Thomas Griffiths ( general ) Brigadier General Thomas Griffiths CMG , CBE , DSO ( 29 September 1865 – 16 November 1947 ) was a Welsh - born officer in the Australian Army who served in mainly administrative positions during World War I . He later served as Administrator of Nauru and of Papua New Guinea . Early life . Thomas Griffiths was born on 29 September 1865 in the town of Presteigne , Radnor , Wales , the son of a builder . He was educated at the Old Vicarage , Wrexham , Denbighshire . After completing his schooling , he emigrated to Australia . Military career . In 1886 , Griffiths joined the Victorian Permanent Artillery as a gunner . Four years later , he became a military staff clerk at headquarters in Melbourne . He was promoted to regimental quartermaster sergeant in 1894 and the following year received a further promotion to warrant officer and became chief clerk of the Victorian Military Forces . After the Federation of Australia , he became a clerk in the Australian Military Forces , serving at the Adjutant General ' s office at Army Headquarters in Melbourne . In September 1908 he was appointed secretary to the Military Board with the honorary rank of lieutenant in the Administrative and Instructional Staff . He became an honorary captain on 30 August 1909 . World War I . At the time of the outbreak of World War I , Griffiths held the rank of honorary major . He volunteered for the First Australian Imperial Force ( AIF ) on 15 August 1914 , and was appointed as a captain on the 1st Division staff . In January 1915 , Major General Bridges appointed Griffiths as his military secretary . On 28 March 1915 he became Deputy Assistant Adjutant General ( DAAG ) of the 1st Division . Griffith landed at Anzac Cove with the 1st Division Headquarters at around 7 : 30 am on 25 April 1915 . He would serve throughout the Gallipoli Campaign . As DAAG , he was responsible for personnel and on most nights could be found on the beach , checking and sorting reinforcements , often under fire . On 12 May 1915 , Griffiths became acting Deputy Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster General ( DAA & QMG ) . As such he was deputy to Lieutenant Colonel Foott , who was responsible for all administration and logistics in the 1st Division area at Anzac Cove . In June , Griffiths was promoted to major . In October 1915 , Griffiths was transferred to the staff of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps , then under the command of Lieutenant General Sir William Birdwood . He acted as Birdwood ' s military secretary , and given responsibility for all matters concerning promotion . In effect , Griffiths became adjutant general of the AIF , and it would be through him that Birdwood administered the AIF . For his work at Gallipoli and in the subsequent reorganisation of the AIF in Egypt , Griffiths was mentioned in despatches and awarded the Distinguished Service Order ( DSO ) . In May 1916 , with Birdwood now commanding I Anzac Corps which was intended for service on the Western Front , Griffiths was promoted to lieutenant colonel and formally became Assistant Adjutant General of the AIF . On 8 April 1917 , and against his wishes , Griffiths became acting commandant of the AIF Headquarters in London . He was promoted to full colonel and confirmed in the post on 12 May 1917 . As such he was responsible for the entire administration of the AIF , the handling of pay and promotions , the recording of deaths and casualties , the postal services and record keeping . Griffiths was also the representative of the Department of the Defence in dealings with the British War Office . On 1 January 1918 , he became a temporary brigadier general . The war ended with Griffiths in Australia , having travelled there to work out medical policy with the Department of Defence . The armistice rendered his task moot , and he returned to London in December and resumed duty at AIF Headquarters for several months . He was discharged from the AIF on his return to Melbourne in September 1919 . He was highly thought of by his superior , Brigadier General Brudenell White and Charles Bean wrote that he " was one of the great figures of the Australian Army . " For his work , Griffiths was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George ( CMG ) in January 1917 and Commander of the Order of the British Empire ( CBE ) in January 1919 . Post war . In March 1920 , Griffiths became Inspector General of Administration at the Department of Defence but this was only for a short period before he took up an appointment as Administrator of New Guinea the following month . He served in this role for nearly a year . In 1921 , he became Administrator of Nauru , a post he held until 1927 , when he retired . His retirement was short lived ; in 1929 he became head of the Commonwealth War Pensions Entitlement Appeal Tribunal . He returned to New Guinea as Administrator from 1932 to 1934 , after which he retired . He attempted to come out of retirement again in 1938 , when he unsuccessfully applied for the administrator position in Nauru . During World War II he served for a time in the Department of Defence Co - ordination . Griffiths died on 16 November 1947 and was buried with military honours in Melbourne General Cemetery . His wife , who he had married in 1891 , predeceased him . The couple had two daughters .