Charles Edwin Woodrow Bean

Bean, Charles Edwin Woodrow (1879-1968), Australian official historian. A pre-war journalist, Bean served with the Australian Imperial Force at Gallipoli and in France for the duration of WW I as official correspondent. He was appointed official historian in 1919 and oversaw the writing of the 12-volume series Official History of Australia in the War of 1914-1918, of which he wrote six volumes himself. He was also the leading force behind the creation of the Australian War Memorial and in the establishment of the National Archives of Australia. His remains the major influence on Australian understanding of WW I.

— Jeffrey Grey