Francis Hamilton Stuart

Stuart was born in Melbourne on 20 July 1912. His parents separated when he was 8 years old and he went to live in Sydney with his mother as a child.[1] He later boarded at Geelong Grammar School and went on to higher education at Oxford University.

He began his career in the 1930s as a consular officer in the British Legation in Bangkok.[2] He shifted to the Australian Department of External Affairs in 1941.[2] In 1942, he enlisted in the Australian Army to serve during World War II.[3]

Between 1964 and 1957 Stuart was chief of protocol in the external affairs department in Canberra.[4]

In May 1957, Stuart, along with his wife and children, left Canberra for Phnom Penh to take up his appointment as Australian Minister to Cambodia.[5] His nomination had been approved by King Norodom Suramarit in April that year.[6] The Australian Legation in Phnom Penh was raised to Embassy status in 1959 and Stuart became Ambassador.[7]

Prime Minister Robert Menzies announced Stuart's appointment as Ambassador to the United Arab Republic in November 1961.[8]

In May 1970 Stuart was appointed High Commissioner to Pakistan, with concurrent accreditation to Afghanistan.[9] He left the Philippines in July 1970 to take up the post.[10] Whilst resident in Pakistan, Stuart saw the partition of Pakistan.[2]

In 1973, Stuart became the first resident Australian Ambassador to Poland.[11]

In December 1989 Stuart's book Towards Coming of Age was published by Griffith University.[2]

In his retirement, Stuart advocated for Australia to become a republic.[1]

Stuart died on 1 February 2007.[1]