Robert Menzies

Sir Robert Menzies
Menzies in the 1950s
12th Prime Minister of Australia
In office
19 December 1949 – 26 January 1966
Monarchs
Governors‑General
Deputy
Preceded byBen Chifley
Succeeded byHarold Holt
In office
26 April 1939 – 29 August 1941
MonarchGeorge VI
Governor‑GeneralLord Gowrie
Deputy
Preceded bySir Earle Page
Succeeded bySir Arthur Fadden
Leader of the Opposition
In office
23 September 1943 – 19 December 1949
Prime Minister
DeputySir Arthur Fadden
Preceded bySir Arthur Fadden
Succeeded byBen Chifley
1st Leader of the Liberal Party
In office
21 February 1945 – 20 January 1966
Deputy
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byHarold Holt
Leader of the United Australia Party
In office
22 September 1943 – 21 February 1945
Preceded byBilly Hughes
Succeeded byPosition abolished
In office
18 April 1939 – 9 October 1941
Preceded byJoseph Lyons
Succeeded byBilly Hughes
Deputy Leader of the United Australia Party
In office
4 December 1935 – 20 March 1939
LeaderJoseph Lyons
Preceded byJohn Latham
Succeeded byBilly Hughes
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Kooyong
In office
15 September 1934 – 17 February 1966
Preceded bySir John Latham
Succeeded byAndrew Peacock
1st Deputy Premier of Victoria
In office
19 May 1932 – 31 July 1934
PremierSir Stanley Argyle
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byIan Macfarlan
Attorney-General of Victoria
In office
19 May 1932 – 24 July 1934
PremierSir Stanley Argyle
Preceded byIan Macfarlan
Succeeded bySir Albert Bussau
Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
for Nunawading
In office
30 November 1929 – 31 July 1934
Preceded byEdmund Greenwood
Succeeded byWilliam Boyland
Member of the Victorian Legislative Council for East Yarra Province
In office
2 June 1928 – 11 November 1929
Preceded byGeorge Swinburne
Succeeded bySir Clifden Eager
Personal details
Born
Robert Gordon Menzies

(1894-12-20)20 December 1894
Jeparit, Colony of Victoria, British Empire
Died15 May 1978(1978-05-15) (aged 83)
Malvern, Victoria, Australia
Resting placeMelbourne General Cemetery
Political party
Spouse
(m. 1920)
Children4
Parents
Relatives
Education
Alma materWesley College, University of Melbourne
Profession
Signature

Sir Robert Gordon Menzies KT AK CH QC FAA FRS (20 December 1894 – 15 May 1978) was an Australian politician and lawyer who served as the 12th prime minister of Australia from 1939 to 1941 and from 1949 to 1966. He held office as the leader of the United Australia Party (UAP) in his first term, and subsequently as the inaugural leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, which he was responsible for establishing and defining in policy and political outreach. He is the longest-serving prime minister in Australian history.

Menzies studied law at the University of Melbourne and became one of Melbourne's leading lawyers. He was Deputy Premier of Victoria from 1932 to 1934, and then transferred to Federal Parliament, subsequently becoming Attorney-General of Australia and Minister for Industry in the government of Joseph Lyons. In April 1939, following Lyons's death, Menzies was elected leader of the United Australia Party (UAP) and sworn in as prime minister. He authorised Australia's entry into World War II in September 1939, and spent four months in England to participate in meetings of Churchill's war cabinet. On his return to Australia in August 1941, Menzies found that he had lost the support of his party and consequently resigned as prime minister. He subsequently helped to create the new Liberal Party, and was elected its inaugural leader in August 1945.

At the 1949 federal election, Menzies led the Liberal–Country coalition to victory and returned as prime minister. His appeal to the home and family, promoted via reassuring radio talks, matched the national zeitgeist as the economy grew and middle-class values prevailed; the Australian Labor Party's support had also been eroded by Cold War scares. After 1955, his government also received support from the Democratic Labor Party, a breakaway group from the Labor Party. Menzies won seven consecutive elections during his second period, eventually retiring as prime minister in January 1966. Despite the failures of his first administration, his government is remembered for its development of Australia's capital city of Canberra, its expanded post-war immigration scheme, emphasis on higher education, and national security policies, which saw Australia contribute troops to the Korean War, the Malayan Emergency, the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation, and the Vietnam War.