Charles Louis von Doussa (better known as Louis von Doussa; 17 May 1850 – 27 May 1932) was an Australian lawyer and politician. He was a member of the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assembly was creat ...

for Mount Barker from 1889 to 1902 and a member of 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 ...

for the Southern District from 1903 to 1905. He was

Attorney-General of South Australia The attorney-general of South Australia is the Cabinet minister in the Government of South Australia who is responsible for that state's system of law and justice. The attorney-general must be a qualified legal practitioner, although this wa ...

and Minister for Education in the Jenkins government from 1903 to 1904.

History

Von Doussa was born in

Hahndorf Hahndorf is a small town in the Adelaide Hills region of South Australia. Currently an important tourism spot, it has previously been a centre for farming and services. Geography It is accessible from Adelaide, the South Australian capital, ...

the second son of Emil Louis Alfred von Doussa (ca.1809 – 17 December 1882), an officer of the Prussian army, who emigrated to South Australia in 1846 with his wife Anna Dorothea von Doussa, née Schach. (ca.1811 – 17 March 1881) He was educated at Hahndorf College and afterwards tutored privately by George R. Irvine, formerly a master at St. Peter's College. On 11 June 1866 he was articled to J. J. Bonnar of Strathalbyn, and admitted to the bar in 1871. He began practice at Mount Barker in 1872.

Politics

Von Doussa represented 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 ...

electoral district of Mount Barker Mount Barker was an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia from 1857 to 1902. Mount Barker was also the name of one of the sixteen districts in the unicameral South Australian Legislative Council ...

from 1899 to 1902, then was defeated by a narrow majority when the Mount Barker, Noarlunga and

Encounter Bay Encounter Bay is a bay in the Australian state of South Australia located on the state's south central coast about south of the state capital of Adelaide. It was named by Matthew Flinders after his encounter on 8 April 1802 with Nicolas Baud ...

districts were merged into the

electoral district of Alexandra Alexandra was an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia from 1902 to 1992, and was formed when the electoral districts of Encounter Bay, Mount Barker and Noarlunga were amalgamated. The district ...

. In December 1903 he was elected unopposed to the seat in the Legislative Council vacated when

John Hannah Gordon Sir John Hannah Gordon KC (26 July 1850 – 23 December 1923) was a Scottish-Australian politician and judge. He was a member of the South Australian Legislative Council from 1888 to 1892 and from 1893 to 1903. He was a minister under four Prem ...

was elevated to the bench of the

Supreme Court of South Australia The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court of the Australian state of South Australia. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court hierarchy. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in ...

. He was appointed

and Minister of Education in the Jenkins Ministry, but relinquished both in 1904 when his health suffered. He retired from politics in 1905.

Law

In his 60 years as a lawyer, Von Doussa practised in the High Court, and in every jurisdiction of the Supreme and lower courts of the State. T. S. O'Halloran KC., William Edward Pyne, and S. B. von Doussa served their articles with him. He was appointed a Special Magistrate in 1927.

Other interests

He followed cricket avidly, and watched every Test Match played in Adelaide. In his older years,

Lawn Bowls Bowls, also known as lawn bowls or lawn bowling, is a sport in which the objective is to roll biased balls so that they stop close to a smaller ball called a "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a bowling green, which may be flat (for "flat-gre ...

was his chief sporting activity. He was president, then Patron, of the Mount Barker Bowling Club, and represented South Australia in Interstate matches. He was Patron of the Mount Barker Agricultural Society and Cricket Club. He was lay reader and churchwarden at the (Anglican) Christ Church, Mount Barker, and Church advocate in the Diocese of Adelaide from 1895 to 1916. He was a foundation member of the Mount Barker Institute. He was a close friend of Sir

Lancelot Stirling Sir John Lancelot Stirling, (5 November 1849 – 24 May 1932), generally known as Sir Lancelot Stirling, was an Australian politician and grazier. He was a member of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1881 to 1887, representing Mount ...

Family

Alfred von Doussa (ca.1848 – 1 August 1926), businessman and politician, was a brother. Louis von Doussa married Agnes Bowman (ca.1852 – 26 November 1886), daughter of William Bowman, on 16 April 1874; they had seven children, of which only four survived childhood. Agnes did not survive the eighth delivery. He married again on 17 March 1905, to Ruby Louisa Farrar, née Smythe (died 24 January 1920). *Francis Alfred "Frank" von Doussa (5 February 1875 – 31 October 1928) was manager of the Strathalbyn branch of Elder, Smith & Co *Stanley Bowman von Doussa (12 September 1877 – 13 November 1952) was a solicitor in

Mannum Mannum is a historic town on the west bank of the Murray River in South Australia, east of Adelaide. At the 2016 census, the urban area of Mannum had a population of 2,398. Mannum is the seat of the Mid Murray Council, and is situated in the ...

for many years. *Ethel May von Doussa (10 January 1879 – ) *Olive von Doussa (31 October 1882 – ) His grandson William Louis von Doussa also qualified as a lawyer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Von Doussa, Louis Lawyers from Adelaide Members of the South Australian Legislative Council 1850 births 1932 deaths People from Hahndorf, South Australia Attorneys-General of South Australia Australian people of German descent Anglican lay readers