Sir John William Downer,
KCMG KCMG may refer to
* KC Motorgroup, based in Hong Kong, China
* Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, British honour
* KCMG-LP, radio station in New Mexico, USA
* KCMG, callsign 1997-2001 of Los Angeles radio station KKLQ (FM) ...
,
KC (6 July 1843 – 2 August 1915) was an Australian politician who served two terms as
Premier of South Australia
The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...
, from 1885 to 1887 and again from 1892 to 1893. He later entered federal politics and served as a
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
for
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 ...
from 1901 to 1903. He was the first of four Australian politicians from the
Downer family
The Downer family has played a significant role in the South Australian and Australian political and social sphere since the early days of European settlement. Their earliest ancestors were Mary Ann Downer (1792–1868) and her son Henry Downer ...
dynasty.
Early life
Born in
Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, John Downer (the son of
Henry Downer who came 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 1838 and Jane Downer ) was educated on a scholarship at
St Peter's College, Adelaide
, other_name = The Collegiate School of St Peter
, seal_image = St Peter's College, Adelaide Logo.svg
, seal_size = 150
, image = SPSC chapel and memorial hall.jpg
, image_size ...
,. On 23 March 1867 he was admitted to the bar, and soon won a reputation as being among Adelaide's most talented and eloquent lawyers.
South Australian politician
![John Downer (Australian politician)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/John_Downer_%28Australian_politician%29.jpg)
Downer became a
Queen's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...
in 1878, the same year in which he was elected to the
House of Assembly
House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level.
Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...
for
Barossa. He represented this constituency until 1901, leaving it only to enter federal politics.
In the House of Assembly he soon made his mark and became
Attorney-General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general.
In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
in
John Cox Bray
Sir John Cox Bray (31 May 1842 – 13 June 1894) was a prominent South Australian politician and the first native-born Premier of South Australia (1881–1884).
Early life and education
John Cox Bray was born in East Adelaide, a son of Tom C ...
's cabinet on 24 June 1881. He endeavoured to bring in several law reforms, and though his married women's property bill was not passed, he succeeded in carrying bills allowing accused persons to give evidence on oath, and amending the insolvency and marriage acts. The government was defeated in June 1884, but a year later, on 16 June 1885, Downer himself became Premier for the first time, as well as being Attorney-General once again.
While Premier, Downer oversaw the construction of the first train line from Adelaide to Melbourne. He also made significant contributions to establishing irrigation settlements along the Murray River. Although this ministry lasted two years and passed a fair amount of legislation, it was often in difficulties, and in June 1886 had to be reconstructed.
At the
Colonial Conference held in London during 1887, Downer represented South Australia, but during his return journey to Australia his government was defeated. This ministry was responsible for a tariff imposing increased protective duties. Downer was not in office again for several years, but in October 1892 again became Premier, taking also the portfolio of Chief Secretary. In May 1893 he exchanged this for the position of
Treasurer of South Australia
The Treasurer of South Australia is the Cabinet minister in the Government of South Australia who is responsible for the financial management of that state's budget sector. The Urban Renewal Authority, trading as Renewal SA, lies within the T ...
, but was ousted at the
1893 election by liberal
Protectionist
Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...
Kingston with the support of the new
Labor Party led by
John McPherson. Downer remarked of this party: 'They are very clever fellows. I have great respect for the way they use either side for their purposes with absolute impartiality'. For most of the period until 1899 Downer led the Opposition.
Downer was a strong federalist and had represented South Australia at the 1883 and 1891
conventions. At the latter meeting, he took an important part in protecting the interests of the smaller states, and was a member of the constitutional committee. He was elected one of the 10 representatives of South Australia at the Australasian Federal Convention of 1897-8, and sat, again, on the constitutional committee. He was the most senior and significant representative of the conservative portion of the Convention's ideological spectrum. In this period he formed a close personal bond with several leading Federationists. Robert Garran, an eminence grise of the Federalist cause, was the best man at Downer's wedding in 1898. Richard O'Connor and Edmund Barton were among the attendees. The bride and groom had first met at Barton's house, and in these years Barton would stay at Downer's house when in Adelaide.
