List of New Zealand military personnel explained

The following is a list of notable New Zealand people associated with the military, including those who participated in warfare or saw active service in New Zealand.

Musket Wars

• Hone Heke - Nga Puhi tribal chief and war leader
• Hongi Hika - Nga Puhi tribal chief and war leader
• Te Pēhi Kupe
• Te Rangihaeata
• Te Rauparaha
• Tītore - Nga Puhi tribal chief; led war parties to the East Cape in 1820 and 1821 and participated in the Girls' War

New Zealand Wars

Major Ropata Wahawaha|thumb|right

• • • Samuel Austin - recipient of the New Zealand Cross Duncan Alexander Cameron - Commander of British forces during part of the New Zealand Wars George Jackson Carey
• Robert Carey - Commander of British forces at the Battle of Ōrākau
  • Trevor Chute - Commander of British forces during part of the New Zealand Wars Thomas Bernard Collinson - Corps of Royal Engineers, Board of Ordnance, New Zealand, 1846–1850.^[1] Hosey's Battle, Whanganui, 1847
• Robert FitzRoy - Captain in Her Majesty’s Royal Navy, Governor and Commander in Chief in and over the Colony of New Zealand, Vice-Admiral of New Zealand, 1843-1845, Colonel of the Auckland Battalion of Militia, 1845. Flagstaff War, 1845
  • Charles Emilius Gold - Commander of British forces during the early stages of the First Taranaki War, part of the New Zealand Wars Charles Heaphy - recipient of the Victoria Cross, awarded for his actions during an engagement in the Invasion of the Waikato; a surveyor and explorer prior to the New Zealand Wars, he was later a Member of Parliament
• William Magee Hunter (1834-1868)^[2]
• Tāmati Wāka Nene - Māori rangatira (chief) of the Ngāpuhi iwi. British ally, Flagstaff War, 1845–1846
• Marmaduke Nixon - officer in the militia during the Invasion of the Waikato; killed in action at Rangiaowhia
• William Odgers VC - first man to win the Victoria Cross in the New Zealand land wars
  • Thomas Simson Pratt - British commander in the First Taranaki War George Preece - officer in the Armed Constabulary during the later stages of the New Zealand Wars and recipient of the New Zealand Cross
• Kepa Te Rangihiwinui - Maori leader on British side in the Taranaki Wars
• Beauchamp Seymour, 1st Baron Alcester - British naval commander in New Zealand, 1860-1861
• Te Kooti - the founder of the Ringatū religion and guerrilla fighter during the later stages of the New Zealand Wars
• Tītokowaru - Ngāti Ruanui tribal chief and war leader during the later stages of the New Zealand Wars
• Ropata Wahawaha - Ngāti Porou tribal chief who fought on the British side during the later stages of the New Zealand Wars

Boer War

• Edward Chaytor - commanded the Second and Eighth Contingents sent to South Africa; commanded the ANZAC Mounted Division during World War I and was Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces, from 1919 to 1924
• Janet Gillies, nurse
• William James Hardham - awarded Victoria Cross, later served in World War I
• John Gethin Hughes - a soldier in the First Contingent sent to South Africa and first New Zealand recipient of the Distinguished Service Order; later commanded an infantry battalion at Gallipoli during World War I
• James O'Sullivan - Defence storekeeper at the time of Boer War
• Alfred William Robin - commanded the First Contingent sent to South Africa; later Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces, from 1914 to 1919

World War I

• Leslie Cecil Lloyd Averill - Platoon Commander and first New Zealander to scale the walls of Le Quesnoy
• Ronald Bannerman - World War I fighter ace
• Cyril Bassett - first soldier of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force to receive the Victoria Cross, awarded for his actions during the Battle of Chunuk Bair at Gallipoli, in August 1915
• Arthur Bauchop - commander of the Otago Mounted Rifles
• Harold Beamish - fighter ace with No. 3 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service
• William Thomas Beck - first New Zealand soldier ashore at Gallipoli
• Charles Mackie Begg - medical officer who served at Gallipoli and on the Western Front
• Charles Henry Brown - officer who served at Gallipoli and commanded an infantry brigade on the Western Front; killed in action during the Battle of Messines in 1917
• Donald Forrester Brown - posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross, the first such award to a soldier of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force serving on the Western Front
• Keith Caldwell - fighter ace and commander of the Royal Flying Corps' No. 74 Squadron; later a senior officer in the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II and the postwar period^[3]
• Thomas Culling - first New Zealand fighter ace of World War I
• James Lloyd Findlay - soldier and fighter pilot
• Nora FitzGibbon - nurse^[4]
• Harry Fulton - senior officer who commanded an infantry brigade on the Western Front; killed in action in 1918
• Herbert Ernest Hart - senior officer who served at Gallipoli and commanded an infantry brigade on the Western Front; later administrator of Western Samoa
• Francis Earl Johnston - senior officer who commanded an infantry brigade at Gallipoli and on the Western Front; killed in action in 1917
• George Napier Johnston - Commander Royal Artillery of the New Zealand Division
• George Augustus King - officer who served at Gallipoli and on the Western Front; killed in action during the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917
• Norman Joseph Levien - Ordnance Officer Egypt, Gallipoli, France and United Kingdom
• William George Malone - Commander of the Wellington Infantry Battalion, killed in action at Gallipoli
• Thomas James McCristell - officer in charge of the Ordnance Corps in New Zealand
• Charles Melvill - senior officer who commanded an infantry brigade on the Western Front; later Commandant of New Zealand Military Forces, from 1924 to 1925
• Arthur Plugge - officer who served at Gallipoli and on the Western Front
• Andrew Hamilton Russell - Commander of the New Zealand Division
• William Sinclair-Burgess - New Zealand officer serving with Australian forces
• James Waddell - New Zealand soldier serving with the French Foreign Legion
• Bright Williams - last surviving New Zealand Soldier of the First World War
• Robert Young - senior officer who commanded an infantry brigade on the Western Front; later Commandant of New Zealand Military Forces, from 1925 to 1931

