Charles McDonald (25 August 186013 November 1925) was an Australian politician who served in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

from 1901 until his death, representing the Labor Party. He was Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1910 to 1913 and from 1914 to 1917. Before entering federal politics, McDonald had served in the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly ...

from 1893 to 1901.

Early life and career

Charles McDonald was born in

North Melbourne, Victoria North Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. North Melbourne recorded a population of 14,953 at the ...

. He lived a transient life as a child with his family living in four colonies. He was living in

Mudgee Mudgee is a town in the Central West (New South Wales), Central West of New South Wales, Australia. It is in the broad fertile Cudgegong River valley north-west of Sydney and is the largest town in the Mid-Western Regional Council Local gover ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, when he left school, becoming an apprentice printer. However, he later switched trades becoming a watchmaker.

Queensland Labor movement

McDonald was a watchmaker in

Charters Towers Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits under ...

in 1890 when he became the President of the Australian Labor Federation based in Brisbane. He played a leading role in the formation of the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. McDonald was elected in 1893 as member for

Flinders Flinders may refer to: Places Antarctica * Flinders Peak, near the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula Australia New South Wales * Flinders County, New South Wales * Shellharbour Junction railway station, Shellharbour * Flinders, New South Wa ...

in the

Legislative Assembly of Queensland The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembl ...

. McDonald became known for his mastery of the Standing Orders. He was a member of the Queensland Executive between 1898 and 1903.

Federal parliamentarian

In 1901, he successfully stood for the

Division of Kennedy The Division of Kennedy is an Australian electoral division in the state of Queensland. History The division was proclaimed in 1900, and was one of the original 65 divisions to be contested at the first federal election. It is named after E ...

, a vast seat in the outback of western Queensland, in the first election for the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Senate. Its composition and powers are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. The term of members of the ...

after Federation. McDonald was known as "Fighting Charlie" or "Fighting Mac" for his vigorous campaigning style. In one campaign, he reportedly rode over on bicycle on the rough outback roads. McDonald became Chairman of Committees between 1906 and 1910. He became the first Labor Speaker in 1910 as

Andrew Fisher Andrew Fisher (29 August 186222 October 1928) was an Australian politician who served three terms as prime minister of Australia – from 1908 to 1909, from 1910 to 1913, and from 1914 to 1915. He was the leader of the Australian Labor Party ...

formed the first Labor majority Government. He served in that position until Labor was narrowly defeated in the 1913 Federal election. McDonald was a confirmed republican who abandoned the traditional Speaker's wig and gown in favour of an ordinary business suit. All Labor Speakers have followed this tradition. He also removed the mace from the table. The Liberal Government, which had only a slim majority, made an offer to McDonald to continue in the position, but he declined due to the interests of the Labor Party. The Liberal Prime Minister

Joseph Cook Sir Joseph Cook, (7 December 1860 – 30 July 1947) was an Australian politician who served as the sixth Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1913 to 1914. He was the leader of the Liberal Party from 1913 to 1917, after earlier serving ...

became frustrated by the Labor controlled Senate blocking his legislation and called for a double dissolution election. Labor won the election and McDonald became speaker again in 1914. He served as Speaker under the Labor, National Labor, and

Nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

governments until the 1917 election. During the parliamentary term, Labor split over the introduction of

conscription in Australia Conscription in Australia, also called mandatory military service or National Service, has a controversial history dating back to the first years of nationhood. Military conscription was abolished by Australian law in 1972. Australia currently h ...

. After the election, McDonald served on the opposition

backbench In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...

. His health was failing in the mid-1920s despite a trip to the United Kingdom in 1923. He died of cerebro-vascular disease on the day before the 1925 election, leading to his opponent Grosvenor Francis being declared elected unopposed. McDonald had a state funeral and was buried in

Boroondara General Cemetery Boroondara General Cemetery, often referred to as Kew cemetery, is one of the oldest cemeteries in Victoria, Australia, created in the tradition of the Victorian garden cemetery. The cemetery, located in Kew, a suburb of Melbourne, is listed ...

. He was survived by his wife and daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McDonald, Charles 1860 births 1925 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Kennedy Members of the Australian House of Representatives Speakers of the Australian House of Representatives Burials in Victoria (Australia) 20th-century Australian politicians