Sir Alfred Langler (5 May 1865 – 26 March 1928) was an Australian journalist and newspaper editor. He had a long association with ''

The West Australian ''The West Australian'' is the only locally edited daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia. It is owned by Seven West Media (SWM), as is the state's other major newspaper, ''The Sunday Times''. It is the second-oldest continuousl ...

'', serving as editor from 1916 to 1927. Langler was born in

Ipplepen Ipplepen is a village and civil parish located within the Teignbridge district of the county of Devon in south-west England. A Ipplepen Priory, priory was located there. There is an electoral ward with the same name. The population at the Unite ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, England, to Susanna (née Colton) and William Langler. He joined the staff of the ''

Western Daily Mercury The ''Western Morning News'' is a daily regional newspaper founded in 1860, and covering the West Country including Devon, Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and parts of Somerset and Dorset in the South West of England. Organisation The ''Western M ...

'' at a young age, as an apprentice journalist. Langler emigrated to

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

in 1890, where he began working for ''

The Register ''The Register'' is a British technology news website co-founded in 1994 by Mike Magee, John Lettice and Ross Alderson. The online newspaper's masthead sublogo is "''Biting the hand that feeds IT''." Their primary focus is information tec ...

''. He moved to

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

in July 1895 to become a sub-editor of ''The West Australian'', and in 1902 replaced

John Nanson John Leighton Nanson (22 September 1863 – 29 February 1916) was a journalist and politician in Western Australia. A former writer and sub-editor with ''The West Australian'', he served in the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 190 ...

as assistant editor and

leader writer A leader writer is a senior journalist in a British newspaper who is charged with writing the paper's editorial either in the absence of the editor or in cases where the editor chooses not to write editorials because their editorial skills may res ...

. After the deaths of several of the paper's key figures (including co-owners Charles Harper in 1912 and

John Winthrop Hackett Sir John Winthrop Hackett Sr. (4 February 184819 February 1916), generally known as "Winthrop Hackett", was a proprietor and editor of several newspapers in Western Australia, a politician and a university chancellor. Early life Hackett was b ...

in 1916), Langler was made chief editor. Despite the death of its previous owners, ''The West Australian'' was not re-sold until 1926, when it was purchased by William Sydney Robinson and

William Baillieu William Lawrence Baillieu (29 April 1859 – 6 February 1936) was an Australian financier and politician. He was a successful businessman, having developed significant business interests from his relatively humble beginnings. He associated with m ...

for

A£ The pound (Sign: £, £A for distinction) was the currency of Australia from 1910 until 14 February 1966, when it was replaced by the Australian dollar. As with other £sd currencies, it was subdivided into 20 shillings (denoted by the symbol s ...

625,000. Langler became chairman of directors of its new holding company, West Australian Newspapers, and, as executor of Hackett's will, oversaw the distribution of the money to his estate (including large donations to the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

and the

Anglican Diocese of Perth The Anglican Diocese of Perth is one of the 23 dioceses of the Anglican Church of Australia. The constitution of the Diocese of Perth was passed and adopted in 1872 at the first synod held in Western Australia. In 1914 in Australia, 1914, the ...

). Langler was created a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

in the

1927 New Year Honours The New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on 31 December 1926. The recipients of honours are ...

, and retired the same year after the onset of dementia. He died in Perth in March 1928, aged 63, from bronchopneumonia. He had married Josephine Laverton in 1893, with whom he had two children.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Langler, Alfred 1865 births 1928 deaths Australian journalists Australian Knights Bachelor Australian newspaper editors English emigrants to Australia Infectious disease deaths in Western Australia People from Teignbridge (district)