Japan, 1981-82
- Component identifier:
- Series 20
- Content Summary:
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Plimsoll was appointed Ambassador to Japan in January 1981 and arrived in Tokyo in March. He was 64 and it was not expected that he would serve a lengthy term. In fact, within eight months it was announced that he would be the next Governor of Tasmania. He continued, however, as Ambassador until September 1982.
The correspondence is a little more extensive than in the previous series and includes letters from diplomatic colleagues, Australian businesmen, academics and expatriates, and Japanese officials and acquaintances. Among the correspondents are Peter Henderson, H.C. Coombs, Peter Nixon, Ted Pocock, Hiroshi Sakamoto, Sir Ian McLennan, Harold Stewart and Lady Price. There are a very large number of photographs, mostly unidentified and of varying quality. Most of them were sent to Plimsoll to commemorate a meeting or social function. Among the miscellaneous papers is a report by Jane Anthony, the daughter of Doug Anthony, the Deputy Prime Minister, who attended Ichijo High School for six months in 1978. There are a large number of Japanese publications, including exhibition catalogues, concert programs and tourist brochures.
- Immediate source of acquisition:
- Sir James Plimsoll, who died on 8 May 1987, bequeathed his papers and books to the National Library. Following intervention by the Department of Foreign Affairs, the executors were informed that some of the papers were Commonwealth records and others were records of the Tasmanian Government. Consequently, the papers were transferred to the Australian Archives for detailed examination. It was finally determined that 149 boxes would come to the National Library, four boxes would be sent to the Tasmanian State Archives, and the remaining boxes would be retained by the Australian Archives. The papers were received by the National Library in March 1990.
- Names:
- Sir James Plimsoll
Contents
Access and use
- Parent Restrictions:
- Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1769030).
- Parent Terms of Access:
- Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
- Location of this collection:
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Parkes PlaceCanberra ACT 2600, Australia
- Contact: