Sir Robert Wade-Gery (22 April 1929 – 16 February 2015) was a British diplomat who was High Commissioner to India 1982–87.

Biography

Wade-Gery was born in Oxford on 22 April 1929. His father,

Theodore Wade-Gery Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory * Theodore, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Banana, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore Reservoir, a lake in Saskatche ...

was an ancient historian and fellow of

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

and his mother was Vivian Whitfield, an archaeologist. Wade-Gery was educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

and

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at th ...

, where he achieved a double first class degree. He then passed the examination to become a

Fellow of All Souls All Souls College (official name: College of the Souls of All the Faithful Departed) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full members of t ...

1951–58; subsequently he was a "Fifty-Pound Fellow" 1959–73 and a "Two-Year Fellow" 1987–89; he was an Honorary Fellow from 2011 until his death in 2015. On 16 June 1962, he married Sarah Marris and they had two children together. He died, after having a stroke, on the 16 February 2015 in Gloucestershire. Wade-Gery was appointed CMG in the

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

of 1979, knighted KCMG in the

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

of 1983 and given the additional knighthood of KCVO in November 1983.

Career

Exempted from national service due to poor eyesight, he joined the

Foreign Service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...

in 1951 and served at

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

and

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

as well as posts at the Foreign Office (later the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

). His

posting was during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, including a period where the American Embassy across the road was captured by the Viet Cong and his wife and daughter had to be evacuated.. He was Minister at

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

1973–77 and at

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

1977–79, deputy

Secretary of the Cabinet The Permanent Under-Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office, known informally as the Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary, is the second-most senior civil servant of the Cabinet Office. It was conventionally joined with the positions of Cabinet Se ...

1979–82, and High Commissioner to India 1982–87. He then left the Diplomatic Service and was a director of

Barclays Capital Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services. Barclays traces ...

1987–99. He was a member and treasurer (1991–2005) of the

International Institute for Strategic Studies The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is a British research institute or think tank in the area of international affairs. Since 1997, its headquarters have been Arundel House in London, England. The 2017 Global Go To Think T ...

, and was chairman of the governors of the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ar ...

, University of London (1990–1999).

References

WADE-GERY, Sir Robert (Lucian)
''Who's Who 2014'', A & C Black, 2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, Nov 2014
Interview with Sir Robert Wade-Gery
(including biography), British Diplomatic Oral History Programme, Churchill College, Cambridge

External links

Sir Robert Wade-Gery: Diplomat who as a member of Margaret Thatcher’s war cabinet during the Falklands crisis delivered the order to sink the Belgrano
(full-page obituary), ''The Times'', London, 26 February 2015, page 57
Obituary: Sir Robert Wade-Gery KCMG KCVO, 1929–2015
International Institute for Strategic Studies, 20 February 2015

''The Telegraph'', London, 5 March 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Wade-Gery, Robert Lucian 1929 births 2015 deaths People educated at Winchester College Alumni of New College, Oxford Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford High Commissioners of the United Kingdom to India Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Barclays people People associated with SOAS University of London