Major General John Macquarie Antill, CB, CMG (26 January 1866 – 1 March 1937) was a senior Australian Army officer in the New South Wales Mounted Rifles serving in the Second Boer War, and an Australian Army general in the First World War.
[2] His sister was Elisabeth Ann Antill (1871–1927) who married Brigadier General Harry Lassetter in 1891,[6] and survived the sinking of the RMS Lusitania in 1915.
Two years later, he took command of a squadron of the New South Wales Mounted Rifles that he helped to raise in Picton, and from 19 January 1889 he served in this unit with the rank of captain.
Under orders from Major General Edward Hutton, the commander of the New South Wales Military Forces, Antill undertook a temporary detachment to the British Army, serving with them in India in 1893, where he was attached firstly to the 1st Battalion, Devonshire Regiment and then to the 2nd Dragoon Guards.
[5] For service in South Africa, Antill was Mentioned in Despatches twice, was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in 1901,[8] and achieved the brevetted rank of lieutenant colonel.
Remaining in the regular forces, he then undertook an instructional role between 1902 and 1904,[2] and then served as Governor General, Henry Northcote's aide de camp between 1904 and 1906.
He returned to civilian life in Picton until 1911 when he took up the role of Commandant of the Instructional Staff Schools,[5] based in Albury, New South Wales.
He departed for the Middle East on 25 February 1915 on the Transport A16 Star of Victoria,[10] reaching Egypt where the brigade undertook further training.
In May, the light horsemen were sent to Anzac Cove as dismounted reinforcements; initially, Antill's brigade undertook mainly defensive duties.
[17] On 5 August, after an Ottoman force attacked at Romani, Antill's brigade joined the rest of the ANZAC Mounted Division east of the canal.
[2] During the Battle of Bir el Ard, Antill's brigade penetrated the Turkish flank and overran the defensive position at Hamisah, taking some 425 prisoners.
While reforming after the engagement his regiments began receiving shell fire, and Antill ordered a withdrawal to Nagid, remaining overnight.
[18] Only days after Romani, General William Birdwood sent a message requesting Antill take command of an infantry brigade on the Western Front.
Antill accepted the offer, and relinquished command of the 3rd Light Horse Brigade to Brigadier General John Royston on 9 August.
On arrival in Europe, Antill was given command over the 2nd Infantry Brigade, taking over in September and overseeing operations around Ypres and on the Somme.
[2]Ross Mallett's "General Officers of the First AIF" describes him in the following terms: Brusque of manner and speech, Antill was a courageous soldier, an able leader and above all a stern disciplinarian.