World War II

(some served also in World War I)

• Russell Aitken - pilot in the Royal Air Force who pioneered the use of amphibian aircraft for rescuing downed British pilots during the Battle of Britain
• Leslie Andrew - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece, Crete, and North Africa; also a Victoria Cross recipient of World War I
• Fred Baker - Commander, 28th Maori Battalion
• Fraser Barron - bomber pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force; served with Bomber Command and one of only four personnel of the RNZAF to be awarded the Distinguished Service Order twice
• Harold Eric Barrowclough - Commander, 3rd New Zealand Division
• Minden Blake - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Stanley Browne - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Brian Carbury - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Sir Roderick Carr - RAF Bomber Command and Chief of the Indian Air Force
• Johnny Checketts - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force; commanded No. 485 Squadron RNZAF for a period in 1943
• George Herbert Clifton - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece and North Africa
• Wilfred Clouston - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force; commanded fighter squadrons during the course of World War II^[5]
• Basil Collyns - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Sir Arthur Coningham - RAF Second Tactical Air Force commander
• Bill Crawford-Crompton - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force; commanded several squadrons and fighter wings during the course of World War II
• William Cunningham - Commandant of the Fiji Defence Force^[6]
• Dan Davin - 2NZEF officer and author of war history
• Alan Deere - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force^[7]
• Antonio Dini - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• John Evelyn Duigan - Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Military Forces, from 1937 to 1941
• Keith Elliott - soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross
  • Geoffrey Bryson Fisken - RNZAF fighter ace, initially on Brewster Buffalo Mick Ensor - high decorated Coastal Command pilot of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, later served in the Royal Air Force
  • Baron Freyberg of Wellington - Commander, 2NZEF and 2nd New Zealand Division; later Governor-General of New Zealand Colin Falkland Gray - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force; commanded several squadrons and fighter wings during the course of World War II
• James Hayter - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Gilbert Hayton - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Michael Herrick - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force; commanded No. 15 Squadron RNZAF for a period in 1943^[8]
• Jack Hinton - soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Thomas W. Horton - Commander of No 105 RAF Pathfinder squadron
• Clive Hulme - soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Reginald Hyde - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Lindsay Merritt Inglis - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece, Crete, North Africa and Italy
• Edgar James "Cobber" Kain - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force; the first pilot to win a Distinguished Flying Cross in World War II
• Thomas Joseph King - DADOS HQ 2nd New Zealand Division
• Howard Karl "Kip" Kippenberger - Commander, 2nd New Zealand Division
• John Noble MacKenzie - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Haane Manahi - soldier and recipient of the Distinguished Conduct Medal
• Owen Mead - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF and the highest ranking soldier of the New Zealand Military Forces to be killed on active service
• Reginald Miles - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece and North Africa
• Harold North - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Sir Keith Park - No. 11 Group RAF commander during the Battle of Britain; later commanded in Malta and Southeast Asia
• Nigel Park - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force; nephew of Sir Keith Park
• Graham Beresford Parkinson - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece, North Africa and Italy
• John Pattison - fighter pilot with the Royal Air Force; later transferred to the Royal New Zealand Air Force and commanded No. 485 Squadron RNZAF for a period in 1944–45
• Sir Peter Phipps - founding Chief of Defence Staff
• Edward Puttick - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece and Crete; later Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Military Forces, from 1941 to 1945
• Raymond Queree - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece, North Africa and Italy
• Paul Rabone - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Jack Rae - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Robert Row - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece and in the Pacific; commanded 8th Brigade during the Battle of the Treasury Islands
• Warren Schrader - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Desmond J. Scott - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Irving Smith - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force; later served with the Royal Air Force in the postwar period
• Robert Spurdle - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Gray Stenborg - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal New Zealand Air Force
• William George Stevens - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF
• Keith Lindsay Stewart - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF in Greece, Crete and Italy; later Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Military Forces, from 1949 to 1952
• Donald Stott - soldier in the 2NZEF, later served in Special Operations Executive and Z Special Unit
• Leonard Trent - pilot and recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Lloyd Alan Trigg - pilot and recipient of the Victoria Cross; only person so awarded solely on recommendation of the enemy
• Charles Upham - soldier of 20th Battalion and two-time recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Nancy Wake - most decorated servicewoman of World War II
• Sidney Wallingford - senior officer of the Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Derek Harland Ward - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• James Allen Ward - bomber pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force, 75 Squadron RNZAF; recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Norman Weir - senior officer who served with the 2NZEF; later Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Military Forces, from 1946 to 1949
• Edward Wells - fighter pilot and flying ace with the Royal Air Force
• Bert Wipiti - fighter pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force

