Anderson Dawson | |
|---|---|
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| 14th Premier of Queensland | |
| In office 1 December 1899 – 7 December 1899 | |
| Preceded by | James Dickson |
| Succeeded by | Robert Philp |
| Constituency | Charters Towers |
| Minister for Defence | |
| In office 27 April 1904 – 18 August 1904 | |
| Prime Minister | Chris Watson |
| Preceded by | Austin Chapman |
| Succeeded by | James McCay |
| Australian Senator forQueensland | |
| In office 30 March 1901 – 31 December 1906 | |
| Leader of the Opposition of Queensland | |
| In office 12 May 1899 – 1 December 1899 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Glassey |
| Succeeded by | Robert Philp |
| In office 7 December 1899 – 16 July 1900 | |
| Preceded by | Robert Philp |
| Succeeded by | Billy Browne |
| Member of theQueensland Legislative Assembly forCharters Towers | |
| In office 13 May 1893 – 11 June 1901 Serving with John Dunsford | |
| Preceded by | Robert Sayers |
| Succeeded by | John Burrows |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Andrew Dawson (1863-07-16)16 July 1863 Rockhampton,Queensland,Australia |
| Died | 20 July 1910(1910-07-20) (aged 47) Brisbane,Queensland,Australia |
| Resting place | Toowong Cemetery |
| Political party | Australian Labor Party |
| Spouse | Caroline Ryan née Quin |
| Occupation | Union organizer,Journalist,Gold miner |
Andrew Dawson (16 July 1863 – 20 July 1910), usually known asAnderson Dawson, was an Australian politician and unionist who served as the 14thpremier of Queensland for one week from the 1 to the 7 of December 1899. This short-lived premiership was the firstAustralian Labor Party (ALP) government in Australia and the first parliamentary labour party government anywhere in the world.[1]
Dawson was born on 16 July 1863 atRockhampton, Queensland, the son of Anderson Dawson and his wife Jane (née Smith).[2] When he was six, his mother died in a fire, and Dawson was placed inDiamantina orphanage inBrisbane. His aunt, Mary Ann Park, then retrieved Dawson and took him to live with her family inRedbank. He later moved with the family toGympie.[3] He began work as a miner atCharters Towers, in 1887 married the Irish widow Caroline Ryan, née Quinn, and later was elected first president of the Miners' Union. Dawson was originally attracted to politics by the IrishHome Rule question and in 1890 emerged as a political pamphleteer when he publishedThe Case Stated, "an able plea for the creation of an Australian republic." The pamphlet was freely available inCharters Towers, both atrade unionist and arepublican stronghold. Throughout 1890, Dawson was closely involved in the running of theAustralasian Republican Association (ARA) and in February 1891 was elected the ARA's second president. Dawson was also president, and later organiser, of the district council of theAustralian Labour Federation (ALF). During theQueensland shearers’ strike, he was appointed chairman of the Queensland provincial council of the ALF, and was public in his support ofsocialism.[4][1] He took up journalism and for a time was editor of the local newspaper, the radicalThe Charters Towers Eagle.[4][5] He was also elected to the Local Council in Charters Towers.
Dawson entered politics at the1893 election, as one of the two Labor candidates forCharters Towers in theLegislative Assembly of Queensland. He won the seat, and retained it at the1896 and1899 elections. Dawson was inspired byMarxist economics, and performed speeches to the Social Democratic Federation onMarx and issues surroundingsurplus labour.[6]
When the government ofJames Dickson resigned on 1 December 1899, Dawson formed a ministry. Although it was defeated as soon as the Legislative Assembly next met, it nevertheless became the first socialist or Labour Party government in the world.
This remains one of the shortest ministries of any state government in Australia. In a remarkable coincidence,Vaiben Louis Solomon's contemporaneous ministry inSouth Australia outdid Dawson by a single day (1–8 December 1899).John Cain andThomas Hollway, bothpremiers of Victoria in the 1940s–50s, had shorter ministries. Cain served for four days and Hollway for only 70 hours.[7] The very shortest belongs toGeorge Fuller, who waspremier of New South Wales for seven hours on 20 December 1921.[8] These, however, were not Cain, Fuller, or Hollway's only terms as premier; all three exceeded Dawson for total time in the role.
At thefirst Federal election for theSenate in 1901, Dawson was returned at the head of the Queensland Labor ticket. While in federal parliament, he was regarded as a good speaker, but struggled with persistent ill health associated with chronic lung trouble from his time as a miner, which worsened after he relocated his family from Queensland to the colder climate of Melbourne. He also struggled with alcoholism, and was absent from parliament for periods, frustrating his colleagues.[4][9]: 22–24
In April 1904, whenChris Watson formed the first Federal Labor government, Dawson was given the portfolio ofMinister for Defence in light of his prominent status as a former Premier.[4][5] As Minister for Defence, he clashed withEdward Hutton, the aristocratic EnglishGeneral Officer Commanding the Australian Military Forces, who had resisted being answerable to the executive, and had been viewed as disrespectful by previous defence ministers. Dawson proposed a military restructure which eliminated Hutton's position, which was adopted by his successor after the ousting of the Watson government, resulting in Hutton's resignation and return to England. Dawson reportedly stated that the "most satisfying facet" of his stint as minister had been that he had "pulled down from his pedestal the biggest bounder that had ever commanded the forces in Australia."[9]: 103–109, 138
By the time of the1906 election, Dawson had a poor relationship with the Queensland state executive of the Labor Party, and was initially demoted to the unwinnable fourth position on the Labor Senate ticket. As a result of concerns about the electoral fallout of his dumping, he was reinstated to the winnable third position on the ticket, but resigned as a candidate two months later, citing ill health. He subsequently changed his mind, but the executive refused to reinstate him, so he ran as anindependent. That move split the Labor vote, and amidst a generally bad election for Labor in Queensland, the entire ticket lost.[9]: 158
Dawson was unable to find work in Melbourne, and returned to Queensland in 1909, while his wife and four children remained in Melbourne.[9]: 158 He was admitted to theBrisbane General Hospital on 6 July 1910 and was expected to recover, but died of the effects of alcoholism on 20 July 1910.[4][10] His widow and children reportedly did not attend his funeral.[9]: 165–166 He was buried inToowong Cemetery on 21 July 1910.[11]
The Federal electoraldivision of Dawson is named after him.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Premier of Queensland 1899 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Defence In The Australian Parliament 1904 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Leader of the Opposition in Queensland 1899 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Leader of the Opposition in Queensland 1899–1900 | Succeeded by |
| Parliament of Queensland | ||
| Preceded by | Member for Charters Towers 1893–1901 Served alongside:John Dunsford | Succeeded by |
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