Arthur Butler (historian)

Arthur Graham Butler
Arthur Butler, when a major in the Australian Army Medical Corps, 1916
Born	(1872-05-25)25 May 1872 Kilcoy, Queensland, Australia
Died	27 February 1949(1949-02-27) (aged 76) Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Academic work
Main interests	Australian military history First World War
Notable works	Official History of the Australian Army Medical Services, 1914–1918
Military career
Service/branch	Australian Army
Years of service	1912–1920
Rank	Colonel
Unit	9th Battalion
Commands	3rd Australian General Hospital 3rd Field Ambulance
Battles/wars	First World War Gallipoli campaign Western Front
Awards	Distinguished Service Order Mentioned in Despatches (2)

Arthur Graham Butler DSO, ED (25 May 1872 – 27 February 1949) was an Australian soldier and military historian. He was the main author of the Official History of the Australian Army Medical Services, 1914–1918, part of the Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918.

Born in Queensland, after Butler finished his schooling he obtained degrees in medicine and surgery from Cambridge University. He was working as a general practitioner in Brisbane when the First World War broke out and immediately joined the Australian Imperial Force. Posted to the 9th Battalion as a regimental medical officer, he served at Gallipoli and on the Western Front. He ended the war as commander of the 3rd Australian General Hospital in Abbeville. On his return to Australia, he was asked to write the official history of the Australian Army medical services, a task that took 20 years to complete and resulted in the three volume Official History of the Australian Army Medical Services, 1914–1918. Troubled by partial blindness in his later years, he died in Canberra at the age of 76.