SIR Zelman Cowen, the governor-general picked to heal the nation after the bitter divisions following Sir John Kerr's 1975 dismissal of the Whitlam government, has died aged 92.
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Sir Zelman died - on the 34th anniversary of his swearing in as governor-general - in his Toorak home, with his wife Lady Anna Cowen by his side.
One of Australia's most distinguished constitutional lawyers and academics, Sir Zelman was appointed by Malcolm Fraser in 1977 to the vice-regal post, which critics believed had been politicised by the controversial sacking, and he won respect from both sides.
Mr Fraser last night told The Age that Sir Zelman had ''restored Australia's faith in the office of Governor-General''.
''He took over the position at a more difficult time than any other governor-general and served in the role with great distinction,'' Mr Fraser said. ''He worked extremely hard to see as much as he could and to talk to as many Australians as possible.''
Mr Fraser said Sir Zelman also made an enormous contributions to academia and universities.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard said: ''Sir Zelman Cowen was a great Australian. He served his country in so many ways, from being a naval officer in the Second World War to his period as governor-general. His public service touched so many, he will be sorely missed.''
Born in Melbourne in 1919, Sir Zelman, who was Jewish, was educated at Scotch College and Melbourne University.
Despite his weighty career, he also had a popular touch, for example, appearing on panel programs in the early years of television.
After four-and-a-half years at Yarralumla he became Provost of Oriel College, Oxford, from 1982 to 1990. Back in Australia he was a member of the board of Fairfax, which owns The Age, including a period as chairman.
Among his many interests, he was patron of the St Kilda Football Club.
In later life he suffered from Parkinson's disease, which he described as ''a cruel and perverse sort of thing'' when he spoke publicly about how it had affected his life.
Jewish community leader Mark Leibler described him ''one of Australia's greatest Jews'' and a man whose advice and guidance was sought frequently on a range of issues.
''He was a mentor of mine who taught me constitutional law at Melbourne University - a very wise person and a wonderful human being,'' he said.
He is survived by four children, Simon, Nick (Yosef), Kate and Ben, 16 grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
