Frank Berryman - Between The Wars

Between The Wars

Berryman was appointed to the Staff Corps on 1 October 1920. Although he was entitled to keep his AIF rank of major as an honorary rank, his substantive rank—and pay grade—was still lieutenant. Promotion was painfully slow. He was promoted to captain and brevet major on 1 March 1923, but was not promoted to the substantive rank of major until 1 March 1935.

Berryman attended the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, from 1920 to 1923. On returning to Australia, he became an inspecting ordnance officer at the 2nd Military District. From its headquarters at Victoria Barracks, Sydney, the 2nd Military District administered the Army in most of New South Wales. He enrolled in a Bachelor of Science program at the University of Sydney. On 30 November 1925, he married Muriel Whipp. They eventually had a daughter and a son.

Berryman discontinued his university studies to prepare for the entrance examination for Staff College, Camberley. Eighteen Australian Army officers sat the exam that year, but only Berryman and one other officer passed. Only two Australian officers were accepted into staff college each year, so Berryman's attendance from 1926 to 1928 marked him out as one of the Australian Army's rising talents. It also allowed him to forge useful contacts with the British Army. Berryman later recalled, "The advantage of this was that in war we had the same doctrine of tactics and administration, which was essential if we had to work together. More than that, the officers who had to carry out their duties in cooperation knew each other personally." After graduation he was posted to the High Commission of Australia, London, from 1929 to 1932, where he served under the Military Liaison Officer, Major General Julius Bruche.

After nearly twenty years as a major, Berryman was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel on 12 May 1935. Promotion to substantive rank, which carried the rank's pay as well as status, occurred on 1 July 1938, when he became Assistant Director of Military Operations at Army Headquarters. From December 1938 to April 1940 he was General Staff Officer Grade 1 (GSO1) of the 3rd Division. The slow rate of promotion of regular officers in the inter-war years fostered a sense of injustice and frustration among officers with good war records who found themselves outranked by Militia officers who had enjoyed faster promotion.