Soviet Russian First Consul in Australia, Petr Simonov: His Friends and Foes

Abstract

This article investigates the work of Petr Fomich Simonov, Soviet Russian first consul in Australia, on the basis of documents in the National Archives of Australia and the archives of the Russian Federation, and material in the press. Simonov arrived in Australia from Harbin in 1912, at the age of 28. Although he had never previously been engaged in political activism, he quickly came to prominence among the radicals of the Russian community in Queensland and in 1917 became secretary of the Union of Russian Workers and editor of the Russian newspaper «Workers’ Life». Soon after the October Revolution, in January 1918, the Soviet government appointed him Consul General in Australia, but since the Australian government, following Britain’s lead, did not recognize Soviet Russia, his appointment did not receive de jure recognition. That apart, many in the local Russian community felt that the new consul lacked the necessary experience and expertise. Nevertheless, he represented the interests of the Bolshevik government for three years, working in very difficult conditions and with no more than minimal funding. While doing his best to perform his consular duties, he also supplied valuable information to the Executive Committee of the Communist International on the growth of the workers’ movement in Australia, and played an active part, with the leaders of the Australian socialists, in the founding of the Communist Party of Australia. Show more