also allowed him to forge useful contacts with the British Army. Berryman later recalled, "The advantage of this was that in war we had the same doctrine of tactics and administration, which was essential if we had to work together. More than that, the officers who had to carry out their duties in cooperation knew each other personally." After graduation he was posted to the High Commission of Australia, London, from 1929 to 1932, where he served under the Military Liaison Officer, Major General Julius Bruche. After nearly twenty years as a major, Berryman was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel on 12 May 1935. Promotion to substantive rank, which carried the rank's pay as well as status, occurred on 1 July 1938, when he became assistant director of Military Operations at Army Headquarters. From December 1938 to April 1940 he was General Staff Officer Grade 1 (GSO1) of the 3rd Division. The slow rate of promotion of regular officers in the inter-war years fostered a sense of injustice and frustration among officers with good war records who found themselves outranked by Militia officers who had enjoyed faster promotion. Second World War Libya The final straw for many regular officers was Prime Minister Robert Menzies' announcement that all commands in the Second AIF would go to Militia officers, which Berryman considered "a damn insult to the professional soldier, calculated to split the Army down the centre. We were to be the hewers of wood and the drawers of water. We, the only people who really knew the job, were to assist these Militia fellows." Berryman joined the Second AIF on 4 April 1940 with the rank of full colonel, receiving the AIF serial number of VX20308, and became General Staff Officer Grade 1 (GSO1) of Major General Iven Mackay's 6th Division, in succession to Sydney Rowell who stepped up to become chief of staff of I Corps. Berryman soon established a good working relationship with Mackay. Despite the friction between Militia and Staff Corps officers, Berryman chose to assess officers on performance. This meant that while Berryman viewed some Militia officers, like Brigadier Stanley Savige of the 17th Infantry Brigade, with disdain, he maintained good relations with others. There were also personal and professional rivalries with other Staff Corps officers, such as Alan Vasey. Yet even those who disliked Berryman personally for his lack of patience and tact and referred to