Sir Robert Strachan Wallace (1 August 1882 – 5 September 1961) was an Australian academic, army officer and film censor. Wallace served as the Vice-Chancellor of 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 ...

from 1928 to 1947. He was Australia's chief censor from 1922 to 1927 and served as a member of the

Australian Broadcasting Commission The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owned ...

from 1932 to 1935.

Early life

Wallace was born in

Old Deer Old Deer ( sco, Auld Deer, gd, Dèir) is a parish and village in the district of Buchan, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The population in 2011 was 152. The village lies on the Deer or South Ugie Water, west of Peterhead and from Mintlaw. Industri ...

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

, Scotland on 1 August 1882. The son of a blacksmith, he was educated at

Robert Gordon's College Robert Gordon's College is a co-educational Independent school (UK) for day pupils in Aberdeen, Scotland. The school caters for pupils from Nursery through to S6. History Robert Gordon, an Aberdeen merchant, made his fortune in 18th century ...

, the

University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen ( sco, University o' 'Aiberdeen; abbreviated as ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; gd, Oilthigh Obar Dheathain) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Sc ...

, and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

where he took first-class honours in English literature.

Academic and military career

After working as a Lecturer in English at the University of Aberdeen, Wallace was appointed as Professor of English Language and Literature at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, Australia in 1912. While at Melbourne, Wallace also served as the administrator and dean of the faculty of arts from 1914 to 1917. Wallace enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in 1917. In 1918 he was posted to the A.I.F. Education Service in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, England and served as the director of the Australian Corps Central School at

Rue ''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of ''Ruta'' grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Balkan Peninsula. It is grown throughout the world in gardens, especially for its bluis ...

, France. After the war, Wallace continued at the University of Melbourne, where he held several senior board and academic positions, before being appointed Vice-Chancellor of the

in 1927, a role he commenced in 1928. He continued as Vice-Chancellor until his retirement in 1947. Wallace used his influence and government contacts to secure new funding for the university and, while having to deal with salary reductions, lack of essential equipment and financial constraints, established several new chairs, including the Bosch chairs in medicine, surgery and bacteriology, and expanded the university's course offerings. Wallace became known as "the building Vice-Chancellor". Upon taking up his post in 1928, Wallace found that the university's quadrangle was "overgrown, and the grounds beyond were in much worse repair." During his tenure, Wallace oversaw the renovation of university grounds, and the construction of a new medical school, biology laboratories, and the establishment of the departments of biochemistry and geography. A lecture theatre, bearing his name, was also constructed. Wallace worked to maintain the university's independence, despite the receipt of government grants. The university received a £100,000 donation from the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carneg ...

for the construction of the medical school, and in 1932 Wallace traveled to the US to personally thank the Foundation for its support to education in Australia. In 1939, Wallace was commissioned to undertake an operational review of the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

, which encompassed "all phases of University activity...including organisation of the teaching departments, library development, adult education, public examinations, and future expansion of...activities."

Chief film censor

Wallace served as Australia's chief censor for cinematographic films from 1922 to 1927. In February 1927, while working as chief censor, Wallace made news when he tracked down and apprehended two armed men who had earlier broken into his home.

Later life

Wallace was awarded a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

in the 1941 New Year Honours list. In 1947 he retired from the University of Sydney and moved to

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

, where he died on 5 September 1961. He was buried in Canberra cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wallace, Robert Strachan 1882 births 1961 deaths People educated at Robert Gordon's College Vice-Chancellors of the University of Sydney Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Censors People from Old Deer Academic staff of the University of Melbourne Australian Army officers