Augustine Soubeiran (1858-1933). Innovative Educator and Dynamic Secretary of the French-Australian League of Help

Abstract

Augustine Soubeiran is one of those remarkable figures of public life who are all the more enthralling for being enigmatic. She was prominent in a number of different circles in Sydney for several decades from the late nineteenth century and her name and legacy live on as co-founder and principal of one of Sydney's most prestigious schools; as a very active participant in the development of the Alliance Francaise; as someone who played a major institutional role in Australia-France friendship during the First World War. For her achievements she was to receive France's highest civilian honour, the Legion d'Honneur. Yet aspects of her life remain clouded in ignorance, ambiguity and mystery. Show more