Henry Lefroy
Encyclopedia
Sir Henry Bruce Lefroy KCMG
(24 March 1854 – 19 March 1930) was the eleventh Premier of Western Australia
.
on 24 March 1854. His father was Anthony O'Grady Lefroy
, Colonial Treasurer of Western Australia
for over 30 years. Educated initially at Mrs McKnight's School in Perth; later he travelled to England
, where he continued his studies at the Preparatory School at Exmouth
, then at Elstree
and finally at Rugby
from 1868 to 1872. In 1893 Lefroy returned to Western Australia
to take over management of his father's farm at Walebing
, which he inherited upon his father's death in 1897. Lefroy was a member of the Victoria Plains Road Board from 1872 until 1899, and its chairman from 1876 to 1897. In 1874 he was appointed a Justice of the Peace
, and he was for a time a member of the local Board of Education. He married Rose Agnes Wittenoom in Perth on 15 April 1880, and they had three sons and a daughter.
On 2 August 1892, Lefroy was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Assembly
seat of Moore
in a by-election
. On 12 May 1897, he was appointed Minister for Education in John Forrest
's government
. He held this portfolio until 28 April 1898, when he instead became Minister for Mines. He did not contest the election of 24 April 1901, and so ceased to be a minister when parliament
reconvened on 27 May.
From July 1901 until 1904, Lefroy was Agent-General for Western Australia in London
. During his time in London, his first wife died on 17 April 1902. In 1903, he was appointed CMG
, and on 23 November 1904, he married Madeleine Emily Stewart Walford in London. He would have two sons and a daughter by his second wife.
After returning to Western Australia, Lefroy unsuccessfully contested the Metropolitan-Suburban seat in the Western Australian Legislative Council
. He was again a member of the Victoria Plains Road Board from 1906 to 1909, and was then chairman of the Moora
Roads Board from 1909 until 1917.
On 3 October 1911, Lefroy was again elected to the Legislative Assembly seat of Moore, after a hiatus of over ten years. In 1915, he replaced James Mitchell
as deputy of the Commonwealth Liberal Party
. He was appointed Minister for Lands and Agriculture in Frank Wilson's second government on 27 July 1916. Wilson's government had difficulty maintaining parliamentary support, and was put under pressure to try to repeat the success at federal level of Prime Minister
Billy Hughes
in forming a Nationalist Party
. A Nationalist Party was formed in May 1917, but the party voted to reconstruct the ministry by caucus
election. Recognising that the intention was to oust the present ministry, Wilson and three of his ministers walked out of the meeting. Lefroy remained, and was elected leader of the party. Wilson then had no choice but to resign as premier, and Lefroy became Premier of Western Australia
on 28 June 1917.
Lefroy's entire ministry was elected by the whole parliamentary party, and it remains the only non-Labor government of Western Australia to be chosen in this way. It was an ill-assorted group, and consequently Lefroy's premiership was marked by infighting, factionalism and a lack of discipline. On one occasion a Royal Commission
was announced without Lefroy's knowledge; and on another occasion the acting treasurer Robert Robinson accepted amendments to treasurer James Gardiner
's budget against the wishes of other cabinet ministers. Lefroy was challenged for the leadership on 9 April 1919, and needed his own casting vote to survive because a number of his ministers declined to vote. When MacCallum Smith leaked this embarrassing information to the press, Lefroy resigned as premier and leader of the Nationalist Party on 17 April, and Hal Colebatch
was elected in his place. Lefroy continued as member for Moore but was defeated at the general elections of 12 March 1921. He spent his remaining years at Walebing, dying there on 19 March 1930.
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(24 March 1854 – 19 March 1930) was the eleventh Premier of Western Australia
Premier of Western Australia
The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...
.
Biography
Lefroy was born in Perth, Western AustraliaPerth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
on 24 March 1854. His father was Anthony O'Grady Lefroy
Anthony O'Grady Lefroy
Anthony O'Grady Lefroy CMG , often known as O'Grady Lefroy, was an important government official in Western Australia before the advent of responsible government....
, Colonial Treasurer of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
for over 30 years. Educated initially at Mrs McKnight's School in Perth; later he travelled to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where he continued his studies at the Preparatory School at Exmouth
Exmouth, Devon
Exmouth is a port town, civil parish and seaside resort in East Devon, England, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe. In 2001, it had a population of 32,972.-History:...
, then at Elstree
Elstree
Elstree is a village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire on the A5 road, about 10 miles north of London. In 2001, its population was 4,765, and forms part of the civil parish of Elstree and Borehamwood, originally known simply as Elstree....
and finally at Rugby
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
from 1868 to 1872. In 1893 Lefroy returned to Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
to take over management of his father's farm at Walebing
Walebing, Western Australia
Walebing is a small town in the wheatbelt region of Western Australia. Located at in the Shire of Moora, it takes its name from the original homestead established by Anthony O'Grady Lefroy in the 1840s....
