Alfred Deakin

Alfred Deakin
Deakin in 1905
2nd Prime Minister of Australia
In office
2 June 1909 – 29 April 1910
MonarchEdward VII
Governor‑GeneralLord Dudley
Preceded byAndrew Fisher
Succeeded byAndrew Fisher
In office
5 July 1905 – 13 November 1908
MonarchEdward VII
Governors‑General
Preceded byGeorge Reid
Succeeded byAndrew Fisher
In office
24 September 1903 – 27 April 1904
MonarchEdward VII
Governors‑General
Preceded byEdmund Barton
Succeeded byChris Watson
Leader of the Opposition
In office
1 July 1910 – 20 January 1913
Prime MinisterAndrew Fisher
Preceded byAndrew Fisher
Succeeded byJoseph Cook
In office
26 May 1909 – 2 June 1909
Prime MinisterAndrew Fisher
Preceded byJoseph Cook
Succeeded byAndrew Fisher
Party leadership positions
Leader of the Liberal Party
In office
26 May 1909 – 20 January 1913
DeputyJoseph Cook
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byJoseph Cook
Leader of the Protectionist Party
In office
24 September 1903 – 26 May 1909
DeputySir William Lyne
Preceded byEdmund Barton
Succeeded byParty dissolved
Cabinet posts
Minister for External Affairs
In office
5 July 1905 – 13 November 1908
Prime MinisterHimself
Preceded byGeorge Reid
Succeeded byLee Batchelor
In office
24 September 1903 – 27 April 1904
Prime MinisterHimself
Preceded byEdmund Barton
Succeeded byBilly Hughes
Attorney-General of Australia
In office
1 January 1901 – 24 September 1903
Prime MinisterEdmund Barton
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byJames Drake
Constituencies
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Ballaarat
In office
30 March 1901 – 23 April 1913
Preceded bySeat created
Succeeded byCharles McGrath
Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
In office
April 1889 – October 1900
Preceded bySeat created
Succeeded byEdward Warde
ConstituencyEssendon and Flemington
In office
July 1880 – March 1889
Preceded byRobert Harper
Succeeded bySeat abolished
In office
July 1879 – August 1879
Preceded byJohn Smith
Succeeded byRobert Harper
Personal details
Born(1856-08-03)3 August 1856
Fitzroy, Colony of Victoria
Died7 October 1919(1919-10-07) (aged 63)
South Yarra, Victoria, Australia
Resting placeSt Kilda Cemetery
Political party
Spouse
(m. 1882)
Children3, including Ivy and Vera
Relatives
Education
ProfessionBarrister
Signature

Alfred Deakin (3 August 1856 – 7 October 1919) was an Australian politician who served as the second prime minister of Australia from 1903 to 1904, 1905 to 1908 and 1909 to 1910. He held office as the leader of the Protectionist Party, and in his final term as that of the Liberal Party. He is notable for being one of the founding fathers of Federation and for his influence in early Australian politics.

Deakin was born in Melbourne to middle-class parents. He was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly in 1879, aged 23, additionally working as a barrister and journalist. He held ministerial office sporadically beginning in 1883, serving twice as Attorney-General of Victoria and aligning himself with liberal and radical reformers. In the 1890s Deakin became one of the leading figures in the movement for the federation of the Australian colonies. He was a delegate to the federal conventions and served on the committees that drafted the federal constitution. He later campaigned at a series of referendums and lobbied the British government for its adoption.

After the Federation in 1901, Deakin became the inaugural Attorney-General of Australia in the ministry led by his close friend Edmund Barton. He succeeded Barton as prime minister in September 1903. Two subsequent elections in 1903 and 1906 produced an even split between three parties, with Deakin's Liberal Protectionist Party occupying an effective middle ground between the Free Traders and the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He left office in April 1904 following an unproductive first term but returned in July 1905 and was able to form a functional government with the support of the ALP. He relinquished office again in August 1908.

In 1909, in what became known as the Fusion, Deakin controversially led his supporters into a union with the Free Traders. Their alliance, based on anti-socialism, marked the beginning of a two-party system in federal politics and allowed him to form Australia's first majority government. Deakin regarded his final term as prime minister, from June 1909 to April 1910, as his most productive. However, to his surprise, the ALP won a majority in both houses at the 1910 election. He retired from politics in 1913, in the early stages of a degenerative neurological condition that led to his death at the age of 63.

Deakin is regarded as one of Australia's most influential prime ministers. He was the principal architect of the "Australian settlement", the features of which – the White Australia policy, compulsory arbitration, protectionism, state paternalism, and support for the British Empire – formed the basis of Australia's socio-economic framework well into the 20th century.[1]

  1. ^ Kelly, Paul (1992). The End of Certainty: The Story of the 1980s. Allen & Unwin. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-86373-388-5.