John Hampton
Encyclopedia
Governor of Western Australia
The Governor of Western Australia is the representative in Western Australia of Australia's Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The Governor performs important constitutional, ceremonial and community functions, including:* presiding over the Executive Council;...
from 1862 to 1868.
Early life
Little is known of John Hampton's early life. His death certificate states that he was born in 1810, but other evidence suggests 1806 or perhaps 1807; these latter figures are considered more likely. He undertook medical studies at EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, graduating with a diploma of medicine in September 1828. He was appointed an assistant naval surgeon with the Britannia, but shortly afterwards was transferred to the Sphinx. In 1832 he was attached to the Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
dockyards
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
, where he worked to prevent the spread of cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
. He later served on the Savage, the Firebrand and finally the Portland. In December 1834 he was promoted to full surgeon, and in March 1843 became surgeon-superintendent
Surgeon-superintendent
A surgeon-superintendent was the official on board a convict transport ship and ships transporting indentured labour, with overall authority in all non-nautical matters....
. Between 1841 and 1845, Hampton was surgeon-superintendent on a series of convict ships to Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land was the original name used by most Europeans for the island of Tasmania, now part of Australia. The Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to land on the shores of Tasmania...
: the Mexborough, the Constant and the Sir George Seymour.
Comptroller General of Convicts in Tasmania
Having served well on a number of convict ships to Van Diemen's Land, Hampton was appointed Comptroller-General of Convicts in Van Diemen's Land in May 1846. He arrived at the colony on 27 October 1846. During his time in the office, allegations of inhumanity and corruptionPolitical corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
were frequently published in the press. In 1855, the Tasmanian Legislative Council
Tasmanian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the House of Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Hobart...
established a select committee to look into the allegations. Hampton was summonsed to appear in the House for questioning, but refused. The House then found him guilty of contempt
Contempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...
and issued a warrant
Warrant (law)
Most often, the term warrant refers to a specific type of authorization; a writ issued by a competent officer, usually a judge or magistrate, which permits an otherwise illegal act that would violate individual rights and affords the person executing the writ protection from damages if the act is...
for his arrest
Arrest
An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...
, but both the police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
and the local sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
refused to help arrest him. Hampton eventually wrote a letter to the Council, in which we agreed to remain under house arrest
House arrest
In justice and law, house arrest is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to his or her residence. Travel is usually restricted, if allowed at all...
until the legality of the warrant had been established. The Council refused to accept this proposal, but a political crisis was averted when the Governor of Tasmania Fox Young
Henry Young
Sir Henry Edward Fox Young, KCMG was the fifth Governor of South Australia, serving in that role from 2 August 1848 until 20 December 1854. He was then the first Governor of Tasmania, from 1855 until 1861.-Early life:...
appointed a judicial tribunal to pronounce on the legality of the warrant, then prorogued parliament
Parliament of Tasmania
The Parliament of Tasmania consists of the Tasmanian Legislative Council, Tasmanian House of Assembly and the Monarch represented by the Governor of Tasmania....
.
While the tribunal was still sitting, Hampton obtained a leave of absence on grounds of ill health, and left the colony. The tribunal eventually returned a decision that the warrant was not legal. The Tasmanian Legislative Council then appealed to the Privy Council
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
's judicial committee, who again found in Hampton's favour. Eventually the inquiry proceeded with evidence from Hampton. The final report presented findings that Hampton had engaged in corrupt practices, including the employment of convict labour for personal profit.
Not much is known of the next five years of Hampton's life. He took no government service, spending some of the time in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on "urgent private affairs".
Governor of Western Australia
In 1861, Hampton was appointed Governor of Western AustraliaGovernor of Western Australia
The Governor of Western Australia is the representative in Western Australia of Australia's Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The Governor performs important constitutional, ceremonial and community functions, including:* presiding over the Executive Council;...
. He arrived in the colony the following year, and immediately took far more direct control 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...
's convict establishment than had his predecessors. He imposed a far stricted regime than in the past, with increased use of flogging as a punishment, and the reintroduction of solitary confinement
Solitary confinement
Solitary confinement is a special form of imprisonment in which a prisoner is isolated from any human contact, though often with the exception of members of prison staff. It is sometimes employed as a form of punishment beyond incarceration for a prisoner, and has been cited as an additional...
. Hampton constantly quarrelled with the Comptroller General of Convicts
Comptroller General of Convicts (Western Australia)
The Comptroller General of Convicts was the head of the convict establishment in Western Australia.The office existed from 1850, when Western Australia first became a penal colony, until 1872, four years after penal transportation to Western Australia had ceased.-History:Western Australia's first...
and in 1866 he had him removed. Hampton then appointed his son George
George Hampton
George Essex Hampton was an unpopular public official in colonial Western Australia.The son of Governor of Western Australia Dr John Hampton, George Hampton arrived in the colony with his father in February 1862 on board the Stathallen...
to act in the position. George Hampton had no particular qualifications for the position, and already held a number of other salaried positions. This "unusually blatant act of nepotism"1 was extremely unpopular within the colony, and was compounded when Hampton approved his son a living allowance, to which he was entitled but did not need since he lived in Government House
Government House
Government House is the name of many of the residences of Governors-General, Governors and Lieutenant-Governors in the Commonwealth and the remaining colonies of the British Empire. It serves as the venue for the Governor's official business, as well as the many receptions and functions hosted by...
. Thereafter, both Hamptons became figures of public hostility and ridicule within the colony.
The Government of Western Australia was in acute debt when Hampton took over as Governor. He immediately imposed strict cost-cutting measures, including using convict labour instead of contract labour whenever possible. Within a year the colony had recovered from its financial problems, and a few years later was on a firm financial footing. His sound financial management endeared him to the Colonial Office, and went some way to alleviating his unpopular public image. His vigorous public works
Public works
Public works are a broad category of projects, financed and constructed by the government, for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community...
program also met with strong approval by the colonists.
It is not known whether Hampton sought a second term as Governor. On the expiry of his term in November 1868, he returned to England on the Emily Smith. His wife died shortly after their arrival in England, and Hampton himself lived only until 1 December 1869.