Anne Kerr, Lady Kerr (, previously Robson; 191416 September 1997) was the second
wife
A wife (plural, : wives) is a female in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until the marriage is legally Dissolution (law), dissolved with a divorce judgement. On the death of her partner, ...
of
Sir John Kerr
Sir John Robert Kerr (24 September 1914 – 24 March 1991) was an Australian barrister and judge who served as the 18th Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1974 to 1977. He is primarily known for his involvement in the 1975 constit ...
,
Governor-General of Australia
The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Alison.
Biography
Anne Dorothy Taggart was born in 1914. She was known as Nancy to her friends. She was an honours graduate from the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...
. In 1935 she was awarded a French Government travelling scholarship and gained her
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
from the
Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. She appeared as an official French-English interpreter at more than 30 international conferences over ten years, including
Colombo Plan
The Colombo Plan is a regional intergovernmental organization that began operations on 1 July 1951. The organization was conceived at an international conference, The Commonwealth Conference on Foreign Affairs held in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri L ...
meetings. On one occasion she interpreted for
Jawaharlal Nehru
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat—
*
*
*
* and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...
at a
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
human rights seminar in
New Delhi
New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
. She was also fluent in German.
In 1941 she married Hugh Walker Robson QC, a barrister, who was appointed to the bench in 1970. He was Judge of the New South Wales District Court and Chairman of the Court of Quarter Sessions. They had a son and a daughter. At one time he had made a bid for
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
preselection for the federal seat of
Warringah Warringah is a name taken from the local Aboriginal word for Middle Harbour, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It may refer to:
*Division of Warringah, an electoral division of the Australian House of Representatives created in 1922
*Electoral ...
.
In 1946 Anne Robson was appointed a fellow in Colonial Administration with the
Australian School of Pacific Administration
The Australian School of Pacific Administration (ASOPA) was a tertiary institution established by the Australian Government to train administrators and later school teachers to work in Papua New Guinea. It became the International Training Insti ...
, where she first worked alongside John Kerr.
She also acted as an interpreter for the
Department of External Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
for visiting French delegations. During 1963 she taught French at North Sydney Boys High School in Sydney. In 1966 she was the first Australian to become a member of the International Association of Conference Interpreters.
Her marriage to Hugh Robson was dissolved in early 1975. It was reported that "strings had been pulled" to ensure her quick divorce from Robson and an avoidance of publicity. On 29 April 1975, in the Scots Kirk,
Mosman
Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governm ...
, she married her old friend Sir John Kerr, by now the Governor-General, becoming the second Lady Kerr; Sir John was a widower, his first wife Alison having died aged 59 on 9 September 1974, two months after he took up the post at Yarralumla.
As Lady Kerr, she forged a formidable reputation for snobbery: in private, Gough Whitlam called her 'Fancy Nancy'. He once corrected her French on a menu, which led Margaret Whitlam to later say, only half jokingly, that he had sealed his fate by it. After his dismissal, Whitlam also referred to her as "the Lady Macbeth of Yarralumla".Paul Kelly, "Lest we forget - the Best of Enemies", ''Weekend Australian Magazine'', 5-6 November 2005, p. 25 She insisted on being addressed 'Your Excellency', and reinstated the requirement for women to curtsy to her, which Lady (Alison) Kerr had dispensed with. A memorandum by
Sir Paul Hasluck
Sir Paul Meernaa Caedwalla Hasluck, (1 April 1905 – 9 January 1993) was an Australian statesman who served as the 17th Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1969 to 1974. Prior to that, he was a Liberal Party politician, holding min ...
, which recorded a conversation with the Queen's Private Secretary, Sir Martin Charteris, alleged the Palace's disillusionment with the couple, and belief that "the Kerrs, and especially Lady Kerr, were ‘very greedy’ ".''''Queen and palace wanted John Kerr gone as governor-general'' The Australian, 4 November 2015; http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/queen-and-palace-wanted-john-kerr-gone-as-governorgeneral/news-story/d044ca8e97792f0f60828245a847f02d
She was privy to her husband's thoughts and anxieties as the 1975 constitutional crisis developed, but in his autobiography ''Matters for Judgement'' (1978) Sir John Kerr strongly denied she had either dissuaded him from warning the
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the he ...
that he was going to dismiss him, or that she herself had a political axe to grind. However, Paul Kelly claims that she was shown the draft dismissal letter on the morning of 11 November, and that the sentence "It is for the people now to decide the issue, which the two leaders have failed to decide" was added at her suggestion.
The Kerrs moved to England in 1977 after the widespread public criticism of his acceptance of the ambassadorship to
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
, a post he was forced to relinquish before taking it up.
Her memoirs, ''Lanterns Over Pinchgut'', describe her extensive international experience.
Lady Kerr died in 1997 after a long battle with cancer. She was survived by her two children and four grandchildren and is buried beside her husband at
Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium
Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium formerly Northern Suburbs General Cemetery is a cemetery and crematorium in the Northern Suburbs of Sydney, Australia. The park caters for all religious, ethnic and cultural requirements.
History
Macqu ...
.
See also
*
Spouse of the governor-general of Australia
The viceregal consort of Australia generally assists the governor-general in welcoming ambassadors and their spouses, and in performing their other official duties. The governor-general's spouse traditionally participates in celebratory occasions, ...