Sir Richard Hanson | |
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| Chief Justice of South Australia | |
| In office 20 November 1861 – 4 March 1876 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Charles Cooper |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Way |
| Premier of South Australia | |
| In office 30 September 1857 – 9 May 1860 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Governor | Sir Richard MacDonnell |
| Preceded by | Robert Torrens |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Reynolds |
| Chancellor of the University of Adelaide | |
| In office 6 November 1874 – 4 March 1876 | |
| Preceded by | office established |
| Succeeded by | Augustus Short |
| Attorney-General of South Australia | |
| In office 30 September 1857 – 9 May 1860 | |
| Premier | himself |
| Preceded by | Richard Bullock Andrews |
| Succeeded by | Henry Strangways |
| In office 17 July 1851 – 21 August 1857 | |
| Preceded by | Charles Mann |
| Succeeded by | Edward Castres Gwynne |
| Member of the Parliament of South Australia | |
| In office 21 February 1851 – 20 November 1861 | |
| Constituency | Legislative Council(1851–1857) City of Adelaide(1857–1861) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Richard Davies Hanson (1805-12-06)6 December 1805 London, England |
| Died | 4 March 1876(1876-03-04) (aged 70) Mount Lofty, South Australia |
| Spouse | Ann Hopgood |
Sir Richard Davies Hanson (6 December 1805 – 4 March 1876), was the fourthpremier of South Australia, from 30 September 1857 until 8 May 1860, and was achief judge from 20 November 1861 until 4 March 1876 on theSupreme Court of South Australia.
Hanson was born in London, the second son of Benjamin Hanson, a fruit merchant and importer, and was educated at a private school in Melbourn,Cambridgeshire. Admitted a solicitor in 1828, he practised briefly in London, becoming a disciple ofEdward Gibbon Wakefield in connection with his colonization schemes. Hanson joinedThe Globe as a political critic early in 1837. In 1838 he went withLord Durham toCanada as assistant commissioner of inquiry into crown lands and immigration. Hanson worked withDominick Daly in Canada.
In January 1840, on the death of Lord Durham, Hanson settled inWellington, New Zealand, as Land Purchase Officer for theNew Zealand Company. He was active in purchasing land in various parts of New Zealand. He also purchased theChatham Islands in 1840, which was not part of New Zealand at the time. He then became the first crown prosecutor in Wellington.[1] He moved to the colony of South Australia in 1846 and immediately set up a legal practice. He served as Advocate-General andAttorney-General for the colony before election to the seat ofCity of Adelaide in 1857.[2]
In 1851 Hanson was appointed advocate-general of the colony, initially as a temporary replacement for the ailingWilliam Smillie,[3] made permanent when Smillie died. He took an active share in the passing of many important measures, such as the first Education Act, the District Councils Act of 1852, and the Act of 1856 which granted constitutional government to the colony. In 1856 he was attorney-general in the first ministry underBoyle Travers Finniss; becoming premier himself in 1857. Among the acts passed were the first patents act, an insolvency act, a partial consolidation of the criminal law, and the Torrens real property act, though he was at first opposed to this measure. He also passed an act legalizing marriage with a deceased wife's sister, the first of its kind in the Empire, but the royal assent was refused on this occasion.
After leaving parliament, Hanson replacedSir Charles Cooper as Chief Justice of theSupreme Court of South Australia in 1861. He was knighted in 1869 byQueen Victoria when he visited England, and was actingGovernor of South Australia for 1872–73. In his spare time Hanson gave much time to theological studies. His publications includeLaw in Nature and Other Papers (1865),The Jesus of History (1869),Letters to and from Rome (1869),The Apostle Paul, and thePreaching of Christianity in the Primitive Church (1875).
He was elected the first Chancellor of theUniversity of Adelaide; the first vice-chancellor wasAugustus Short.[4]
He died in Australia on 4 March 1876.
Freemasonry was an integral part of Hanson's personal life. He was elected as a member and initiated into the Craft on 27 November 1834 in London when The Lodge of Friendship, a Lodge especially founded to become South Australia's first Lodge, held its very first meeting. Later he was to rise in position within the Lodge, which still exists to the present day, and ultimately served as its Master.
His summer residence, Woodhouse, nearPiccadilly, South Australia, is today owned by theSouth Australian Scout Association, and used for Scout leader training and private functions and accommodation; the extensive grounds are used for camping and outdoor adventuring.[5]
Richard's brotherWilliam Hanson (1810–1875) was an architect and engineer who played a decisive role in the early history of South Australia's railways and waterworks.
Hanson married the widow Ann "Annie" Scanlon (perhaps Scanton), née Hopgood (died 1895) at his home,Sturt Street, Adelaide, on 29 March 1851. Their eldest daughter Sarah Elizabeth "Lisa"[6] Hanson (23 February 1853 – c. 15 January 1930) married barristerEustace Beardoe Grundy QC at St Johns Church, Adelaide, on 6 July 1876.
The following places in South Australia were named after him:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Hanson, Sir Richard Davies".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 931.| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| New title | Attorney-General of South Australia 1856 – 1857 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Attorney-General of South Australia 1857 – 1860 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Premier of South Australia 1857–1860 | Succeeded by |
| Parliament of South Australia | ||
| New district | Member forCity of Adelaide 1857–1861 Served alongside:Robert Torrens,Judah Solomon,Francis Dutton,Boyle Finniss,John Neales,William Burford,William Owen,Matthew Moorhouse,Philip Santo,Samuel Bakewell,William Parkin | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia 20 November 1861 – 4 March 1876 | Succeeded by |
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by | Administrator of South Australia 1872–1873 | Succeeded by |
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| Academic offices | ||
| New title | Chancellor of theUniversity of Adelaide 1874–1876 | Succeeded by |
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