12 Facts About Andrew Gilchrist

Sir Andrew Graham Gilchrist was a British Special Operations Executive operative who later served as the United Kingdom's Ambassador to Ireland, Indonesia, and Iceland during the Cold War.

Andrew Gilchrist was educated at the Edinburgh Academy, before reading History at Exeter College, Oxford from where he graduated in 1931.

Andrew Gilchrist then joined SOE and was active in intelligence in India and Siam between 1944 and 1945.

Andrew Gilchrist continued his career with postings to Iceland and Germany.

Andrew Gilchrist later wrote a book about his time in Reykjavik entitled Cod Wars and How to Lose Them.

Andrew Gilchrist finally agreed to meet a delegation from the demonstrators; however, their exchange failed to cool tensions and they departed.

Andrew Gilchrist complained that the Indonesian police did little to disperse the Indonesian demonstrators and disputed the Indonesian demonstrators' account that Walker's bagpipe playing had preceded the stone throwing, or that the British behavior had been unnecessarily provocative.

At that time, Andrew Gilchrist was returning from lunch with Walker, and ordering the latter to save the car they were driving, he joined twenty-two other British Embassy staff huddled in a corner of the compound.

Andrew Gilchrist reported to London that he had always believed that "more than a little shooting" would be necessary to bring about a change of regime.

Andrew Gilchrist received a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1956, and was knighted via Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1964.

Sir Andrew Gilchrist was sent, for his final posting before retirement, to Dublin as ambassador.

Andrew Gilchrist claimed to have made a bet with the Permanent Secretary at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office that the troops would be there for 25 years.