“The Ordinary Discharge of My Duty”: Field Marshal Sir John Monash and the Ozanne Controversy

This article looks at one episode during the conscription debates of 1916‐17, concerning the defeat of the Labor member for Corio, Alfred Ozanne, in the federal election of May, 1917. Prior to the election, Ozanne was a soldier serving in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) in the United Kingdom, but was about to be medically discharged from the Army. Archival research suggests Ozanne was the victim of a smear campaign by Prime Minister Hughes, journalist Keith Murdoch and Australian Army leaders including John Monash, who colluded to falsely accuse him of desertion.