Frank Hassett General Sir Francis George " Frank " Hassett ( 11 April 1918 – 11 June 2008 ) was an Australian general who rose to the position of Chief of the Defence Force Staff , the professional head of the Australian Defence Force , serving in this capacity from November 1975 until April 1977 . Hassett joined the Australian Army in 1935 upon gaining entrance into the Royal Military College , Duntroon . Serving with distinction in the early stages of the Second World War , he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1942 at the age of 23 , and posted as a staff officer for the remainder of the war . In 1951 , Hassett was appointed to command the 3rd Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment in Korea , where he led the unit through some of the toughest fighting of the war . For his leadership and planning during the Battle of Maryang San , he was granted an immediate award of the Distinguished Service Order . Promoted to brigadier in 1960 , Hassett commanded a brigade in Malaya for three years , before returning to Australia and serving in a variety of positions which eventually resulted in his appointment as Chief of the General Staff with the rank of lieutenant general . Promoted to general after two years in this role , he was appointed Chairman , Chiefs of Staff Committee , which was reorganised as Chief of the Defence Force Staff the following year . Hassett died in 2008 at the age of 90 . Early life and career . Hassett was born on 11 April 1918 , in the Sydney suburb of Marrickville , New South Wales . The son of a railway yard manager , he attended Canterbury Boys ' High School before leaving at the age of 15 and gaining employment with the Department of Tramways . Seeking a position at the Royal Military College , Duntroon , he only gained entry after receiving special consideration from Colonel John Lavarack , the Chairman of the College ' s Selection Board . Hassett began his course at the college in March 1935 , aged 16 , and soon proved himself a capable cadet . He excelled at military subjects and excelled in the College rugby , boxing , equestrian and athletics teams , later captaining the rugby XV . In 1938 he was promoted to under officer , a position marking him as the senior cadet in his company , and commissioned as a lieutenant later in the year . Upon graduation , Hassett was posted to the Darwin Mobile Force and given command of a rifle platoon , and then of a Mortar Platoon . Due to the constraints of the Defence Act , the Darwin Mobile Force was officially designated an artillery unit and he thus began his infantry career in the artillery . Second World War . At the outbreak of the Second World War , Hassett was promoted to captain and posted as Adjutant to the 2 / 3rd Battalion of the 6th Division . The division sailed for the Middle East from Sydney on 10 January 1940 , and disembarked in Egypt a little over a month later in preparation for service in the North African Campaign . After further training in Palestine and Egypt , < ref name = " 2 / 3 " > < / ref > the battalion took part in an attack on the Italian coastal fortress of Bardia . Two weeks later , the 2 / 3rd Battalion took part in the capture of Tobruk by the 6th Division . Tasked with laying white tapes for a start - line on the eve of the attack , Hassett found a weak point in the Italian front line , where he proceeded to lay the tapes . In an effort to complete the task before dawn , he began to walk instead of crawling and prodding for mines ; one duly blew up , with Hassett suffering shrapnel wounds to his foot . He was subsequently Mentioned in Despatches for his actions . Having recovered from his wounds , Hassett was sent to the British Army Staff College at Haifa and was subsequently promoted to major . Shortly afterwards , he was posted as Brigade Major to the 18th Brigade in Syria . When Japan entered the war , Hassett planned and controlled the brigade ' s embarkation from Suez and return to Australia , learning on his arrival that he had been promoted to lieutenant colonel . At 23 , he was the youngest army officer to attain that rank . Training postings followed before he received an appointment as a staff officer in New Guinea . By the end of the Second World War , he was chief of staff to the 3rd Division conducting operations against the Japanese forces on the island of Bougainville , without having an operational command . For his services in the Pacific , Hassett was again Mentioned in Despatches and awarded an Officer of the Order of the British Empire . As a result of his World War II service , Hassett was also awarded the 1939 – 1945 Star , the Africa Star , the Pacific Star , the Defence Medal , the War Medal 1939 – 1945 ( with oakleaf for Mention in Despatches ) and the Australia Service Medal 1939 – 45 . Inter - bellum . Returning to Australia after the end of the war , Hassett was posted as an instructor at the Australian Army Staff College in Toowoomba . On 18 May 1946 he married Hallie Roberts , with whom he had four children . In 1948 , Hassett was posted as a staff officer to the 2nd Division , remaining in this position until March 1951 , when he assumed command of the 1st Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment ( 1RAR ) . While in command of the battalion at Holsworthy Barracks , New South Wales , the couple ' s first child , a daughter named Lyndal , was born . Korean War . In June 1951 , Hassett was sent to Korea to assume command of the 3rd Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment ( 3RAR ) . He led the battalion through some of the toughest fighting of the war , which reached its peak in October – December 1951 in Operation Commando . The operation was designed to strengthen the Allied position , and on 5 October Hassett was tasked with the capture of Hill 317 , better known as Maryang San . Maryang San was a two - mile - long crescent - shaped ridge with irregular extending spurs rising two hundred meters above the valley . Ideal for defence , it was held by well - entrenched Chinese troops supported by artillery and mortars . While British forces attacked further west , men from A Company 3RAR attempted an advance along a spur south - east of the summit . The attack acted as a feint by drawing Chinese defenders away from the main ridgeline , up which B and D Companies then advanced . After a series of assaults , D Company managed to capture four knolls leading up the ridgeline before C Company took over the attack and captured a feature known as Baldy , before moving on quickly to occupy the summit , which had been abandoned by the Chinese . Throughout the next day , the Australians held the summit against heavy Chinese fire and several attempts to infiltrate the position . Early on 7 October , B Company captured the final objective , ' the Hinge ' , after heavy fighting . Subject to severe and continuous artillery bombardment throughout the following day , the Chinese attempted a number of counter - attacks in the evening ; all of which were repulsed before the Chinese finally withdrew and the Australians ' hold on Maryang San was secured . For his leadership and planning during the battle , Hassett received an immediate award of the Distinguished Service Order , before returning to Australia in July 1952 , where he was posted as the director of military art at the Royal Military College , Duntroon . As a result of his Korean service , Hassett was also awarded the Australian Active Service Medal 1945 – 1975 , the Korea Medal and the United Nations Korea Medal . Later career . In 1954 , Hassett served as a marshal for Queen Elizabeth II ' s world tour , and was appointed a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order for his service . Promoted to Brigadier in 1960 , he was appointed to command the 28th Commonwealth Infantry Brigade in Malaya , conducting counter - insurgency operations . During this time he also led participation in regional exercises with Thailand and contributed to developments in tropical warfare and counter - insurgency . Upon leaving Malaya in 1963 , he attended the Imperial Defence College in London , before returning to Canberra as Deputy Chief of the General Staff with the rank of major general . In the 1966 New Years Honours , Hassett was upgraded to a Commander of the Order of the British Empire , and also awarded the Malaysian Pingat Jasa Kebaktian ( Meritorious Service Medal ) for his services in Malaya . Appointed General Officer in Command of Australia ' s Northern Command in 1968 , Hassett was awarded a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the Queen ' s Birthday Honours of 1970 . Later in 1970 he was selected to lead the Army Review Committee , which became more colloquially known as the " Hassett Committee " . The committee ' s far reaching reforms included moving from a geographical to a functional command system , which involved ( in part ) the replacement of the various State Army Command Headquarters with a national field force , training and logistics command system ; a system that remains largely in place today . In 1971 Hassett was appointed Vice Chief of the General Staff and tasked with implementing the organisational reforms he had initiated , as well as supervising the end of conscription , the withdrawal of Australian troops from Vietnam , and the consequential organisational changes brought about by a reduction in Army manpower . In 1973 Hassett was promoted to lieutenant general and appointed Chief of the General Staff . Appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in June 1975 , he was promoted to general in November and became Chairman , Chiefs of Staff Committee , the professional head of the Australian Military . When the Australian Defence Force ( ADF ) was established on 9 February 1976 , Hassett assumed the new appointment of Chief of the Defence Force Staff , which expanded his authority over the three services and made him the ADF ' s first commander . In June 1976 Hassett was knighted as a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire . Ill health forced Hassett into retirement in April 1977 ; he was awarded the National Medal in the 1977 Queens Birthday Honours . Other awards received during his career included the Australian Service Medal 1945 – 1975 , General Service Medal ( with Malaya clasp ) , the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal ( 1952 ) , the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ( 1977 ) , the Defence Force Service Medal ( with Federation Star ) for over 40 years service , the Australian Defence Medal and more recently the Pingat Jasa Malaysia . Retirement . Following his retirement , General and Lady Hassett settled into farming near Canberra , where he was later appointed Colonel Commandant of the Royal Australian Regiment . In 2006 , after a sizable donation was made to the Royal Australian Regiment Foundation by the pair , the Hassett Award was established in order to annually honour junior leadership within the Regiment . General Hassett died at his home on 11 June 2008 after a long battle with illness .