At War with Bill Jordan
The New Zealand High Commission in Wartime London
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11944517 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Andrew Stewart (0000-0002-9758-3753, International College of Defence Studies, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2012 |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 67-86 |
| Publication date | 2012-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Journal of Imperial & Commonwealth History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0308-6534 • E-ISSN: 1743-9329 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/03086534.2012.656491 |
| OpenAlex | W1981350108 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 15 |
For the government of New Zealand, the role of high commissioner in the United Kingdom was of paramount significance. The Labour government's 1935 electoral success was followed quickly by the appointment of William Jordan to fill this role. British-born and with a very visible loyalty to the Crown and the imperial idea, during the pre-war years he was nonetheless not averse to offering stringent opinions on British foreign policy. An active participant in the League of Nations, he believed passionately in the value of collective security and the need to forcefully deter the dictators. The war's outbreak in September 1939 hit him particularly hard but his support for the British Empire's greatest challenge remained resolute. His High Commission was blessed with an abundance of talent to handle all the key issues and despite the considerable distances involved, a regular stream of visitors from New Zealand were prepared to make the arduous journey, including among them Prime Minister Peter Fraser. Their host was a complex character who was noted for a ‘volcanic’ temper and clashed regularly with members of his staff, visiting political figures from home, fellow dominions' high commissioners and even British dignitaries. Yet, for the sake of the Commonwealth alliance, all this was kept successfully behind closed doors
Alliance · British Empire · Colonialism · Commission · Commonwealth · Economic history · Empire · Government (linguistics · League · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Australian History and Society · Commonwealth, Australian Politics and Federalism · History · Law · World Wars: History, Literature, and Impact
The Imperial Canadian
What's in a name?’ The curious tale of the office of high commissioner
Equality of sacrifice’
The Most Appeasing Line’
Reluctant dominion or dutiful daughter? New Zealand and the commonwealth in the inter‐war years
Bruce of Melbourne
The Diplomatic Diaries of Oliver Harvey 1937-1940
Survey of British Commonwealth Affairs
The Imperial Canadian
Instruments of British Policy in the Sterling Area
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |