Cowper ministry (1865–1866) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Cowper ministry or Fourth Cowper ministry was the ninth 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 fourth occasion of being 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....

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 on the first occasion

Cowper ministry (1856)

The Cowper ministry or First Cowper ministry was the second ministry of the Colony of New South Wales, and was led by the Premier, the Honourable Charles Cowper. It was the first of five occasions that Cowper was Premier...

, but he also lost the confidence of the Assembly a few months later. Cowper formed Government on the second occasion between 1857 and 1859; but it also lost the confidence of the Assembly. On the third occasion, Cowper formed Government following the decision by Premier John Robertson

John Robertson (Australian politician)

Sir John Robertson, KCMG was an Australian politician and Premier of New South Wales on five occasions. Robertson is best remembered for land reform and in particular the Robertson Land Acts of 1861, which sought to open up the selection of Crown land and break the monopoly of the...

to step aside and focus on land reform, however Cowper then lost the 1863 general election to 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:...

. Cowper retained government by defeating Martin at the 1865 general election.

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 3 February 1865 until 21 January 1866, when Martin was asked to form government after Cowper again lost the conifidence of the Assembly in December 1865.

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	3 February 1865	21 January 1866	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. Thomas Smart MLA	3 February 1865	19 October 1865	days
	Hon. Saul Samuel Saul Samuel Sir Saul Samuel CMG, KCMG, CB was an Australian colonial merchant, member of parliament, pastoralist, and prominent Jew... MLA	20 October 1865	3 January 1866	days
	Hon. Marshall Burdekin MLA	4 January 1866	21 January 1866	days
Attorney-General	Hon. John Darvall John Darvall John Darvall was an Australian barrister and politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council between 1844 and 1856 and again between 1861 and 1863. He was also a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for three periods between 1856 and 1865... MLA	3 February 1865	20 June 1865	days
Attorney-General	Hon. John Plunkett John Plunkett John Hubert Plunkett was Attorney-General of New South Wales and elected as a member of the Legislative Assembly.-Early life:... MLA	25 August 1865	21 January 1866	days
Solicitor-General Representative of the Government in Legislative Council	Hon. John Hargrave John Hargrave (jurist) John Fletcher Hargrave was an Australian politician and judge.Hargrave was born to Joshua Hargrave and Sarah Hargrave at Greenwich, England. His father was a hardware merchant. He was educated at King's College, London in 1830 winning a certificate of honour for rhetoric... MLA	3 February 1865	21 January 1866	days
Secretary for Lands	Hon. John Robertson John Robertson (Australian politician) Sir John Robertson, KCMG was an Australian politician and Premier of New South Wales on five occasions. Robertson is best remembered for land reform and in particular the Robertson Land Acts of 1861, which sought to open up the selection of Crown land and break the monopoly of the... MLA	3 February 1865	19 October 1865	days
	Hon. William Arnold William Arnold William Arnold was one of the founding settlers of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, and with his sons was among the wealthiest people in the colony. He was raised and educated in England where he was the warden of St. Mary's, the parish church of Ilchester in southeastern... MLA	20 October 1865	30 October 1865	days
	Hon. John Robertson, MLA	1 January 1866	21 January 1866	days
Secretary for Public Works	Hon. William Arnold, MLA	3 February 1865	19 October 1865	days
Secretary for Public Works	Hon. Thomas Smart MLA	20 October 1865	21 January 1866	days
Postmaster-General	James Cunneen	1 October 1865	21 January 1866	days

A Member of the Government without a Seat in the Cabinet

Composition of ministry

See also