The high commissioner of Australia to Singapore is an officer of the Australian

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is the department of the Australian federal government responsible for foreign policy and relations, international aid (using the branding Australian Aid), consular services and trade and inv ...

and the head of the High Commission of the Commonwealth of Australia to the

Republic of Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borderi ...

. The high commissioner has the rank and status of an

ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

Posting history

The earliest formal diplomatic representation dates from 1922, when Egbert Sheaf was appointed Trade Commissioner for the East based in Singapore, the capital of the British

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Comp ...

, who served until January 1925. On 1 September 1941, the Minister for External Affairs, Sir Frederick Stewart, announced the appointment of

Vivian Gordon Bowden Vivian Gordon Bowden (28 May 1884 – 17 February 1942) was an Australian public servant and diplomat.Darryl Bennet, 'Bowden, Vivian Gordon (1884–1942)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National Un ...

as Australia's Official Representative at Singapore, with the aim of being the official intermediary between the Commonwealth Government and the British authorities. Bowden was supported by a Commercial Secretary, Alfred Wootton, and a Third Secretary, John Quinn. Bowden was captured following the

Fall of Singapore The Fall of Singapore, also known as the Battle of Singapore,; ta, சிங்கப்பூரின் வீழ்ச்சி; ja, シンガポールの戦い took place in the South–East Asian theatre of the Pacific War. The Empire of ...

on 15 February 1942 and was murdered by his Japanese captors two days later, despite his diplomatic status and being a non-combatant prisoner of war. With the end of Japanese occupation, Australia posted a resident Commissioner and Trade Commissioner in

post-war Singapore Singapore was a British colony for 144 years, apart from a period of occupation under the Japanese Empire from 1942 to 1945 during the Pacific War. When the Empire of Japan surrendered to the Allies in 1945, at the end of World War II, Singa ...

from 1946 representing Australia in

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. U ...

North Borneo North Borneo (usually known as British North Borneo, also known as the State of North Borneo) was a British Protectorate, British protectorate in the northern part of the island of Borneo, which is present day Sabah. The territory of North Borneo ...

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...

, as well as

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, prior to their federation with

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

in 1963, when the post became the Deputy High Commission to Malaysia, reporting to the new High Commission in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

. Singapore and Australia have enjoyed official diplomatic relations since 10 August 1965, following Singapore's independence when it was expelled from

the day before on 9 August. Australia was the first country to recognise Singapore and the serving Prime Minister at the time of recognition,

Sir Robert Menzies ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

, announced "I have informed the Singapore Prime Minister that we will be happy to establish full diplomatic relations with Singapore at the level of high commissioner and that we wish Singapore well in its new sovereignty and look forward to a continuance of close and friendly relations with the new State and with Malaysia." Prime Minister

Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...

had made his first visit to Australia in March 1965.

Bill Pritchett William Beal Pritchett (31 January 1921 – 28 January 2014) was a senior Australian public servant. He was Secretary of the Department of Defence between 1979 and 1984. Early life and education Bill Pritchett was born on 31 January 1921. He a ...

, who had been serving as deputy high commissioner to Malaysia in Singapore since January 1964, was appointed as the first high commissioner three days after recognition, by Foreign Minister

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 ...

. In 2015, Australia and Singapore celebrated 50 years of diplomatic relations alongside celebrations for 50 years of Singapore's independence.

Office-holders

High commissioners

Prior appointments

References

External links

Australian High Commission, Singapore
{{Lists of heads of Australian diplomatic missions