Douglas Nicholls

Governor of South Australia (1976–77)

道格拉斯·尼克斯 · ダグラス・ニコルズ

Born

9 December 1906, Cummeragunja Reserve

Died

4 June 1988, Mooroopna

Citizenship

Australia

Sport

Australian rules football

Occupation

boxer, Australian rules football player, pastor, governor

Team / club

Fitzroy Football Club, Northcote Football Club

Sir Douglas Ralph Nicholls (9 December 1906 – 4 June 1988) was a prominent Aboriginal Australian from the Yorta Yorta people who served as the 28th governor of South Australia from 1976 to 1977. He was a professional athlete, pastor of the Churches of Christ and church planter, ceremonial officer and a pioneer of Australian reconciliation.

Nicholls was the first Aboriginal Australian to be knighted when he was appointed Knight Bachelor in 1972 (he was subsequently appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in 1977). He was also the first—and as of 2026 the only—Indigenous Australian to be appointed to vice-regal office, serving as Governor of South Australia from 1 December 1976 until his resignation on 30 April 1977 due to poor health.

Awards and honours

• Member of the Order of the British Empire 1957
• Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1968
• Knight Bachelor 1972
• Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order 1977

External links

• Wikipedia
• Wikidata

Facts from Wikidata Q447675 (CC0); quoted introduction from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Data retrieved 2026-10-22.

Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.