Archibauld Duncan Wilson
Encyclopedia
Sir Archibald Duncan Wilson (12 August 1911 - 20 September 1983) was a British diplomat and Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
.
Wilson was born on 12 August 1911 in Winchester
to Archibald Edward Wilson and Ethel Wilson. He was educated at Winchester College
and Balliol College, Oxford
where he studied Classics
.
After his studies in Oxford he applied for the Diplomatic Service but due to a back ailment was not successful. He then spent a year teaching in Westminster School
and then joined the British Museum
as Assistant keeper in 1937.
During the war the opportunity arose to join the Foreign Office and after the war he served in Berlin
for the Allied Control Commission for Germany.
He then specialised in Communist affairs and held the following positions:
He retired from the diplomatic service in 1971 and was appointed Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. While at Corpus he was also Chairman of the Appeal Committee of Cambridge University and was instrumental in the procurement of a new building to house the Faculty of Music. He retired from the Mastershipin 1980 and was succeeded by Michael William McCrum
Wilson married Elizabeth née Fleming in 1937 and had three children, Elizabeth, Catherine (born 1940) and David (1941–1975).
He wrote several books including,
He died on 20 September 1983 aged 71.
His daughter Elizabeth married Romanian pianist Radu Lupu
. He was a good friend of musician composers Benjamin Britten
and Mstislav Rostropovich
.
Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is notable as the only college founded by Cambridge townspeople: it was established in 1352 by the Guilds of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
.
Wilson was born on 12 August 1911 in Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
to Archibald Edward Wilson and Ethel Wilson. He was educated at Winchester College
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
and Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
where he studied Classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
.
After his studies in Oxford he applied for the Diplomatic Service but due to a back ailment was not successful. He then spent a year teaching in Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
and then joined the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
as Assistant keeper in 1937.
During the war the opportunity arose to join the Foreign Office and after the war he served in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
for the Allied Control Commission for Germany.
He then specialised in Communist affairs and held the following positions:
- Charge d'affairesChargé d'affairesIn diplomacy, chargé d’affaires , often shortened to simply chargé, is the title of two classes of diplomatic agents who head a diplomatic mission, either on a temporary basis or when no more senior diplomat has been accredited.-Chargés d’affaires:Chargés d’affaires , who were...
in Peking - Ambassador to Yugoslavia 1964-1968
- Ambassador to the USSR 1968-1971
He retired from the diplomatic service in 1971 and was appointed Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. While at Corpus he was also Chairman of the Appeal Committee of Cambridge University and was instrumental in the procurement of a new building to house the Faculty of Music. He retired from the Mastershipin 1980 and was succeeded by Michael William McCrum
Michael William McCrum
Michael William McCrum CBE was an English academic and ancient historian who served as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and Head Master of Tonbridge School and Eton College.-Life:McCrum was born at Alverstoke in Hampshire...
Wilson married Elizabeth née Fleming in 1937 and had three children, Elizabeth, Catherine (born 1940) and David (1941–1975).
He wrote several books including,
- Life and Times of Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic (1970)
- Tito's Yugoslavia (1979)
- Leonard Woolf: A political biography, Ed. Powell, (1978), 282 pages. ISBN13: 9780312480011, ISBN10: 0312480016 . A political biography of this notorious FabianFabian-People:*Fabian Månsson, , Swedish socialist*Fabian , , 1950s American teen idol and singer*Fabian Bachrach, an American photographer*Fabian Cancellara, , Swiss professional road cyclist...
member of the famous literary and political Bloomsbury GroupBloomsbury GroupThe Bloomsbury Group or Bloomsbury Set was a group of writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists who held informal discussions in Bloomsbury throughout the 20th century. This English collective of friends and relatives lived, worked or studied near Bloomsbury in London during the first half...
, (1880–1969), the husband of theatrical authoress Virginia WoolfVirginia WoolfAdeline Virginia Woolf was an English author, essayist, publisher, and writer of short stories, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century....
, née Adeline Virginia Stephen, (1882–1941), and one of the Political think-tank Architects of the League of NationsLeague of NationsThe League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
.
He died on 20 September 1983 aged 71.
His daughter Elizabeth married Romanian pianist Radu Lupu
Radu Lupu
Radu Lupu is a Romanian concert pianist. He has won a number of the most prestigious awards in classical piano, including first prizes in the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition....
. He was a good friend of musician composers Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
and Mstislav Rostropovich
Mstislav Rostropovich
Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, KBE , known to close friends as Slava, was a Soviet and Russian cellist and conductor. He was married to the soprano Galina Vishnevskaya. He is widely considered to have been the greatest cellist of the second half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest of...
.