David Dexter

David Dexter
1958 portrait
Born	(1917-01-08)8 January 1917 St Albans, Hertfordshire, England
Died	15 March 1992(1992-03-15) (aged 75) Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Academic work
Main interests	Australian military history Second World War
Notable works	Volume VI of Australia in the War of 1939–1945
Military career
Service/branch	Australian Army
Years of service	1940–1946
Rank	Major
Service number	VX38890
Commands	2/4th Commando Squadron
Battles/wars	Second World War Battle of Timor New Guinea campaign New Britain campaign Battle of Tarakan
Awards	mentioned in despatches (2)

David St Alban Dexter (8 January 1917 – 15 March 1992) was an Australian military historian, commando, diplomat and university administrator.

A 1940 graduate of the University of Melbourne, Dexter enlisted in the Second Australian Imperial Force in 1940. He volunteered for commando training. He was commissioned as a lieutenant and transferred to the 2/2nd Independent Company. The 2/2nd Independent Company was sent to Portuguese Timor, where it waged a guerrilla war against the Japanese after they invaded the island in February 1942. He returned to Australia with the unit in December. In June 1943 it was sent to New Guinea, where Dexter was wounded while carrying out an ambush on a Japanese force. In 1945, it went to New Britain. Shortly before the end of the war in August 1945, he assumed command of the 2/4th Commando Squadron with the rank of major. He later wrote the New Guinea volume of the Australia in the War of 1939–1945 series.

After the war, Dexter joined the Department of External Affairs. He worked closely with the Minister for External Affairs, H. V. Evatt, accompanying him to the second and third sessions of the United Nations General Assembly in 1947 and 1948, and helping him become the President of the United Nations General Assembly. As the head of the department's foreign aid branch, he was involved in the formulation of the Colombo Plan and developed foreign aid programs in conjunction with the South East Asia Treaty Organization and the United Nations. He became the secretary of the Australian Universities Commission in 1960, and then the Registrar (Property and Plans) at the Australian National University (ANU) in 1967.