Name Dudley Chair Preceded by Sir Walter Davidson Succeeded by Philip Game | Allegiance United Kingdom Years of service 1878–1923 | |
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Lieutenant Sir William CullenSir Philip Street Full Name Dudley Rawson de Chair Profession Naval officer, colonial administrator Awards Order of the Bath, Order of St Michael and St George, Order of the British Empire, Royal Victorian Order Similar People Garnet Wolseley - 1st Visco, Ahmed ‘Urabi, Tewfik Pasha | ||
Admiral Sir Dudley Rawson Stratford de Chair (30 August 1864 – 17 August 1958) was a senior Royal Navy officer and later Governor of New South Wales.
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Naval career
De Chair joined the Royal Navy in 1878 and took part in the bombardment of Alexandria during the Anglo-Egyptian War in 1882. He was promoted to commander on 22 July 1897, and to captain on 26 June 1902. He became Assistant Controller of the Navy in 1910 and Secretary to First Lord of the Admiralty in 1912. He served in the First World War as Commander of the 10th Cruiser Squadron from 1914 and, having been promoted to rear admiral on 31 July 1912, he became Naval Adviser to Foreign Office on Blockade Affairs in 1916. In April-May 1917 he was a member of the Balfour Mission, intended to promote cooperation between the US and UK during World War I. He went on to be Commander of the 3rd Battle Squadron in 1917, Admiral Commanding the Coastguard and Reserve in 1918 and President of the Interallied Commission on Enemy Warships in 1921 before retiring in 1923.
Governor of New South Wales
De Chair was appointed Governor of New South Wales on 8 November 1923. His uncle, Sir Harry Rawson, had held the same position twenty years earlier. Arriving in Sydney in 1924, de Chair became governor in stable political times. However, when the Fuller Conservatives were defeated by the Labor Party under Jack Lang, de Chair found himself in conflict with Lang's revolutionary reform program, particularly over Lang's attempts to abolish the New South Wales Legislative Council. While Lang's attempts ultimately failed, de Chair failed to gain the support of an indifferent Dominions Office. With Lang's departure in 1927, the Nationalist Government of Thomas Bavin invited him in 1929 to stay on as Governor for a further term. De Chair agreed only to a year's extension and retired on 8 April 1930.
Later life
Returning to London after a global trip, de Chair worked on his memoirs until his death in 1958.
Personal life
De Chair married Enid Struben in 1903. Together they had three children, Henry, Elaine and Somerset.
Honours and decorations
Following the King Edward VII's visit to the Russian Empire, de Chair was appointed Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO) on 10 June 1908 for his role in the visit as commander HMS Cochrane. In the 1914 King's Birthday Honours, he was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB).
On 6 March 1911, de Chair was appointed a Naval aide-de-camp (ADC) to King George V. He relinquished the appointment on 31 July 1912, having been promoted to flag rank on that day.