 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Governor of Tasmania" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(September 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Governor of Tasmania | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Flag of the Governor | |
 | |
| Viceregal | |
| Style | Her ExcellencyThe Honourable |
| Residence | Government House, Hobart |
| Appointer | Monarch on theadvice of thepremier |
| Term length | At His Majesty's pleasure (typically 5 years) |
| Formation | 8 January 1855 |
| First holder | Sir Henry Fox Young |
| Website | govhouse |
| This article is part of a series on the |
| Politics of Tasmania |
|---|
 |
| Constitution |
Thegovernor of Tasmania is the representative in theAustralian state ofTasmania of the monarch, currentlyKing Charles III. The incumbent governor isBarbara Baker, who was appointed in June 2021. Theofficial residence of the governor isGovernment House located at theQueens Domain inHobart. The governor's primary task is to perform the sovereign's constitutional duties on their behalf.[1]
The position has its origins in the positions of commandant and lieutenant-governor in the colonial administration ofVan Diemen's Land. The territory was separated from theColony of New South Wales in 1825 and the title "governor" was used from 1855, the same year in which it adopted its current name. In accordance with the conventions of theWestminster system of parliamentary government, the governor now almost always acts on theadvice of the head of the elected government, thepremier of Tasmania.
Tasmania retained British-born governors longer than most other states. The first Australian-born governor was SirStanley Burbury (appointed 1973) and the first Tasmanian-born governor was SirGuy Green (appointed 1995). Since Burbury, all Tasmanian governors have been Australian-born, except forPeter Underwood who was born in Britain but immigrated to Australia when a teenager.
The responsibilities of the Governor of Tasmania include:
Although not a responsibility of the office of Governor of Tasmania, governors of Tasmania are - like allGovernors of the Australian states - normally given adormant commission toadminister the government of the Commonwealth of Australia in the absence from Australia, or the death, incapacity or removal from office of theGovernor-General by the Sovereign.[3][4]
Since December 2014, the incumbent and all future Tasmanian governors have been entitled to be styled asTheir Excellency The Honourable while in office and styledThe Honourable after retirement.[5]
The personal flag of the governor of Tasmania is the same design as the Britishblue ensign with theUnion Flag at the upper left quarter. On the right side, the state badge of Tasmania, consisting of a white disk with a red lion passant, is surmounted bySt. Edward's Crown. The flag was adopted in 1977.
If the standard is flying at Government House, on a vehicle or vessel, or at an event, this indicates that the governor is present.
.svg)
.svg)
Between 1804 and 1813,Van Diemen's Land was divided along the 42nd parallel, and the two sections governed as separate lieutenant-governorships under thegovernor of New South Wales.[6][7] Collins was the only officially appointed lieutenant-governor—upon his death in 1810, the government in Hobart Town was administered, by the Commandants at Hobart Town (Lord, Murray and Geils). The northern settlement at Port Dalrymple (nowGeorge Town) was administered by four commandants until the settlements were merged to form the single colony under the governorship ofThomas Davey in 1813.[8]
| No. | Lieutenant-governor | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | ColonelDavid Collins | 1804 | 1810 |
| 2 | Lieutenant Edward Lord (Commandant at Hobart Town) | March 1810 | July 1810 | |
| 3 | Captain John Murray (Commandant at Hobart Town) | 1810 | 1812 | |
| 4 | Lieutenant-ColonelAndrew Geils (Commandant at Hobart Town) | 1812 | 1813 | |
| No. | Commandant at Port Dalrymple | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | ColonelWilliam Paterson | 1804 | 1808 |
| 2 | Captain John Brabyn | 1808 | 1810 | |
| 3 | Major George Alexander Gordon | 1810 | 1812 | |
| 4 | Captain John Ritchie | 1812 | 1812 | |
The colony was calledVan Diemen's Land until 1856.
| No. | Lieutenant-governor | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | ColonelThomas Davey | 4 February 1813 | 9 March 1817 |
| 2 |  | ColonelWilliam Sorell | 9 March 1817 | 14 May 1824 |
| 3 |  | SirGeorge Arthur | 14 May 1824 | 29 October 1836 |
| 4 |  | Sir John Franklin | 5 January 1837 | 21 August 1843 |
| 5 |  | Sir John Eardley-Wilmot, 1st Baronet | 21 August 1843 | 13 October 1846 |
| 6 |  | SirWilliam Denison | 25 January 1847 | 8 January 1855 |
| No. | Governor | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | SirHenry Young | 8 January 1855 | 10 December 1861 |
| No. | Governor | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Colonel SirThomas Browne | 11 December 1862 | 30 December 1868 |
| 2 |  | SirCharles Du Cane | 15 January 1869 | 30 November 1874 |
| 3 |  | SirFrederick Weld | 13 January 1875 | 5 April 1880 |
| 4 |  | SirJohn Henry Lefroy | 1880 | 1881 |
| 5 |  | Major SirGeorge Strahan | 7 December 1881 | 28 October 1886 |
| 6 |  | SirRobert Hamilton | 11 March 1887 | 30 November 1892 |
| 7 |  | Jenico Preston, 14th Viscount Gormanston | 8 August 1893 | 14 August 1900 |
| 8 |  | Captain SirArthur Havelock | 8 November 1901 | 16 April 1904 |
| 9 |  | SirGerald Strickland | 28 October 1904 | 20 May 1909 |
| 10 |  | Major-General SirHarry Barron | 16 September 1909 | 3 March 1913 |
| 11 |  | SirWilliam Ellison-Macartney | 4 June 1913 | 31 March 1917 |
| 12 |  | SirFrancis Newdegate | 30 March 1917 | 22 February 1920 |
| 13 |  | SirWilliam Allardyce | 16 April 1920 | 27 January 1922 |
| 14 |  | SirJames O'Grady | 23 December 1924 | 23 December 1930 |
| 15 |  | SirErnest Clark | 4 August 1933 | 4 August 1945 |
| 16 |  | Admiral SirHugh Binney | 24 December 1945 | 8 May 1951 |
| 17 |  | Sir Ronald Cross, 1st Baronet | 22 August 1951 | 4 June 1958 |
| 18 | Thomas Corbett, 2nd Baron Rowallan | 21 October 1959 | 25 March 1963 | |
| 19 | Lieutenant-General SirCharles Gairdner | 24 September 1963 | 11 July 1968 | |
| 20 | Lieutenant-General SirEdric Bastyan | 2 December 1968 | 1 December 1973 | |
| 21 | SirStanley Burbury | 5 December 1973 | 1 October 1982 | |
| 22 | .jpg) | SirJames Plimsoll | 1 October 1982 | 8 May 1987 |
| 23 |  | General SirPhillip Bennett | 19 October 1987 | 2 October 1995 |
| 24 | SirGuy Green | 2 October 1995 | 3 October 2003 | |
| 25 | Richard Butler | 3 October 2003 | 9 August 2004 | |
| 26 | William Cox | 15 December 2004 | 2 April 2008 | |
| 27 |  | Peter Underwood | 2 April 2008 | 7 July 2014 |
| 28 |  | ProfessorKate Warner | 10 December 2014 | 9 June 2021 |
| 29 | | Barbara Baker | 16 June 2021 | present |
| Lieutenant-Governors ofVan Diemen's Land | | |
|---|---|---|
| BeforeFederation | ||
| AfterFederation | ||
.svg)
