On 16th June 2015, AIIA NSW held an exclusive book launch of the biography of Sir James Plimsoll, Jim Plim: ‘Ambassador Extraordinary’ by Jeremy Hearder at Glover Cottages. AIIA NSW was delighted to welcome Professor Robert O’Neil and Jeremy Hearder to launch this truly insightful biography.

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‘There was never a greater Australian diplomat than Sir James Plimsoll’ – Alexander Downer AC.

Sir James Plimsoll AC CBE was a distinguished Australian diplomat, serving throughout the more than three decades of upheaval following World War II.  Amidst the turbulence of rising superpowers and falling empires, the Cold War and a nuclear arms race, Sir James proved crucial in navigating Australia’s course.

No stranger to conflict, he served with prominence as ambassador and head of the Department of External Affairs during the Korean and Vietnam Wars respectively.  He was critical to Australia’s handling of issues such as the Cold War and decolonisation, with ambassadorial postings to the United Nations in New York, New Delhi, Washington, Moscow, Brussels, London and Tokyo.  Plimsoll’s years of service, furthermore, saw him deal extensively with Australian prime ministers Menzies, Gorton, Whitlam and Fraser, and foreign ministers Evatt, Casey, Barwick and Hasluck.

Jeremy Hearder

After graduating from Melbourne and Stanford Universities, Jeremy Hearder worked in the Department of Foreign Affairs for 38 years, with postings in Vientiane, Dar es Salaam, Bangkok, Nairobi, and Brussels; then in Harare and Suva respectively as High Commissioner, Chicago as Consul-General, and Wellington as Deputy High Commissioner.  He served with both Sir James Plimsoll and Alexander Downer (who later became Foreign Minister) in Brussels.  Mr Downer has written the Foreword to the book.

Professor Robert O’Neill AO

Robert O’Neill has worked in the fields of international relations, history of war and strategic studies since 1961. He was head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the ANU, Canberra, 1971-82, Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), London, 1982-87, and Chichele Professor of the History of War, All Souls College, Oxford, 1987-2001. He served in the Australian Army 1955-68 and was mentioned in dispatches for his work in Vietnam, 1966-67. He was chairman of the Council of the IISS 1996-2001 and of the Trustees of the Imperial War Museum, 1997-2001. He was elected a Fellow of the AIIA in 2008. He wrote the official history of Australia’s role in the Korean War (2 vols.) during the 1970s.