MAJOR Charles McMoran Wilson MC, Silver Medal of Military Valour (Italy), twice MID, knew more than most about soldiers and soldiering. As 1st Bn Royal Fusiliers RMO on the Western Front in World War I, he treated their wounds, observed their reactions to climate and battle and was himself gassed.
During World War II he was Churchill’s personal physician, chronicling the old soldier and prime minister’s personal battles with depression.
As a later UK Royal College of Physicians president, he wrote and lectured on these experiences. His classic work, The Anatomy of Courage remains as relevant today as when he wrote it.
It seems in the last century some have disregarded Moran’s observations. Australia’s contemporary ‘leadership’ is remote, self-focused and patronising, ruthless to any perceived deviation to their authority.