Sir Paul Meernaa Hasluck (1905-1993)

Abstract

Sir Paul Meernaa Caedwalla Hasluck (1905–1993), governor-general, historian, poet, politician, and public servant, was born on 1 April 1905 at Fremantle, Western Australia, second of four surviving children of English-born parents Ethel Meernaa Hasluck and his wife Patience Eliza, née Wooler, both of whom were Salvation Army officers. Paul spent much of his childhood at Collie, where his parents ran a home for boys; there he attended a single-teacher primary school. To facilitate Paul’s further education, the Haslucks moved to Guildford, a suburb of Perth. With the aid of a scholarship he studied at Perth Modern School (1918–22), where he did well in English literature and history, and impressed his teachers with his intelligence and integrity. In January 1923 he entered a cadetship with the West Australian. A voracious reader with a particular liking for the works of Montaigne, he led an active social life, later describing himself as an ‘eager and puppyish fellow, making friends with anyone’ (Hasluck 1977, 84).