Guide to the Papers of Dymphna Clark, 1930-2000

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Summary

Collection number:
MS 9873
Creator:
Clark, Dymphna, 1916-2000
Extent:
(44 boxes + 2 packets + 1 map folio + 2 folders)
Language:
English and English
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Dympnha Clark, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file/item number(s)]'.
Availability:
Available
Access conditions:
Part available for research; part requires permission for research; part not available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

The collection includes correspondence and newspaper cuttings, reviews, manuscripts and typescripts of Dymphna's translations and other publications including Charles Von Hügel's New Holland Journals, Eduard Hernsheim: South Sea Merchant and Speaking Out of Turn: Lectures and Speeches, 1940-1991; articles, lectures and talks, research material, cards, conference papers, university transcripts, oral history transcriptions, posters, printed ephemera and papers relating to Dymphna's work on the Aboriginal Treaty Committee. There is family correspondence, including letters exchanged between Dympnha and Manning Clark and their children, together with photographs of familiy and friends.

One of the largest series relates to Dymphna's work on the translation of Charles Von Hügel's New Holland Journals. There are also extensive papers dealing with Manning Clark's death and funeral, the two Manning Clark controversies of the 1990s - Peter Ryan's attack on Manning and his work (1993) and the Brisbane Courier Mail's accusations that Clark was a Soviet spy (1996) - and articles and reviews written by or about Manning.

Apart from several newspaper cuttings, there are relatively few papers about Dymphna's role in the establishment and running of Manning Clark House. There is also little of Dymphna's involvement and work on the publication of Manning's Master's thesis, The Ideal of Alexis De Tocqueville, which was eventually published by Melbourne University Press, 2000.

Biographical Note:

Hilma Dymphna Lodewyckx was born in Melbourne on 18 December 1916. She grew up in the Melbourne suburb of Mont Albert, and was educated at both the Mont Albert Central School and Presbyterian Ladies' College in East Melbourne. Her father, Augustin Lodewyckx, was Associate Professor of Germanic Languages at Melbourne University. Her mother, Anna Sophia (née Larsen), taught Swedish at Melbourne University and was pivotal in promoting Scandinavian languages and culture throughout Victoria.

Dymphna inherited her parents' linguistic skills and was fluent in eight languages and could "get by" on four others. After matriculation at the age of 15, she completed an Honours Degree at the University of Melbourne. It was in her last year of university that she met Manning Clark. They were engaged in 1938 and travelled together to Europe in the same year to undertake further studies - Dymphna went to Germany as a Humboldt scholar to study for a doctorate in German literature at Bonn University, while Manning went to Balliol College, Oxford, to pursue his studies.

As war with Germany became imminent, Dymphna abandoned her studies and moved to Oxford to be with Manning. They were married in Oxford on 31 January 1939. Their first child, Sebastian, was born at the end of that year. Five other children were born throughout the next two decades - Katerina (1941), Axel (1943), Andrew (1948), Rowland (1955) and Benedict (1957).

In 1940 the Clarks returned to Australia, where Manning had been appointed a History Master of Geelong Grammar School. In 1949, after several years as a lecturer in politics and history at Melbourne University, the Clarks moved to Canberra where Manning was appointed foundation Professor of History at the Canberra University College. By 1953 the Clarks moved into their Robyn Boyd-designed house in the Canberra suburb of Forrest, where Dymphna remained until her death.

As well as raising six children, Dymphna was a great support to Manning in his work, providing assistance with editing, research, translations and proof reading for his major works Sources of Australian History, Select Documents in Australian History andA History of Australia.

In addition to helping Manning and maintaining the household, Dymphna's command of the German language provided her with work as a teacher. In 1959 she was asked to teach English to diplomats from the Soviet Embassy and she also lectured in German at the Australian National University (ANU).

Her language skills also made her a much sought-after translator. Throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, Dymphna collaborated with Peter Sack from the ANU's German Department and translated a series of reports on the administration of New Guinea during the period of German sovereignty, 1896-1914. Her major work was the translation of the botanist Baron Charles Von Hügel's New Holland Journal 1833 - 34. documenting his visits to Australia and New Zealand, on which she worked for nine years.

Dymphna had a keen interest in environmental and Aboriginal issues and was active in the community in supporting such causes. She took part in programs such as Care for Trees and, in the early 1980s, played a major role in the Aboriginal Treaty Committee, the founders of which included Dr H C Coombs and the poet Judith Wright.

In the nine years following Manning's death, Dymphna continued to be a staunch supporter of her husband's work and reputation. She was determinded to keep Manning's work and reputation alive. She established Manning Clark House at her home in Forrest, as a cultural centre for events, such as book launches and literary talks. She also continued to publish Manning's work, editing The Historian's Apprenticeship (1992), the third volume of his memoirs, and Speaking Out of Turn(1997), a collection of Manning Clark's lectures and speeches from 1940 to 1991.

Dymphna died on 12 May 2000 in Canberra and was survived by six children and 15 grandchildren.

Clark, Andrew. 'A Mind of Great Depth and Scholarship'. Canberra Times, 19 May 2000.

Russell, Roslyn. 'Dymphna Clark: A Portrait'. National Library of Australia News, Volume XV, No 7, April 2005

'Manning Clark's Scholarly Partner Dies'. The Age, 13 May 2000

Manning Clark House, http://www.manningclark.org.au/index.htm

Provenance:

The papers of Dymphna Clark were donated to the Library by Dymphna's son, Sebastion Clark, in July 2003. Further material was donated by Sebastion Clark in 2008, 2011 and 2013.

Arrangement:

Most of the papers in the first class, MS 9873, were arranged by Dymhna Clark into named files and files that formed logical series. This is particularly true of the general correspondence (Series 1), newspaper cuttings and reviews (series 2), Von Hügel's New Holland Journals (Series 5 and 6), Dymphna's personal papers and documents (Series 7) as well as the papers relating to Manning's death and the two Manning Clark controversies of the 1990s (Series 9-11). The order of the files within the series has been imposed by the Library and some un-named files have been given titles to indicate their content.

Access and use

Conditions Governing Access:
Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/catalog/2631290).
Conditions Governing Use:
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.
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Dympnha Clark, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file/item number(s)]'.
Location of this collection:
Parkes Place
Canberra ACT 2600, Australia
Contact:
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