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y separately published work icon Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins single work   biography  
Issue Details: First known date: 2006... 2006 Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'The biography of the man who, for over twenty-five years, was arguably Australia's most significant public servant, serving every prime minister, Liberal and Labor, from Ben Chifley to Malcolm Fraser. Tange defined Australian foreign affairs and defence policy for over 25 years and this sheds new light on many of Australia's political crises including the downfall of John Gorton as PM, the fault line in Australian-US relationships during the Whitlam government and the deaths of the Balibo Five in East Timor. It also illuminates many of the triumphs and disasters of Australia's international relations, from the Bretton Woods conference and the Colombo Plan of the 1940s, through the ANZUS Treaty negotiations, the Petrov Affair and the Suez crisis in the 1950s, Australia's involvement in Indonesian confrontation and the Vietnam War in the 1960s, and the change from forward defence to the defence of Australia in the 1970s. By examining Tange's personal papers and Defence documents not released to the public at the time of writing, Peter Edwards reveals much that was hidden from view during political and diplomatic crises, including a nearly fatal rift in the alliance with the United States.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

Exhibitions

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Crows Nest, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,: Allen and Unwin , 2006 .
      image of person or book cover 7321335374195144797.jpg
      This image has been sourced from online.
      Extent: xii, 339p. [16]p. of platesp.
      Description: illus., ports
      Note/s:
      • Includes index.
      • Includes bibliography.
      ISBN: 1741146429
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Untapped , 2021 .
      image of person or book cover 43673313520389302.png
      Image courtesy of publisher's website.
      Extent: 1v.p.
      ISBN: 9781922730411

Works about this Work

Man in Charge John Burgess , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: Quadrant , April vol. 52 no. 4 2008; (p. 114-116)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
The Personal Factor Jeffrey Grey , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , May no. 281 2006; (p. 18)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
Tyrant Among the Pen-Pushers Michael Sexton , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18-19 March 2006; (p. 24)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
Distinctive Tange, the Last of Canberra's Mandarins Bill Pritchett , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 25 February 2006; (p. 14-15)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
Conjuring Fascinating Stories : The Case of Sir Arthur Tange Peter Edwards , 2006 single work criticism
— Appears in: Australian Political Lives : Chronicling Political Careers and Administrative Histories 2006; (p. 81-86)

'Shortly after Frank Crowley, then lecturing in history at the University of Western Australia, started his biography of John Forrest, he confronted his second-year students with a question: ‘It is said that every historian should tackle a biography at some stage in his life. What do you think?’ As I recall, the second-year students sat there with their mouths opening and closing silently like dyspeptic goldfish. One of them, however, for some reason remembered that remark. Thirty years later I recalled it when I was trying to work out what my next project should be, having just worked on the official history of Australia’s involvement in Malaya, Borneo and Vietnam, as well as various other projects. I wanted to do something which built on that work but which was also different. I thought that tackling a biography would be of interest. It occurred to me that somebody really ought to do a biography of the public servant Arthur Tange, a person to whom many historians, myself included, had referred with a one-word summary, either ‘legendary’ or ‘formidable’.'  (Introduction)

Distinctive Tange, the Last of Canberra's Mandarins Bill Pritchett , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 25 February 2006; (p. 14-15)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
Tyrant Among the Pen-Pushers Michael Sexton , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18-19 March 2006; (p. 24)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
The Personal Factor Jeffrey Grey , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , May no. 281 2006; (p. 18)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
Man in Charge John Burgess , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: Quadrant , April vol. 52 no. 4 2008; (p. 114-116)

— Review of Arthur Tange : Last of the Mandarins Peter Edwards , 2006 single work biography
Conjuring Fascinating Stories : The Case of Sir Arthur Tange Peter Edwards , 2006 single work criticism
— Appears in: Australian Political Lives : Chronicling Political Careers and Administrative Histories 2006; (p. 81-86)

'Shortly after Frank Crowley, then lecturing in history at the University of Western Australia, started his biography of John Forrest, he confronted his second-year students with a question: ‘It is said that every historian should tackle a biography at some stage in his life. What do you think?’ As I recall, the second-year students sat there with their mouths opening and closing silently like dyspeptic goldfish. One of them, however, for some reason remembered that remark. Thirty years later I recalled it when I was trying to work out what my next project should be, having just worked on the official history of Australia’s involvement in Malaya, Borneo and Vietnam, as well as various other projects. I wanted to do something which built on that work but which was also different. I thought that tackling a biography would be of interest. It occurred to me that somebody really ought to do a biography of the public servant Arthur Tange, a person to whom many historians, myself included, had referred with a one-word summary, either ‘legendary’ or ‘formidable’.'  (Introduction)

Last amended 6 Dec 2021 09:45:46
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