Brigadier Arnold Potts

Brigadier Arnold Potts

Brigadier Arnold Potts was an Australian Army officer notable for his command during the Kokoda Track campaign and roles in the Second World War. A veteran of the First World War, the Interwar period and the Second Australian Imperial Force, he became a contentious figure in debates over leadership during the Papua campaign and later held divisional and brigade commands in the Mediterranean theatre and on the Australian home front. His career intersected with figures such as Thomas Blamey, Douglas MacArthur, Sydney Rowell and operations including Operation Crusader, Battle of Greece and the defense of Crete.

Early life and military career

Born in Wellington, New Zealand to an Anglo-Australian family, Potts was raised in Western Australia and educated at regional schools before attending the Royal Military College, Duntroon-adjacent training milieu and joining pre-war militia formations. He served with the Australian Imperial Force in the First World War on the Western Front and at Gallipoli, seeing action alongside formations such as the 1st Division (Australia), the 2nd Division (Australia) and allied formations including the British Expeditionary Force, New Zealand Expeditionary Force and elements of the Indian Army. Between the wars he returned to civilian life as a farmer amid the Great Depression while remaining active in the Citizen Military Forces and staff colleges, gaining experience relevant to the later formation of the Second Australian Imperial Force and the expansion of the Australian Army in 1939–41.

Second World War: Greek and Crete campaigns

With the outbreak of the Second World War, Potts transferred to the Second Australian Imperial Force and commanded the 7th Division Cavalry Regiment before deployment to the Middle East. He served in the Greek campaign in 1941 during the Allied withdrawal in the face of the German invasion of Greece and later fought in the Battle of Crete where Australian units, alongside the British Army, New Zealand Army, Polish II Corps elements and Greek units, faced the Fallschirmjäger and German airborne operations. His actions were judged within the strategic decisions of commanders such as John Lavarack, Sir Thomas Blamey, Bernard Freyberg and were affected by logistical constraints from the Mediterranean theatre and directives from Middle East Command.

Kokoda Track campaign and leadership of Maroubra Force

Potts is best known for commanding the ad hoc formation designated Maroubra Force during the Kokoda Track campaign in the autumn of 1942, defending the approaches to Port Moresby against the Imperial Japanese Army's South Seas Detachment and units drawn from the South Seas Forces. Operating with battalions such as the 39th Battalion (Australia), the 53rd Battalion (Australia), the 21st Brigade (Australia) and support from the Papuan Infantry Battalion, Potts conducted a fighting withdrawal along the track through locations including Isurava, Templeton's Crossing, Efogi and Ioribaiwa Ridge. His tactics emphasized delaying actions, rear-guard formations and use of terrain against units from the 18th Army (Japan) and elements commanded by officers influenced by campaigns such as Imphal and Guadalcanal. The campaign brought him into operational interaction with commanders including Sydney Rowell, Arthur Allen, Edwin Morris and the overall strategic posture shaped by General Douglas MacArthur and General Sir Thomas Blamey.

Later wartime commands and controversies

After Kokoda, Potts commanded formations such as the 21st Brigade (Australia) and later the 23rd Brigade (Australia) in the Northern Territory and on garrison duties, and was involved in planning linked to operations in the South West Pacific Area. His relief from command midway through the Papua campaign, subsequent inquiries and the public debate involved senior figures like Blamey and Rowell and touched on issues raised in inquiries into leadership after setbacks at Kokoda and during the redeployments for the Milne Bay and Buna–Gona operations. Critics and supporters referenced contemporaries such as Leslie Morshead, Stanley Savige, Arthur “Tubby” Allen and staff officers from New Guinea Force about whether reliefs reflected operational necessity, personality conflicts or higher strategic pressures from Allied headquarters.

Postwar life and legacy

After demobilisation Potts returned to farming and civic life in Western Australia and later settled in Victoria, participating in veterans’ associations, memorial committees and public commentary on the conduct of the Papua campaign and the broader role of the Australian Army in the Second World War. His reputation has been reassessed in works by military historians examining leadership controversies alongside studies of the Kokoda Track by authors who compare the campaign with Gallipoli, the Vietnam War and jungle warfare doctrine drawn from the Malayan Emergency. Monographs and biographies discuss Potts in relation to decisions by figures such as Thomas Blamey, Sydney Rowell and analyses from institutions like the Australian War Memorial and the Australian National University. His legacy is commemorated at memorials on the Kokoda Track, within regimental histories of the Australian Army and in scholarly debates in journals on campaigns involving the South West Pacific Area.

Category:Australian Army officers Category:Australian military personnel of World War I Category:Australian military personnel of World War II Category:People from Wellington