List of ambassadors of Australia to the Netherlands

Ambassador of Australia to the Netherlands
Incumbent
Greg French
since April 2023 (April 2023)
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
StyleHis Excellency
Reports toMinister for Foreign Affairs
ResidenceThe Hague
NominatorPrime Minister of Australia
AppointerGovernor General of Australia
Inaugural holderStanley Bruce (as Minister)
Formation1942

The ambassador of Australia to the Netherlands is an officer of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the head of the Embassy of the Commonwealth of Australia to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The ambassador resides in The Hague.[1] The current ambassador, since April 2023, is Greg French.

List of heads of mission

Ordinal Officeholder Title Term start date Term end date Time in office Notes
1 Stanley Bruce CH Minister to the Netherlands[note a] 1942 (1942) 1945 (1945) 2–3 years [2]
(n/a) John Hood Chargé d'affaires 1945 (1945) 1946 (1946) 0–1 years [3]
2 Keith Officer OBE, MC Minister to the Netherlands 1946 (1946) 1948 (1948) 1–2 years [4][5]
(n/a) John Quinn Chargé d'affaires 1948 (1948) 1950 (1950) 1–2 years
(n/a) Peter Heydon 1950 (1950) 1950 (1950) 0 years
3 Alfred Stirling CBE Ambassador of Australia to the Netherlands 1950 (1950) 1955 (1955) 4–5 years [6]
4 Hugh McClure Smith 1955 (1955) 1958 (1958) 2–3 years [7]
5 Sir Edwin McCarthy CBE 1958 (1958) 1962 (1962) 3–4 years [8]
6 Walter Crocker CBE 1962 (1962) 1965 (1965) 2–3 years [9]
7 Sir Roden Cutler VC, KCMG, CBE 1965 (1965) 1966 (1966) 0–1 years [10]
8 Colin Moodie 1966 (1966) 1970 (1970) 3–4 years [11]
9 Lloyd Thomson 1970 (1970) 1974 (1974) 3–4 years [12]
10 Frederick Blakeney CBE 1974 (1974) 1977 (1977) 2–3 years [13]
11 David Fairbairn KBE, DFC 1977 (1977) 1980 (1980) 2–3 years [14]
12 James Cumes 1980 (1980) 1984 (1984) 3–4 years [15]
13 Geoffrey Price 1984 (1984) 1987 (1987) 2–3 years [16]
14 Don Grimes 1987 (1987) 1991 (1991) 3–4 years [17][18]
15 Warwick Weemaes 1991 (1991) 1993 (1993) 1–2 years
16 Michael Tate[note b] 1993 (1993) 1996 (1996) 2–3 years [19]
17 Ted Delofski 1997 (1997) 2001 (2001) 3–4 years [20]
18 Peter Hussin 2001 (2001) 2004 (2004) 2–3 years [21]
19 Stephen Brady 2004 (2004) 2008 (2008) 3–4 years [22]
20 Lydia Morton 2008 (2008) 2011 (2011) 2–3 year [23]
21 Neil Mules 2011 (2011) 2015 (2015) 3–4 years [24]
22 Brett Mason 21 April 2015 (2015-04-21) August 2018 (2018-08) 3 years, 3 months [25]
23 Matthew Neuhaus August 2018 (2018-08) April 2023 (2023-04) 4 years, 8 months [26]
24 Dr Greg French April 2023 (2023-04) incumbent 1 year, 8 months [27]
^[note a] : Non-resident minister; served concurrently as Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
^[note b] : Tate served concurrently as the Australian ambassador to the Holy See.

References

  1. ^ CA 6917: Australian Embassy, The Netherlands [The Hague], National Archives of Australia, retrieved 15 April 2015
  2. ^ "Dutch Minister to Australia Appointed. Mr. Bruce Accredited in London". The Canberra Times. 20 March 1942. p. 1. The Australian High Commissioner (Mr. Bruce) presented his credentials to Queen Wilhelmina in London yesterday and has assumed the office of the first Australian Minister to the Netherlands
  3. ^ "Representative in Holland. Appointment of Mr. J. D. L. Hood". The Advertiser. Adelaide, South Australia. 17 October 1945. p. 7.
  4. ^ "Mr. Officer Minister to Netherlands". Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’ Advocate. 10 May 1946. p. 3.
  5. ^ "Minister to Netherlands. Mr. Keith Officer's New Appointment". Kalgoorlie Miner. 10 May 1946. p. 4.
  6. ^ "Ambassador to Netherlands". Morning Bulletin. Rockhampton, Queensland. 24 June 1950. p. 6.
  7. ^ "Mr. McClure Smith for Netherlands". The Canberra Times. 24 February 1955. p. 2.
  8. ^ "New Posts For Diplomats". The Canberra Times. 14 October 1958. p. 2.
  9. ^ "Ambassador to Netherlandsdate=6 January 1962". The Canberra Times. p. 2.
  10. ^ "VC named as new envoy". The Canberra Times. 10 September 1965. p. 3.
  11. ^ "Diplomats appointed". The Canberra Times. 3 December 1965. p. 8.
  12. ^ "Ambassador". The Canberra Times. 25 August 1970. p. 3.
  13. ^ "Ambassador". The Canberra Times. 12 March 1974. p. 3.
  14. ^ "Netherlands envoy posted to Geneva". The Canberra Times. 5 January 1977. p. 8.
  15. ^ "Diplomatic posts". The Canberra Times. 26 January 1980. p. 3.
  16. ^ Mitcham, Chad J., ‘Price, Geoffrey John (1930-1999’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/price-geoffrey-john-32557, published online 2023
  17. ^ "Hague post for Grimes". The Canberra Times. 29 May 1987. p. 3.
  18. ^ Peake, Ross (3 September 1995). "Howard's bold stance on diplomats". The Canberra Times. p. 1. Former Labor minister Don Grimes was the Ambassador to The Netherlands until 1991
  19. ^ "Tate to be our man in Holland". The Canberra Times. 7 August 1993. p. 15.
  20. ^ Downer, Alexander (10 November 1997). "Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 12 February 2014.
  21. ^ Downer, Alexander (2 September 2000). "Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 12 February 2014.
  22. ^ Downer, Alexander (17 November 2003). "Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 12 February 2014.
  23. ^ Smith, Stephen (8 February 2008). "Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 17 March 2014.
  24. ^ Rudd, Kevin (17 July 2011). "Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to The Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014.
  25. ^ Bishop, Julie (21 April 2015). "Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 26 April 2015.
  26. ^ Bishop, Julie (8 June 2018). "Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019.
  27. ^ Wong, Penny (18 April 2023). "Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 3 November 2023.