The Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force is set out under Section 68 of the Constitution of Australia, stating "the command in chief of the naval and military forces of the Commonwealth is vested in the Governor-General as the Queen's representative".
Currently the five-star level is not an active serving rank in the Australian Defence Force.
The first holder of this rank was William Birdwood, who was appointed as Field Marshal on 20 March 1925.
George VI was appointed Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force, maintaining the rank from 2 June 1939 until his death on 6 February 1952.
He was presented his field marshal's baton by the then Governor-General William McKell in hospital that September, and Blamey, who was seriously ill at the time, died in May 1951.