Federal politician and return to state politics
In the inaugural election of the parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia, Downer stood for the Senate, without party label, but campaigning closely with fellow candidate and conservative, Sir Richard Baker. On the hustings he declared he "was not a Free Trader, and not a Protectionist", but "a Fair Trader". He won one of the six vacancies, but, badly disappointed in not being appointed to the High Court, he did not seek re-election in 1903. He entered the
South Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the House of Assembly. It sits in Parli ...
as a
National Defence League
The National Defence League (NDL) was an independent conservative political party, founded in 1891 by MLC Richard Baker in South Australia as an immediate response to the perceived threat from Labor. Though renamed the Australasian National Lea ...
(
Liberal Union from 1910) representative of the southern district in 1905, and continued to be re-elected until his death on 2 August 1915.
Character
Alfred Deakin
Alfred Deakin (3 August 1856 – 7 October 1919) was an Australian politician who served as the second Prime Minister of Australia. He was a leader of the movement for Federation, which occurred in 1901. During his three terms as prime ministe ...
assessed Downer in the following terms: 'bull-headed, and rather thick-necked, ... with the dogged set of the mouth of a prize fighter' and 'smallish eyes'. Downer was regarded a first-rate barrister, and some of his speeches to juries were singled out by contemporaries as laudable examples of forensic art. He was equally successful in parliamentary debate; one of his colleagues called him the best debater in a house that contained Charles Kingston,
Frederick Holder
Sir Frederick William Holder (12 May 185023 July 1909) was an Australian politician. He was Premier of South Australia from June to October 1892 and again from 1899 to 1901. He was a prominent member of the inaugural Parliament of Australia fo ...
,
John Cockburn, and
John Jenkins.
In politics Downer tended to be conservative without being obstinate. He described himself as a
Tory
A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...
, and partly on account of this he often found himself in a minority during his later years in parliament. Nevertheless, he consistently advocated the rights of married women to their own property,
female suffrage
Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...
, protection of local industries, and
federation
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...
.
Family and legacy
![John Downer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/John_Downer.jpg)
Downer married twice: firstly in 1871 to Elizabeth Henderson (c. 1852 – 3 May 1896), daughter of the controversial Rev.
James Henderson; and secondly, in Sydney 29 November 1899 to Una Stella Haslingden Russell, daughter of Henry Edward Russell. With Elizabeth he had three children, John Henry (born 1872), James Frederick (born 1874) and Harold Sydney (born in 1875 and died in infancy).
The son of his second marriage was
Alexander Russell "Alick" Downer (born 1910), who served in the
Menzies
Menzies is a Scottish surname, with Gaelic forms being Méinnearach and Méinn, and other variant forms being Menigees, Mennes, Mengzes, Menzeys, Mengies, and Minges.
Derivation and history
The name and its Gaelic form are probably derived f ...
government, was knighted, and served as Australian High Commissioner in London, and whose son,
Alexander Downer
Alexander John Gosse Downer (born 9 September 1951) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who was leader of the Liberal Party from 1994 to 1995, Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1996 to 2007, and High Commissioner to the United King ...
served as leader of the (Opposition) Liberal party in 1994 and Foreign Minister in the
Howard
Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...
government.
The home he purchased in 1880 at 42 Pennington Terrace,
North Adelaide
North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.
History
Surveyor-General Colonel William Light of the colo ...
, is now
St Mark's College and the original part of the building is known as Downer House. A draft of the Australian Constitution was prepared in the ballroom in 1897.
A brother and partner in his business,
Henry Edward Downer
Henry Edward Downer (22 March 1836 – 4 August 1905) was a South Australian politician. He was a brother of Sir John Downer and George Downer, and a noted lawyer and businessman.
