Cowper ministry (1856) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Cowper ministry or First Cowper ministry was the second ministry of the Colony of New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, and was led by the Premier

Premiers of New South Wales

The Premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of New South Wales acting as the legislature...

, the Honourable Charles Cowper

Charles Cowper

Sir Charles Cowper, KCMG was an Australian politician and the Premier of New South Wales on five different occasions from 1856 to 1870....

. It was the first of five occasions that Cowper was Premier. Cowper was elected in the first free elections for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly

New South Wales Legislative Assembly

The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...

held in March 1856, and fought unsuccessfully with Stuart Donaldson

Stuart Donaldson

Sir Stuart Alexander Donaldson was the first Premier of the Colony of New South Wales.-Early life:Donaldson was born in London, England. He entered his father's firm at the age of 15 and was sent first to Mexico , for business training, and then to Sydney, where he arrived in 1835...

to form Government. When Donaldson's Government faltered a little over two months after it was formed, Cowper formed Government.

There was no party system in New South Wales politics until 1887. Under the constitution, ministers were required to resign to recontest their seats in a by-election when appointed. These by-elections are only noted when the minister was defeated; in general, he was elected unopposed.

This ministry covers the period from 26 August 1856 until on 2 October 1856, when Cowper resigned his commission, having lost the confidence of the Assembly.

Composition of ministry

Portfolio	Minister	Term commence	Term end	Term of office
Premier Colonial Secretary Chief Secretary The Chief Secretary is the title of a senior civil servant in members of the Commonwealth of Nations, and, historically, in the British Empire. Prior to the dissolution of the colonies, the Chief Secretary was the second most important official in a colony of the British Empire after the...	Hon. Charles Cowper Charles Cowper Sir Charles Cowper, KCMG was an Australian politician and the Premier of New South Wales on five different occasions from 1856 to 1870.... MLA	26 August 1856	2 October 1856	days
Colonial Treasurer Treasurer of New South Wales The Treasurer of New South Wales, known from 1856–1959 as the Colonial Treasurer of New South Wales, is the minister in the Government of New South Wales responsible for government expenditure and revenue raising and is the head of the New South Wales Treasury. The Treasurer plays a key role in...	Hon. Robert Campbell Robert Campbell (Australian politician) Robert Campbell was an early opponent of penal transportation and an Australian politician, elected as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.... MLA
Auditor-General Secretary for Lands and Works	Hon. Terence Murray MLA
Attorney-General	Hon. James Martin James Martin (Australian politician) Sir James Martin, KCB, QC was three times Premier of New South Wales, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales from 1873 to 1886.-Early career:... MLA
Solicitor-General Leader of the Government in Legislative Council	Hon. Alfred Lutwyche MLC

Composition of ministry

See also