Talk:John Whitelaw (general, born 1921)

Source

This source might be useful for the article: [1]. Regards, AustralianRupert (talk) 12:31, 22 October 2011 (UTC)

Statement re Whitelaw being responsible for coastal defence on the Eastern seaboard during the Second World War

I've removed this now per this edit [2] as it was unsourced and seems quite dubious. Specifically Whitelaw (jnr.) would have only been a junior officer at this time so this level of responsibility seems unlikely (he would have been what an LT or a CAPT at the time?). Equally according the article about his father, John Whitelaw (general), at the start of World War II Whitelaw (snr.) was a colonel and filled this role. This is referenced and confirmed by his ADB entry here [3]. If I am incorrect about this I am happy to discuss but pls provide a reference which confirms that it was the younger Whitelaw that filled this posting as it seems very unlikely to me. I am also going to request comment at MILHIST to see if any SME's can solve this. Anotherclown (talk) 09:32, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

G'day, AC, yes, fairly sure you are right. Cheers, AustralianRupert (talk) 07:02, 31 July 2015 (UTC)

Rewrite

I've gone ahead an finished the rewrite of this now and have only included what information I could find in reliable sources as dictated by WP:RS. As such quite a lot of unreferenced material (esp material which appears to have come from his pers file) has had to be removed (for now). If a reliable source for the information that has been removed can be provided I will of cse be more than happy to reinsert it. IRT the pers file material I think it probably best that this not be included as it probably represents original research per WP:OR. I can see a lot of work has no doubt been done by the original contributor researching the material and formatting it into tables but I'm concerned it doesn't meet our policy for inclusion so I regret any time that has been wasted by these changes but couldn't see any alternative. I am of cse more than happy to discuss this point if others disagree. Anotherclown (talk) 09:07, 31 July 2015 (UTC)

Agreed, probably the best course of action for now. Regards, AustralianRupert (talk) 09:56, 31 July 2015 (UTC)

Removed ribbon section

• Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) 1977
• Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) 1971 (CAG 81/71)
• 1939–45 Star
• Pacific Star
• War Medal 1939–1945 with oak leaves for Mentioned in Dispatches (MID) 1943 (CAG 43/47)
• Australia Service Medal 1939–45
• Australian Active Service Medal 1945–1975 with clasp Vietnam
• Australian Service Medal 1945–1975 with clasp PNG
• Vietnam Medal
• Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (1953)
• Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (1977)
• Defence Force Service Medal with Four Clasps (35–39 years service)
• Australian Defence Medal
• National Medal with First Clasp
• Efficiency Medal
• Vietnam Campaign Medal (South Vietnam)
• Bronze Star (United States of America)
• Returned from Active Service Badge

G'day, I have removed the above section from the article as it seems largely based on original research and potentially might not be accurate per Bryce's comment on the article. I have attempted to add the main honours/awards that have references to the narrative. While I'm not a fan of these sections, I would be supportive if someone wants to add it back in, so long as it can all be referenced. Happy to discuss further, of course, if others disagree. Regards, AustralianRupert (talk) 21:12, 1 August 2015 (UTC)

This makes sense to me, especially in light of the lack of complete references. Anotherclown (talk) 22:03, 1 August 2015 (UTC)

References