Post-WWII

• Denis Barnett - Commander, British Forces Cyprus
• Richard Bolt - bomber pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II; later Chief of the Air Staff from 1974 to 1976 and then Chief of the Defence Staff from 1976 to 1980^[9]
• Sir William Gentry - officer who served with the 2NZEF during World War II; later Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Army, from 1952 to 1955
• Ronald Hassett - officer who served with the 2NZEF during World War II and with Kayforce in the Korean War; later Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Army, from 1976 to 1978
• Walter McKinnon - officer who served with the 2NZEF during World War II; later Chief of General Staff, New Zealand Army, from 1965 to 1967
• Ian Morrison - bomber pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II; later Chief of the Air Staff from 1962 to 1966
• Melissa Ross - senior officer in the Royal New Zealand Navy
• William Stratton - fighter pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II; later Chief of the Air Staff from 1969 to 1971

See also

• List of World War II aces from New Zealand
• Military history of New Zealand
• New Zealand Defence Force#Previous Chiefs

References

• Book: Claasen, Adam. 2017. Fearless: The Extraordinary Untold Story of New Zealand's Great War Airmen. Massey University Press. Auckland, New Zealand. 978-0-9941407-8-4.
• Book: Hanson, C. M.. 2001. By Such Deeds: Honours and Awards in the Royal New Zealand Air Force 1923–1999. Volplane Press. Christchurch, New Zealand. 0-473-07301-3.
• Book: Glyn Harper

. Harper. Glyn. Glyn Harper. Richardson. Colin. In the Face of the Enemy: The Complete History of the Victoria Cross and New Zealand. 2007. HarperCollins Publishers. Auckland, New Zealand. 978-1-86950-650-6.

• Book: Lambert, Max. 2011. Day After Day: New Zealanders in Fighter Command. HarperCollins Publishers. Auckland, New Zealand. 978-1-86950-844-9.
• Book: McGibbon. Ian. Ian McGibbon. The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Military History. 2000. Oxford University Press. Auckland, New Zealand. 0-19-558376-0.
• Book: Mitchell, Alan W.. New Zealanders in the Air War. 1945. George G. Harrap & Co.. London, United Kingdom. 1079233416.
• Book: Snelling, Stephen. VCs of the First World War: Passchendaele 1917. 2012. History Press. Stroud, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom. 978-0-7524-7666-7.
• Book: Thompson . H. L. . New Zealanders with the Royal Air Force. I . 1953 . Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–45. Historical Publications Branch . Wellington, New Zealand .
• Book: Thompson, H. L.. 1956. New Zealanders with the Royal Air Force. II. Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–45. War History Branch. Wellington. 300089346.
• Book: Wynn . Kenneth G. . A Clasp for 'The Few': New Zealanders with the Battle of Britain Clasp . 1981 . Kenneth G. Wynn . Auckland, New Zealand . 0-86-465-0256.

Notes and References

1. Obituary: Thomas Bernard Collinson, 1821–1902. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 150. Institution of Civil Engineers. 1902. 1902. 461. 10.1680/imotp.1902.18336.
2. Web site: Taonga . New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu . Hunter, William Magee . 2023-01-30 . teara.govt.nz . en.
3. Web site: Tonks . Matthew . Keith Caldwell . New Zealand History . Ministry for Culture and Heritage . 23 November 2019.
4. Web site: Taonga . New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu . FitzGibbon, Hanorah Philomena . 2023-01-30 . teara.govt.nz . en.
5. Web site: Phipps . Gareth . Wilfred Clouston: Biography . NZ History . New Zealand Ministry of Culture and Heritage . 12 March 2020.
6. Web site: William Henry Cunningham. Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database . 4 April 2016.
7. Web site: Phipps . Gareth . Alan Deere Biography . New Zealand History . New Zealand Ministry of Culture . 5 May 2020.
8. Web site: Phipps . Gareth . Michael Herrick Biography . New Zealand History . New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage . 20 September 2020.
9. Web site: Sir Richard Bolt Dies in Lower Hutt . 28 July 2014 . Scoop Media . 24 November 2019.