Donald MacKinnon (29 September 1859 – 25 April 1932) was an Australian politician.

Early life

Born at Marida Yallock near Boorcan in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

to grazier David Mackinnon and Jane Kinross, both Scottish-born, he was educated at

Geelong Grammar School Geelong Grammar School is a private Anglican co-educational boarding and day school. The school's main campus is located in Corio on the northern outskirts of Geelong, Victoria, Australia, overlooking Corio Bay and Limeburners Bay. Establ ...

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state of Victoria. Its ...

and

New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

. In 1883 he was called to the English Bar, returning to Victoria to repeat the achievement in 1884. At his father's death in 1889 he took over the family property, and also acquired grazing property in

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

and

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

. On 19 August 1891 he married Hilda Eleanor Marie Bunny, sister of the artist Rupert Bunny; they had five children.

Politics

In 1900 Mackinnon was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...

as the Liberal member for

Prahran Prahran ( , also colloquially or ), is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 5 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington local government area. Prahran recorded a population ...

, serving as party leader from 1904 to 1907. He was

Attorney-General of Victoria The Attorney-General of Victoria, in formal contexts also Attorney-General or Attorney General for Victoria,See, e.g., ''Bullivant v Attorney-General for Victoria''

900 __NOTOC__ Year 900 ( CM) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Caliphate * Spring – Forces under the Transoxianian emir Isma'il ibn Ahmad are victorious at Balkh (Northern Afghan ...

AC 196; ''Ryan v Attorney General for Victoria''

967 Year 967 ( CMLXVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – Emperor Otto I (the Great) calls for a council at Rome, to present the new government under Pope John XIII. He ...

VR 514 is a Mini ...

and

Solicitor-General of Victoria The Solicitor-General of Victoria, known informally as the Solicitor-General, is the state's Second Law Officer and the deputy of the Attorney-General. The Solicitor-General acts alongside the Crown Advocate and Crown Solicitor, and serves as o ...

in the William Watt and

Alexander Peacock Sir Alexander James Peacock (11 June 1861 – 7 October 1933) was an Australian politician who served as the 20th Premier of Victoria. Early years Peacock was born of Scottish descent at Creswick, the first Victorian Premier born after ...

governments. He was defeated in 1920. After the failure of the first plebiscite on conscription during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Mackinnon was appointed Commonwealth Director-General of Recruiting on 29 November 1916.

Later life

Mackinnon's son Dan was a member of the

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

, and his grandson

Donald James Donald James (born Donald James Wheal; 22 August 1931 – 28 April 2008) was a British television writer, novelist and non-fiction writer. Life and career Born in World's End, Chelsea, and educated at Sloane Grammar School and Pembroke Coll ...

was also a Victorian state MP. Mackinnon died in 1932 at

Toorak Toorak () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington local government area. Toorak recorded a population of 12,817 at the 2021 census. The name ...

. His brother,

James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

, was a first-class cricketer.

References

1859 births 1932 deaths Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Vice-presidents of the Board of Land and Works Attorneys-general of Victoria Solicitors-general of Victoria Australian barristers University of Melbourne alumni Alumni of New College, Oxford People educated at Geelong Grammar School Ministers of railways (Victoria) {{Australia-politician-stub