Nathaniel Barclay DCM (1 October 1895 – 11 September 1962) was an Irish-born Australian politician. He was born in

Killeavy Killeen"Killeen" is the official name of the townland. or Killean () is a small village and townland in the civil parish of Killeavy, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies about four miles (6.5 km) south of Newry, near the border with Co ...

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and ha ...

to farmer Jonathan Barclay and Alice Turner. He migrated to

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

around 1914, and served in the Australian Imperial Force during the

First World War 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 ...

, seeing action at

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 ...

and in France, where he was awarded the

Distinguished Conduct Medal The Distinguished Conduct Medal was a decoration established in 1854 by Queen Victoria for gallantry in the field by other ranks of the British Army. It is the oldest British award for gallantry and was a second level military decoration, ranki ...

in 1917. On his return he was a

soldier settler Soldier settlement was the settlement of land throughout parts of Australia by returning discharged soldiers under soldier settlement schemes administered by state governments after World War I and World War II. The post-World War II settlement ...

at Red Cliffs, where he grew dried fruit. On 6 December 1924 he married Daisy Florence Heritage. He returned to the armed forces during the

Second World War 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 ...

, and before and after that conflict was president of the local

Returned and Services League The Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) is a support organisation for people who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force. Mission The RSL's mission is to ensure that programs are in place for the well-being, care ...

. In 1947 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 Country Party member for

Mildura Mildura is a regional city in north-west Victoria, Australia. Located on the Victorian side of the Murray River, Mildura had a population of 34,565 in 2021. When nearby Wentworth, Irymple, Nichols Point and Merbein are included, the area had ...

. He was defeated in 1952, and served on Mildura Shire Council from 1953 to 1962, with a period as president from 1958 to 1959. He returned to the Legislative Assembly in 1955 and served until his death at

East Melbourne East Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. East Melbourne recorded a population of 4,896 at the 2021 ...

in 1962.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barclay, Nathaniel 1895 births 1962 deaths National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Australian recipients of the Distinguished Conduct Medal 20th-century Australian politicians Irish emigrants to Australia (before 1923) Australian military personnel of World War I Australian military personnel of World War II Military personnel from Victoria (Australia) People from Mildura People from County Armagh Victoria (Australia) politicians