Henry Edward Downer was born in Portsmouth, England and emigrat ...
(1836–1905), entered the South Australian parliament in 1881 and was attorney-general in the
John Cockburn ministry from May to August 1890. Another brother,
George Downer (1839–1916) was his partner in the legal firm G & J Downer and a prominent businessman.
In 1887, at the
Imperial Conference
Imperial Conferences (Colonial Conferences before 1907) were periodic gatherings of government leaders from the self-governing colonies and dominions of the British Empire between 1887 and 1937, before the establishment of regular Meetings of ...
in London (now the
Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting
The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM; or) is a biennial summit meeting of the governmental leaders from all Commonwealth nations. Despite the name, the head of state may be present in the meeting instead of the head of go ...
), Downer was created
KCMG KCMG may refer to
* KC Motorgroup, based in Hong Kong, China
* Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, British honour
* KCMG-LP, radio station in New Mexico, USA
* KCMG, callsign 1997-2001 of Los Angeles radio station KKLQ (FM) ...
, recommended to the Queen by the Marquis of Salisbury.
During retirement, he joined the
Adelaide University
The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...
Council and became president of the Commonwealth Club.
The
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
suburb of
Downer, Australian Capital Territory
Downer is a suburb of Canberra, Australia, in the city's inner north. The suburb is bounded by Northbourne Avenue, Antill Street and Philip Avenue.
The suburb was gazetted in 1960 and named after Sir John Downer (1844–1915) Premier of South A ...
was named after him in 1960. On
Garema Place
Garema Place is a paved outdoor area in Civic, Canberra, Australia, with a number of shops, restaurants and cafes with outdoor dining. As a central point within the CBD, many community events including protests and festivals are held at the l ...
,
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
stands a commemorative sculpted fountain titled Father and Son and was presented by his son Sir Alick in 1964.
Electoral History
South Australia
House of Assembly
Legislative Council
Australian Senate
See also
*
Downer family
The Downer family has played a significant role in the South Australian and Australian political and social sphere since the early days of European settlement. Their earliest ancestors were Mary Ann Downer (1792–1868) and her son Henry Downer ...
Notes and references
Sources
*
*
*''Parliamentary Debates'' (South Australia), 1883–84, 2031
*''Intercolonial Convention, 1883: Report of the Proceedings of the Intercolonial Convention, held in Sydney, in November and December, 1883'' (Syd, 1883)
*''Proceedings of the Colonial Conference, 1887: Papers Laid before the Conference'' (Lond, 1887)
*National Australasian Convention, 1891 to 1898, ''Official Record of the Proceedings …'' (Sydney 1891, Adelaide 1897, Sydney 1898 and Melbourne 1898)
*''British Australasian'', 17 June 1887
*Edmund Barton papers (National Library of Australia)
*Alfred Deakin papers (National Library of Australia)
*P. M. Glynn diaries, 1880–1918 (National Library of Australia)
*''The Register'', Adelaide, 3 August 1915
*''The Advertiser'', Adelaide, 3 August 1915
*E. Hodder, ''The History of South Australia''
*Quick and Garran, ''The Annotated Constitution of the Australian Commonwealth''
*P. Mennell, ''The Dictionary of Australasian Biography''
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Downer, John
1843 births
1915 deaths
Premiers of South Australia
Attorneys-General of South Australia
Australian barristers
Australian suffragists
Australian federationists
Politicians from Adelaide
Australian people of English descent
Members of the Australian Senate for South Australia
Members of the Australian Senate
Members of the South Australian Legislative Council
Australian Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Australian politicians awarded knighthoods
People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
Leaders of the Opposition in South Australia
Treasurers of South Australia
Australian King's Counsel
Male feminists
Protectionist Party members of the Parliament of Australia
19th-century Australian politicians
20th-century Australian politicians
Burials at North Road Cemetery