RSL LifeCare has received funding to install a mural at Chauvel Village in Goonellabah to honour its namesake, Sir Harry Chauvel.
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The State Government's Community Building Partnership program provided $5000 to commission a local artist to install the mural as a war memorial/commemorative space.
But who was the soldier, and why is the village named after him?
The general is an important figure in Australia's history, who hailed from Tabulam.
Sir Harry Chauvel served in three wars over half a century, led the army during peacetime, and was the first Australian to attain the rank of general.
A thoroughly professional soldier, Chauvel was hardy and courageous
- Australian War Memorial
The son of a grazier, Henry George Chauvel was born in April 1865 at Tabulum and grew up around horses.
Sir Chauvel's father was a major in the militia and had raised his own unit, the Upper Clarence Light Horse, into which Harry was commissioned at the age of 21.
He served during the Boer War and the First World War, commanding the 1st Light Horse Brigade on Gallipoli and leading the Desert Mounted Corps across the Sinai to success at Romani, Rafa, and Maghdaba.
At Beersheba, Sir Chauvel ordered the famous cavalry charge of the 4th Australian Light Horse Brigade on October 31, 1917 which resulted in the capture of the town and its prized water supply, and the triumphant Australian entry into Damascus the following year.
The Australian War Memorial says Sir Chauvel was "a thoroughly professional soldier, Chauvel was hardy and courageous. He was a reserved man who possessed both wisdom and tact.".
Sir Chauvel returned to Australia in late 1919 and was appointed Inspector General, the Army's most senior post; he retained that position until 1930.
He retired from the Army in April 1930.
During the Second World War, Chauvel took up the post of Inspector General of the Volunteer Defence Corps, and he held this post until his death.
Sir Harry Chauvel never forgot that he was a Light Horseman.
When he retired from the army in 1930, he had one simple request: to ride every day.
Chauvel's slouch hat is now part of the national collection at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra and his uniform and sword are displayed alongside his medals and his Corps Commander's standard.
Sir Henry (Harry) Chauvel died on March 4, 1945.
