Alexander Henry Dennett (1894 – 4 December 1956) was an Australian politician. He was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

to John Dennett and Dorothy Neale and became an Anglican lay preacher in

Gippsland Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It covers ...

before serving in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. On his return he became a journalist, working first for the ''Star'' and then for the '' Argus''. On 4 November 1922 he married Henrietta Jean Mathieson, with whom he had two children. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he served in the Middle East and the Pacific, and received the rank of

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

. In 1945 he was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...

as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

member for Caulfield. He was party whip from 1945 to 1947, when he became Minister of Agriculture and Forests. He briefly held the Labour and Decentralisation portfolios in December 1948, and remained on the front bench until 1950. A supporter of

Thomas Hollway Thomas Tuke Hollway (2 October 1906 – 30 July 1971) was the 36th Premier of Victoria, and the first to be born in the 20th century. He held office from 1947 to 1950, and again for a short period in 1952. He was originally a member and the lead ...

, he was the deputy of the Liberal rebels who broke away from the

Liberal and Country Party The Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division), branded as Liberal Victoria, and commonly known as the Victorian Liberals, is the state division of the Liberal Party of Australia in Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It was formed in 1949 as ...

in 1952 to vote against the McDonald Country Party government. He was Deputy Premier and Minister of Forests, Conservation and Immigration in the seventy-hour Hollway ministry that followed that action, and served as deputy of the group that became the

Victorian Liberal Party The Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division), branded as Liberal Victoria, and commonly known as the Victorian Liberals, is the state division of the Liberal Party of Australia in Victoria. It was formed in 1949 as the Liberal and Countr ...

until 1955, when he lost his seat. Dennett died at

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

the following year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dennett, Alexander 1894 births 1956 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Victorian Liberal Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Vice-Presidents of the Board of Land and Works Chief Secretaries of Victoria Ministers for the Environment (Victoria) 20th-century Australian politicians Ministers for Agriculture (Victoria)