Australia
- Profession
- Education
- Scotch College, Melbourne
- University of Melbourne
- Lived in
- County Antrim
- Died
- Oct 1, 1930
Melbourne
Submitted
on July 23, 2013
Citation
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