Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

Sir Hector Joseph Richard Clayton, ED (3 June 188518 July 1975) was an Australian politician, solicitor and soldier. He was a member of the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

for 36 years from 1937 to 1973 representing the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

and its predecessor, the

United Australia Party The United Australia Party (UAP) was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. The party won four federal elections in that time, usually governing in coalition with the Country Party. It provided two prim ...

, becoming Leader of the New South Wales Opposition in the Legislative Council from 1960 until 1962.

Early years and military career

Hector Joseph Richard Clayton was born in Surry Hills, New South Wales in 1885, the son of solicitor John Horatio Clayton and Isabel Woodward. After being educated at

Sydney Grammar School (Praise be to God) , established = , type = Independent, day school , gender = Boys , religious_affiliation = None , slogan = , headmaster = R. B. Malpass , founder = Laurence Hynes Halloran , chairman = ...

, Clayton undertook studies at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

(1907) and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

(1910). After qualifying as a

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

in 1911, Clayton was made a partner in his father's firm, ''John H.Clayton and Son'' from 1911 until 1920. When the First World War broke out in 1914, Clayton immediately signed up to the

First Australian Imperial Force The First Australian Imperial Force (1st AIF) was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during the First World War. It was formed as the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) following Britain's declaration of war on Germany on 15 Aug ...

with a commission and was posted to the 4th Battalion, AIF. He embarked for Egypt in October as a captain and took part in the landing on

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

on 25 April 1915. In 1916, he was transferred to the Western Front, was promoted to major in November, and commanded the 4th Division Base, being mentioned in dispatches. He undertook administrative duties in England from June 1918. On 24 July 1917 he married Phyllis Edith Midwood at the parish church,

Market Drayton Market Drayton is a market town and electoral ward in the north of Shropshire, England, close to the Cheshire and Staffordshire borders. It is on the River Tern, and was formerly known as "Drayton in Hales" (c. 1868) and earlier simply as "Dray ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

. After demobilisation, Clayton returned to the law as a partner in '' Clayton and Utz'' (1920-1924) and later in ''Clayton, Utz and Company'' (1924-1975). A member of the conservative

, Clayton was elected to the indirectly elected

on 8 December 1936 and took his seat on 23 Apr 1937. However, he subsequently resigned from the UAP, as he believed that the council should be a non-partisan house of review, but remained a consistent supporter of his former party. Having been placed on the Reserve of Officers, Clayton was mobilised on the outbreak of war on 4 September 1939. After undertaking mostly administrative tasks, from July 1942 he commanded the 1st Movement Control Group in the New South Wales Lines of Communication Area. In August 1945, he was placed on the Retired List as honorary colonel.

Political career

A distinguished though uncombative member in the council, Clayton eventually succeeded as the Leader of the New South Wales Opposition in the Legislative Council, in 1960. His most significant achievement was found in attacking the

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

Government's attempts to abolish the Legislative Council, leading the campaign through the Supreme Court and the High Court of Australia and the subsequent referendum in April 1961, which overwhelmingly rejected the abolition proposal and marked the decline of the Labor government that had been in power since 1941. He stood down as leader in 1962, after problems with the leadership of the

. In August 1966, Clayton decided to run for

President of the New South Wales Legislative Council The President of the New South Wales Legislative Council is the presiding officer of the upper house of the Parliament of New South Wales, the Legislative Council. The presiding officer of the lower house is the speaker of the Legislative Asse ...

, being nominated by his friend and colleague

Thomas Playfair John Thomas Playfair (1832 – 15 November 1893) was an English-born Australian butcher, ship's providore, politician and benefactor. Early life John Thomas Playfair, known as Thomas Playfair, the eldest son of tailor Thomas Playfair a ...

. However, on the morning of the council meeting, Playfair suffered a fatal heart attack and Clayton withdrew his nomination. Having served as a company director of several insurance companies and a protector of the rights of businesses from government regulation, in 1968 he was made 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 recognition of service to commerce". He continued serving on the council until his retirement aged 88 in 1973. Survived by his two sons and a daughter, he died aged 90 on 18 July 1975 at Paddington and was cremated.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clayton, Hector Joseph Richard 1885 births 1975 deaths Australian people of English descent Australian solicitors Australian military personnel of World War I Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian Army officers Independent members of the Parliament of New South Wales Australian Knights Bachelor Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of New South Wales People educated at Sydney Grammar School United Australia Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales University of Sydney alumni 20th-century Australian politicians