AUSTRALIAN ARMY CADET CORPS
205 REGIONAL CADET UNIT
MUDGEE,KANDOS/RYLSTONE,MENDOORAN,COOLAH
Unit History
This Unit Turn 125 Years Old in 1999 ...
School Cadets have been in existence in Australia for over a hundred years. The first unit was formed at St
Marks Collegiate School in New South Wales in 1866, becoming the first Colonial Military Organisation
to be created. This cadet unit became the Kings School Cadet Unit in 1869.
The Cadet movement became a popular activity in Australia’s Eastern Colonies and was financed by
parents and guided by the various Departments of Public Instruction and aided by the Colonial Defence
Authorities.
At the beginning of the cadet movement, the main activities were gymnastics and military drill, rifle drill
and sword drill.
In the early 1970’s, State Schools were beginning to take an interest in cadets. Military Drill was
introduced into the Public School Curriculum in 1870. All Public School teachers were required to take
instruction in Military Drill to enable them to give capable instruction to the pupils. As a result, Cadet
Units began to form throughout the state.
In 1874 Units were formed at Orange and Mudgee Schools. This Makes the Mudgee Unit one of the oldest units in Australia. In fact it is the second longest continuously operated cadet unit in
Australia. Only Kings School has operated for longer.
The Corps has survived many ups and downs over the years. At the turn of the century the Corps was
seriously curtailed due to financial restrictions, with only the wealthier schools continuing. Fortunately, the
Mudgee Unit continued to operate. After Federation and the introduction of universal military training,
cadet units were reformed as attachments of Militia Units. Junior Cadets were members of school units,
and senior cadets graduated to become members of the Militia Units.
After the Second World War, Cadets organisation was based on State Battalions. The Mudgee Unit was
part of 14 Cadet Battalion, which covered schools from Dubbo to West Wyalong. The Battalion was
commanded by a Captain who had a number of training Warrant Officers to assist.
In 1976 the Federal Government closed down the Cadet Corps. Most units were forced to close down. A
few However, managed to keep functioning. Mudgee Cadet Unit, under the command of then Captain Errol
Grieve, remained active. It was the only Public School Unit to remain active, and this was achieved largely
by the determination of Captain Grieve. Indeed the unit was funded primarily from Captain Grieves own
finances.
In 1977 the new Government re-introduced the Cadet movement on a revised basis. With each successive
government, changes are made to the command structure of the Corps.
In 1989 the Mudgee Cadet Unit became a Regional Cadet Unit. In this regard, the unit was no longer
considered part of Mudgee High School, and public members of the larger community were welcomed to
join. The unit became known as 205 Regional Cadet Unit. In the spirit of becoming a regional based unit,
Platoons were opened in Gulgong, and Kandos/Rylstone.
Cadets are now fostered by an Army Reserve Unit. 205RCU was initially fostered by 2/17 Battalion, Royal New South Wales Regiment, until the Government redistributed operational areas. Now we are fostered by 1/19 Bn RNSWR. This Battalion is known as the Bushmans Rifles and is based in Orange, Central West New South Wales. This foster unit provides uniforms, and provides much of the stores and equipment we need for Annual Camp, including transport.
In 1993, Errol Grieve was promoted to a Major. He is currently the longest serving active officer of Cadets
in Australia (39 years to date). Major Grieve handed the Unit to Capt. Doug Grigg at the End of 1995.
Captain Grigg was Commanding Officer of the Unit for almost three years. Most of you would be aware of
the time and effort Captain Grigg put into the administration of this Unit. Among his more notable
achievements was the formation of a platoon at Coolah. It was a shock to us all when he announced his
resignation as Commanding Officer, and as an Officer of Cadets. It must not be forgotten that Captain
Grigg contributed 27 years as an Officer of Cadets to this Unit. We are personally grateful for the example
and leadership he has shown us over the years.
This year heralds a new era for this Unit. John Bullen is the new Commanding Officer, with new ideas for training and
administration. A new parade location for 1 platoon, and the release of a new Australian Army Cadet
Corps Policy Manual. As a result, there will be some changes to the Unit.
These changes will be good for the Unit and for the cadets. The policy manual is basically an
administration and paperwork guide, but it impacts on the way the Unit is structured and the way in which
cadets are promoted. Cadet training will be done in accordance with the Training Management Plan (TMP) which gives clear guidelines for progressive
training over a five year period. All new cadets will be required to attend a unit based recruit training
course. Once they have passed this recruit training they must then progress from level 1 training up to level 5
. Progress to the next level may only occur if the previous level has been successfully completed.
All existing cadets will need to be assessed early next year to determine their position in the training
scheme.
There will be far more opportunities for bivouacs in the next few years, and more opportunities to participate in small
calibre rifle shooting. All existing and potential NCOs will be required to attend promotions courses held
at Bardia Barracks (Ingleburn). It can be seen that training is about to get a lot more exciting. In addition
to this, we hope to see this unit conduct a ceremonial parade at the end of 1999, and we are expecting a trip to the the ACT, to tour the Australian War Memorial.
We would like to say to you today that we are proud of this Unit. It is a unit steeped in history, and we believe it
will continue to be one of the strongest units in the State. We are permitted to allow a maximum 110 cadets in our Unit. We believe that they are the best 110 cadets in the nation.
We will always be striving to keep numbers up, and as vacancies occur, new members are accepted openly.
We will be working together closely in 1999 and further in the future, to make this unit the best it can be for us all. With the help of all our cadets, and Officers of Cadets, and with our superior determination and dedication we believe we can make all other units look up and start taking notice of the mighty Bushpigs.
We turn 125 in 1999
DON'T MISS OUR CEREMONIAL PARADE
