Lieutenant-General Sir Charles Henry Gairdner GBE KCMG KCVO CB

Charles Gairdner was born in Jakarta on 20 Mar 1898, the son of businessman Charles Arthur Gairdner. He was brought up in County Galway. He was educated in England at Repton School, and had his military training at RMA Woolwich. He was commissioned into the RA in May 1916 and sent to the Western Front. He was badly injured in the fighting and had to have 27 operations culminating in 1976 with his leg being amputated. Despite this injury he transferred to the cavalry after WW1 and served in the 10th Hussars, mostly in India where Charles Gairdner excelled at polo (see photo of regimental team). After 2 years at Staff College in 1933-34 he returned to the 10th Hussars and in 1937 was appointed CO. In that year the 10th was undergoing mechanisation and was brigaded (2nd Brigade) with the Queen’s Bay and the 9th Lancers. In 1939 they were part of the newly formed Royal Armoured Corps but they remained in England until May 1940. Colonel Gairdner relinquished command in April 1940 and went to the 7th Armoured Division as chief of staff. Following this he was made GOC of the 6th and 8th Armoured Divisions. In March 1945 he was promoted to lieutenant-general and posted to the staff of General Sir Harold Alexander, then as an emissary to Douglas MacArthur in the Far East. After the war he bought a property in County Westmeath in Ireland and spent much of his time hunting.
He was appointed Colonel of the 10th Hussars on 31 May 1949 but this post only lasted until 13 Mar 1952. In 1951 he was appointed Governor of Western Australia and while there the Queen visited Perth, in 1954. He remained Governor until 26 June 1963. During that time the Western Australian parliament was in recess from Oct 1955 until the 1956 general election so that Gairdner was close to having to exercise his reserve powers. The Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Perth was named in his honour in May 1963. From 23 Sep 1963 he was made Governor of Tasmania for 5 years. He was a Freemason and held the post of Grand Master of the Lodges both in Perth and in Tasmania. He spent his retirement in Perth, at Peppermint Grove and died there on 22 February 1983. He had a state funeral and was cremated. He was married in 1925 to the Hon Evelyn Handcock, daughter of Lord Catlemaine. The photo is of Major Gairdner c1935 in 10th Hussars dress uniform. He can also be seen in the group photo of officers in Meerut in 1932.

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