, which he inherited upon his father's death in 1897. Lefroy was a member of the Victoria Plains Road Board from 1872 until 1899, and its chairman from 1876 to 1897. In 1874 he was appointed a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
, and he was for a time a member of the local Board of Education. He married Rose Agnes Wittenoom in Perth on 15 April 1880, and they had three sons and a daughter.
On 2 August 1892, Lefroy was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Assembly
Western Australian Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Perth....
seat of Moore
Electoral district of Moore
Moore is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia.Moore has had three incarnations as an electorate. It its first incarnation, Moore was one of the original 30 seats contested at the 1890 state election....
in a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
. On 12 May 1897, he was appointed Minister for Education in John Forrest
John Forrest
Sir John Forrest GCMG was an Australian explorer, the first Premier of Western Australia and a cabinet minister in Australia's first federal parliament....
's government
Government of Western Australia
The formation of the Government of Western Australia is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1890, although it has been amended many times since then...
. He held this portfolio until 28 April 1898, when he instead became Minister for Mines. He did not contest the election of 24 April 1901, and so ceased to be a minister when parliament
Parliament of Western Australia
The Parliament of Western Australia consists of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly . The Parliament sits at Parliament House in Harvest Terrace, Perth....
reconvened on 27 May.
From July 1901 until 1904, Lefroy was Agent-General for Western Australia in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. During his time in London, his first wife died on 17 April 1902. In 1903, he was appointed CMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, and on 23 November 1904, he married Madeleine Emily Stewart Walford in London. He would have two sons and a daughter by his second wife.
After returning to Western Australia, Lefroy unsuccessfully contested the Metropolitan-Suburban seat in the Western Australian Legislative Council
Western Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the Legislative Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state...
. He was again a member of the Victoria Plains Road Board from 1906 to 1909, and was then chairman of the Moora
Moora, Western Australia
Moora is a townsite located 177 km north of Perth in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia. Moora was one of the original stations on the Midland railway line to Walkaway, and the townsite was gazetted in 1895...
Roads Board from 1909 until 1917.
On 3 October 1911, Lefroy was again elected to the Legislative Assembly seat of Moore, after a hiatus of over ten years. In 1915, he replaced James Mitchell
James Mitchell (Australian politician)
Sir James Mitchell GCMG was the 13th Premier of Western Australia, serving on two occasions, the Lieutenant-Governor of Western Australia for 15 years and the 22nd Governor of Western Australia....
as deputy of the Commonwealth Liberal Party
Commonwealth Liberal Party
The Commonwealth Liberal Party was a political movement active in Australia from 1909 to 1916, shortly after federation....
. He was appointed Minister for Lands and Agriculture in Frank Wilson's second government on 27 July 1916. Wilson's government had difficulty maintaining parliamentary support, and was put under pressure to try to repeat the success at federal level of Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
Billy Hughes
Billy Hughes
William Morris "Billy" Hughes, CH, KC, MHR , Australian politician, was the seventh Prime Minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923....
in forming a Nationalist Party
Nationalist Party of Australia
The Nationalist Party of Australia was an Australian political party. It was formed on 17 February 1917 from a merger between the conservative Commonwealth Liberal Party and the National Labor Party, the name given to the pro-conscription defectors from the Australian Labor Party led by Prime...
. A Nationalist Party was formed in May 1917, but the party voted to reconstruct the ministry by caucus
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...
election. Recognising that the intention was to oust the present ministry, Wilson and three of his ministers walked out of the meeting. Lefroy remained, and was elected leader of the party. Wilson then had no choice but to resign as premier, and Lefroy became Premier of Western Australia
Premier of Western Australia
The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...
on 28 June 1917.
Lefroy's entire ministry was elected by the whole parliamentary party, and it remains the only non-Labor government of Western Australia to be chosen in this way. It was an ill-assorted group, and consequently Lefroy's premiership was marked by infighting, factionalism and a lack of discipline. On one occasion a Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
was announced without Lefroy's knowledge; and on another occasion the acting treasurer Robert Robinson accepted amendments to treasurer James Gardiner
James Gardiner (Australian politician)
The Hon. James Gardiner was treasurer of Western Australia from July 1902 to April 1904, and June 1917 to April 1919.-Early life:...
's budget against the wishes of other cabinet ministers. Lefroy was challenged for the leadership on 9 April 1919, and needed his own casting vote to survive because a number of his ministers declined to vote. When MacCallum Smith leaked this embarrassing information to the press, Lefroy resigned as premier and leader of the Nationalist Party on 17 April, and Hal Colebatch
Hal Colebatch
Sir Harry Pateshall Colebatch CMG , better known as Sir Hal Colebatch, was a long-serving and occasionally controversial figure in Western Australian politics...
was elected in his place. Lefroy continued as member for Moore but was defeated at the general elections of 12 March 1921. He spent his remaining years at Walebing, dying there on 19 March 1930.