On the evening of Monday, 19 July, the House of Representatives and half the Senate were dissolved, writs were issued for a general election, and both the federal government and the Australian Public Service went into caretaker mode. What does ‘caretaker’ mean in this context? It’s a long-established convention which goes to the heart of our democratic system and the ideas of responsible government that underpin it. Find out more in our Prime Fact 63, The Caretaker Conventions in Australia available for download
How did Australian politicians of the nineteenth century campaign, in the days before today’s pervasive electronic media? They went to where people gathered in their daily lives, and held political meetings in gathering places such as pubs, Mechanic’s Institutes, and open air venues such as a local park or even under a particular tree. These weren’t always mass meetings. Many, possibly the majority, were of small groups of people. The museum has recently acquired a rare picture of one such meeting in a pub, by the artist William Wadham.
The work shows two men addressing a small group of onlookers – all apparently men - and is set within a…
A recent addition to our collection is this photo, taken in 1911, of the Bathurst Football Club rugby union team, including future prime minister of Australia J. B. Chifley. Chifley appears in the middle row at right of picture. The photo was recently scanned from the family collection of Lynne Pearson for the museum, by a family member aware of our particular interest in prime ministers. Sam Malloy, Coordinator of the Chifley Home at Bathurst, has commented that it is the best he has yet seen of Chifley in his rugby days.
Born in Bathurst on 22 September, 1885, Chifley was 26 when this photo was taken. He attended Patrician Brothers’ High…
On 24 November 2009, the National History Challenge Awards ceremony was held at Australian Parliament House. An activity of the History Teachers’ Association of Australia, the competition is research-based, inviting entries from primary and secondary students from all over Australia and giving them the chance to be historians. Each year, students submit entries exploring the theme chosen for that year, using primary and secondary sources to produce an essay, performance, multi-media piece or three-dimensional model.
The theme of this year’s Challenge was Triumph over Adversity and a varied list of topics saw essays from students on Australia’s…
On 13 October 2009 Senator the Hon Joe Ludwig, Cabinet Secretary and Special Minister of State, announced the recipients of 9 Australian Prime Ministers Centre Fellowships for 2009-2010. Now in its third year, the APMC Research and Scholarship Program is proving to be a valuable—and popular—initiative. The program supports scholars, creative workers and researchers working in the fields of political science and history, with Australia’s prime ministers and how they shaped the Australia we live in today as a major part of their focus. The Fellowships are selected by an independent selection panel convened by Old Parliament House representing…
As Australia went onto a war footing, seventy years ago the Australian Parliament readied itself for action. ‘Strained relations exist with Germany. … Take necessary action in accordance with Commonwealth and Departmental War Books’, the Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Department wrote to the Clerks of the Houses on 2 September 1939. A day later Robert Menzies sadly announced that we were at war, broadcasting from the Commonwealth Offices in Melbourne: ‘It is my melancholy duty to inform you officially that, in consequence of a persistence by Germany in her invasion of Poland, Great Britain has declared war upon her, and that, as a result,…
On 25 November, Special Minister of State, Senator John Faulkner, announced the recipients of the Australian Prime Ministers Centre Fellowships and one Summer Scholarship. The Australian Prime Ministers Centre (APMC) at Old Parliament House offers a program of fellowships and summer scholarships. These allow researchers to explore the history of Australia’s prime ministers and how they shaped the Australia we live in today. The Fellowships are selected by an independent selection panel convened by Old Parliament House representing national collecting institutions and the academic community.
The 2008-2009 research subjects cover a diverse range…
To mark the centenary of Andrew Fisher’s first Labor government, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd gave a speech at Old Parliament House on 13 November, 2008 highlighting Fisher’s achievements as a nation builder. Andrew Fisher (1862-1928) became the 5th prime minister of Australia on 13 November 1908 when the Liberal Protectionist government headed by Alfred Deakin collapsed due to loss of parliamentary Labor support. Fisher was the first head of a majority Australian government and one who did much to strengthen a young nation’s security, economy and social foundations.
Fisher’s first period as prime minister ended when the new…
