Walter Crocker

The Honourable Sir Walter Crocker KBE
Sir Walter Crocker in 1953
Administrator of South Australia
In office 30 April 1977 – 1 September 1977
Preceded by	Douglas Nicholls (as Governor)
Succeeded by	Keith Seaman (as Governor)
Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia
In office 3 September 1973 – 27 June 1982
Governor	Mark Oliphant (1973–1976) Douglas Nicholls (1976–1977) Keith Seaman (1977–1982) Donald Dunstan (1982)
Preceded by	Mellis Napier
Succeeded by	Condor Laucke
Personal details
Born	Walter Russell Crocker (1902-03-25)25 March 1902 Broken Hill, New South Wales
Died	14 November 2002(2002-11-14) (aged 100) Henley Beach, South Australia
Nationality	Australian
Spouse	Claire Ward ​ (m. 1951)​
Occupation	Public servant, diplomat

Sir Walter Russell Crocker KBE (25 March 1902 – 14 November 2002) was an Australian diplomat, writer and war veteran.

Life and career

Crocker was born in Broken Hill, New South Wales, the eldest son of Robert Crocker and Alma Bray. He served in World War II with the British Army, becoming a lieutenant colonel.

He was ambassador or high commissioner to eleven countries, including India (twice), Indonesia, Canada, Italy, Belgium, Nepal, the Netherlands, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda. He headed the Department of International Relations at the Research School of Pacific (and Asian) Studies, Australian National University, 1949–1954.

Crocker was a Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia for more than nine years. He and his wife, Claire, had two sons, Robert and Christopher.

Books

Crocker authored a well-received biography of Jawaharlal Nehru titled Nehru: A Contemporary's Estimate (1966).

Awards

Crocker was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1955 while Australian Ambassador to Indonesia. He was later promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1977, in recognition of his service to the public.

Further reading

• Nehru: A Contemporary's Estimate by Walter Crocker with a Foreword by Arnold Toynbee (1966). New York: Oxford University Press.
• Crocker, Walter (1971). Australian Ambassador: International Relations at First Hand. Melbourne University Press. ISBN 9780522839937.
• Crocker, Walter (1981). Travelling Back: The Memoirs of Sir Walter Crocker. Macmillan. ISBN 0-333-33721-2.
• Crocker, Walter (1983). Sir Thomas Playford: A Portrait. Melbourne University Press. ISBN 0-522-84250-X.
• Partington, Geoffery (22 March 2002). "Sir Walter Crocker at one hundred". National Observer - Australia and World Affairs. Retrieved 31 January 2007.
• "Sir Walter Crocker Celebrates 100 Years" (Press release). Alexander Downer, MP. 25 March 2002. Retrieved 31 January 2007.
• "Sir Walter Crocker" (Press release). Alexander Downer, MP. 14 November 2002. Retrieved 31 January 2007.
• "In Brief". The Canberra Times (Canberra). 3 September 1973.
• Cockburn, Stewart (26 June 1982). "Inside Today". The Canberra Times (Canberra).
• "Sir Walter Crocker dies, aged 100". The Advertiser (Adelaide). 15 November 2002.
• Riddell, Don (16 November 2002). "Outspoken statesman a man for all seasons". The Advertiser (Adelaide).
• Farquharson, John (27 November 2002). "Waspish diplomat with a sting in his political views". The Age (Melbourne).
• "Obituary of Sir Walter Crocker, Colonial official and Australian ambassador who believed in the virtues of imperial rule". The Daily Telegraph (Sydney). 27 November 2002.
• Gate, Richard (29 November 2002). "Stylish reporting marked diplomat's honest manner". The Australian.

External links

• The Memoirs of Sir Walter Crocker held at Churchill Archives Centre, Cambridge