Editing John Monash (section)

== After the war ==
[[File:John Monash statue Melbourne.jpg|upright|thumb|Statue of Sir John Monash in [[Kings Domain, Melbourne|King's Domain]], Melbourne.]]

In October 1918, towards the end of the war, Australian War Historian, Charles Bean, had urged Prime Minister William Hughes to have a plan of repatriation drawn up by the AIF and to put Monash in charge of it.<ref>Bean diary, entry 13 October 1918, AWM38, 3DRL 606/117/1, p. 54.</ref> Soon after the cessation of hostilities in November 1918, Hughes requested that Monash return to London to take up the appointment as Director-General of Repatriation and Demobilisation, heading a newly created department to carry out the repatriation of Australian troops from Europe.<ref>Chadwick, Justin, ''Sword and Baton Senior Australian Army Officers from Federation to 2001'', Big Sky Publishing Pty. Ltd. Sydney 2017, p. 471.</ref>

In August 1919, while in London, Monash wrote ''The Australian Victories in France in 1918'' which was published in 1920. According to Geoffrey Searle: "It was propaganda, but not far off the truth,"<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/monash-sir-john-7618 |title=Australian Dictionary of Biography |first=Geoffrey |last=Serle |chapter=Monash, Sir John (1865–1931) |publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University |access-date=31 August 2022 |via=Australian Dictionary of Biography}}</ref> and "(it) laid the groundwork for the popular narrative of 'Monash- the-war-winner.'"<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/monash_john |title=Monash, John &#124; International Encyclopedia of the First World War (WW1) |website=encyclopedia.1914–1918-online.net |access-date=31 August 2022}}</ref><ref>[http://unsworks.unsw.edu.au/fapi/datastream/unsworks:74085/SOURCE02?view=true Stobo, R. M. 'Feed the Troops on Victory': A Study Of the Australian Corps and its Operations during August and September 1918', University of New South Wales, Canberra, 2020. p. 157]</ref> Monash was, nevertheless, a noted advocate of [[Combined Arms|the co-ordinated use]] of [[infantry]], [[aircraft]], [[artillery]] and [[tank]]s. As he wrote in the book:<ref>{{harvnb|Monash|1920|p=96}}</ref>{{blockquote|... the true role of infantry was not to expend itself upon heroic physical effort, not to wither away under merciless [[Machine gun|machine-gun]] fire, not to impale itself on hostile [[bayonet]]s, nor to tear itself to pieces in hostile entanglements—(I am thinking of [[Battle of Pozières|Pozières]] and Stormy Trench and [[Battle of Arras (1917)|Bullecourt]], and other bloody fields)—but on the contrary, to advance under the maximum possible protection of the maximum possible array of mechanical resources, in the form of guns, machine-guns, tanks, [[Mortar (weapon)|mortars]] and aeroplanes; to advance with as little impediment as possible; to be relieved as far as possible of the obligation to fight their way forward; to march, resolutely, regardless of the din and tumult of battle, to the appointed goal; and there to hold and defend the territory gained; and to gather in the form of prisoners, guns and stores, the fruits of victory.}}

He returned to Australia on 26 December 1919 to an enthusiastic welcome.<ref name=ADB /> On 1 January 1920, he was promoted to the substantive rank of lieutenant-general and returned to the reserves.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/232518073 |title=Australian Military Forces – Promotions, Transfers, etc. |newspaper=Commonwealth of Australia Gazette |issue=102 |date=18 November 1920 |access-date=30 March 2020 |page=2177 }}</ref>

[[File:Graves of Hannah Victoria Monash (1871–1920) and John Monash (1865–1931) at Brighton General Cemetery.jpg|thumb|right|Graves of Hannah Victoria and John Monash at Brighton General Cemetery]]

Shortly after his return, on 27 February 1920, Monash's wife, Vic, died of cervical cancer.<ref>{{harvnb|Perry|2007|p=471}}</ref> Monash had a prolonged affair with Elizabeth "Lizette" Bentwitch, a first cousin of the prominent Zionist [[Herbert Bentwich]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Life Outside the Frame |url=https://collections.ajhs.com.au/Detail/objects/53878 |access-date=2024-12-21}}</ref> The two planned to marry after Vic's death but Monash's daughter put her foot down to stop the union.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The inner Monash {{!}} Australian War Memorial |url=https://www.awm.gov.au/wartime/82/article-two |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=www.awm.gov.au}}</ref> Later, Monash worked in prominent civilian positions, the most notable being as head of the [[State Electricity Commission of Victoria]] (SECV) after October 1920. From 1923 until his death eight years later, he was vice-chancellor of the [[University of Melbourne]] .<ref name=ADB /> Monash was a founding member of the Rotary Club of Melbourne, Australia's first [[Rotary International|Rotary Club]], and served as its second president (1922–1923). In 1927, he became president of the newly founded [[Zionist Federation of Australia]] and New Zealand.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.oztorah.com/2012/09/isaacs-monash-the-jewish-connection/ |title=Isaacs and Monash: The Jewish Connection |publisher=Journal of the Australian Jewish Historical Society |issue=June 1993, Vol. XI, Part 6|author=Apple, Raymond}}</ref>

[[File:John Monash Monument detail.jpg|thumb|right|Commemoration on Sir John Monash's Grave]]

In 1923, he was called upon by the Victorian Government of [[Harry Lawson (politician)|Harry Lawson]] to organise "special constables" to restore order during the [[1923 Victorian Police strike]].<ref>{{harvnb|Perry|2007|p=491}}</ref> He was one of the principal organisers of the annual observance of ANZAC Day and oversaw the planning for Melbourne's monumental war memorial, the [[Shrine of Remembrance]]. Monash was honoured with numerous awards and decorations from universities and foreign governments.<ref name=ADB /> According to his biographer Geoffrey Serle: "[i]n the 1920s Monash was broadly accepted, not just in Victoria, as the greatest living Australian".<ref name=ADB />

Monash died in Melbourne on 8 October 1931 from a heart attack, and he was given a state funeral. An estimated 300,000 mourners came to pay their respects, the nation's largest funeral crowd to that time. After a Jewish service, and a 17-gun salute, he was buried in [[Brighton General Cemetery]].<ref>{{harvnb|Perry|2007|pp=514–516}}</ref> In a final sign of humility, despite his achievements, honours and titles, he instructed that his tombstone simply bear the words "John Monash".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://users.netconnect.com.au/~ianmac/travis.html |title=They Shall Grow Not Old: A Who's Who of Brighton Cemetery (Armed Forces) |work=Defending Victoria |access-date=27 August 2013 |archive-date=13 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190313032317/http://users.netconnect.com.au/%7Eianmac/travis.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> He was survived by his daughter, Bertha (1893–1979).<ref>{{harvnb|Perry|2007|p=518}}</ref>