James Martin (premier)
Sir James Martin | |
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6thPremier of New South Wales | |
In office 16 October 1863 – 2 February 1865 | |
Preceded by | Charles Cowper |
Succeeded by | Charles Cowper |
Constituency | Tumut(until 1864) Monaro |
In office 22 January 1866 – 26 October 1868 | |
Preceded by | Charles Cowper |
Succeeded by | John Robertson |
Constituency | Lachlan |
In office 16 December 1870 – 13 May 1872 | |
Preceded by | Charles Cowper |
Succeeded by | Henry Parkes |
Chief Justice of New South Wales | |
In office 19 November 1873 – 4 November 1886 | |
Preceded by | Sir Alfred Stephen |
Succeeded by | Sir Julian Salomons |
Personal details | |
Born | Midleton,County Cork,Ireland, | 14 May 1820
Died | 4 November 1886 Potts Point,New South Wales | (aged 66)
Resting place | St Jude's Randwick Cemetery |
Relations | Florence Martin(daughter) |
Sir James Martin,QC(14 May 1820 – 4 November 1886)[1]was three timesPremier of New South Wales,andChief Justice of New South Walesfrom 1873 to 1886.
Early career
[edit]Martin was born inMidleton,County Cork,Irelandbut emigrated with his parents toSydney,Australiaat the age of one.[1]He was educated at Dame's School,Parramattaand, despite his family's poverty,[2]the Sydney Academy and Sydney College under the tutelage ofWilliam Timothy Cape,and left school at the age of 16 to become a reporter.
In 1838, Martin published theAustralian Sketch Book,a series of character sketches he dedicated to Sydney barristerBob Nichols,[3]for whom he was then working as an articled clerk in 1840.
Martin qualified as a solicitor in 1845, and combined his legal career with employment as a newspaper editor and publisher. He married Isabella Long on 20 January 1853 and together they produced 15 children.[2]
Early political career
[edit]In February 1848 Martin nominated as a candidate for a by-election for theelectorate of Durhamin theNew South Wales Legislative Council,but withdrew before polling day. In the general election held later in the same year he was a candidate for the electorate ofCounties of Cook and Westmoreland,which he won with a margin of 16%.[2]His election however was declared void on the grounds that he did not meet the property qualifications to stand,[4][5]however he was re-elected unopposed.[6]Martin subsequently sued theSpeaker of the Legislative Council,Charles Nicholsonand theSergeant at Arms,William Christie,for trespass for having him removed when there had been no decision of theElectoral Courtin accordance with theElectoral Act1843.[7]The Full Court of theSupreme Courtheld that under theElectoral Act1843 it was only the Electoral Court that could determine there was a vacancy and not the Governor.[8]
Martin was an effective legislator but his sharp tongue and intemperate speeches to the House made him few friends among his parliamentary colleagues. His most notable political achievement in his first eight years in office was to initiate the Parliamentary debate that led to the establishment of a branch of the royal mint in Sydney.
In 1856 the partly electedunicameralLegislative Council was abolished and replaced with a new parliament with elected members of theLegislative Assemblyand appointed members of the Legislative Council. Martin was elected as one of two members forCook and Westmoreland.When that electorate was largely replaced by the single member electorate ofHartley,Martin successfully stood for the new four member electorate ofEast Sydney.He was subsequently the member forOrange,Tumut,Monaro,LachlanandEast Macquarie.[2]In August 1856 he was madeAttorney-General of New South Walesin the first ministry ofCharles Cowper.The appointment was controversial, as Martin was the first holder of the office who had not been admitted as a barrister.[9]He had to resign his seat as a result of accepting the office, however he was re-elected unopposed.[10]The appointment was brief, as the government was defeated in a no-confidence motion in October 1856 and Martin returned to the backbench.
Martin was admitted to the bar in 1856 and was made aQueen's Counselin 1857.[11]He returned as Attorney General in the second Cowper Ministry in September 1857, and was again re-elected unopposed.[12]As Attorney General however, his reputation for intemperate language continued and after a series of conflicts with fellow Ministers he resigned the office in November 1858.
Premier of New South Wales
[edit]In October 1863, Martin was asked by theGovernor of New South Walesto form a government with a mandate to address rising State deficits and rural unemployment. As Premier andColonial SecretaryMartin promptly introduced measures to reduce immigration and increase tariffs, but was unable to secure Parliamentary support for many of his reforms. With limited achievements to its credit, the government suffered a substantial swing at the 1865 election and Martin stepped down to make way for the return of Charles Cowper.
Cowper was once again defeated in a no-confidence motion in December 1865, and in January 1866 Martin became Premier for the second time as leader of a coalition government with former rivalHenry Parkes.His government resigned in October 1868, but he returned to the Premiership for a third and final time between December 1870 and May 1872.
After politics
[edit]Martin retired from Parliament in November 1873 and was immediately named to the vacant position of Chief Justice of New South Wales. He held the post for 13 years, despite considerable ill health in later life.
James Martin died at home inPotts Point, Sydneyon 4 November 1886 and buried in St Judes churchyard in Randwick, NSW. in 1909 his remains were moved to a new underground vault in the impressiveWaverley Cemetery.
Honours
[edit]Martin was made a Queen's Counsel in 1857,[2]and wasknightedin 1869.[13]Martin Place,a pedestrian mall in thecentral business districtof Sydney was named after him in 1892. 'Lady Martin Beach' a small beach accessible to the public fromWolseley Road,Point Piper, New South Walesis named after his wife, Isabella who resided at nearbyWoollahra House.Late in 2020, two new identical statues were put up in Parramatta and Martin Place as he used to go from Parramatta to Martin Place for school.[14]
See also
[edit]- First Martin ministry (1863–1865)
- Second Martin ministry (1866–1868)
- Third Martin ministry (1870–1872)
- 140-142 Cumberland Street, The Rocks
- List of judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales
Notes
[edit]- ^abMennell, Philip(1892). .The Dictionary of Australasian Biography.London: Hutchinson & Co – viaWikisource.
- ^abcde"Sir James Martin [1] (1820–1886)".Former members of theParliament of New South Wales.Retrieved16 October2011.
- ^ Nairn, Bede."Martin, Sir James (1820–1886)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.Canberra: National Centre of Biography,Australian National University.ISBN978-0-522-84459-7.ISSN1833-7538.OCLC70677943.Retrieved12 August2013.
- ^"Writ of election".New South Wales Government Gazette.No. 89. 21 June 1849. p. 939.Retrieved22 April2019– via Trove.
- ^"Legislative Council: Mr James Martin".The Sydney Morning Herald.18 June 1849. p. 2.Retrieved22 April2019– via Trove.
"Legislative Council: message from the Governor:- Mr James Martin".The Sydney Morning Herald.20 June 1849. p. 2.Retrieved22 April2019– via Trove. - ^"Cook and Westmoreland election".The Sydney Morning Herald.14 July 1849. p. 3.Retrieved22 April2019– via Trove.
- ^An Act to provide for the division of the Colony of New South Wales into Electoral Districts and for the Election of Members to serve in the Legislative Council(PDF)(16). 23 February 1843.Retrieved22 April2019.
- ^Martin v Nicholson(1850) 1 Legge 618(PDF)Supreme Court (Full Court)(NSW), perStephenCJ,DickinsonandTherryJJ.
- ^"Law Officers of the Crown".The Sydney Morning Herald.9 September 1856. p. 4.Retrieved30 January2019– via Trove.
- ^"Representation of Cook and Westmoreland: return of Mr Martin".The Empire.8 September 1856. p. 2.Retrieved22 April2019– via Trove.
- ^"NSW senior counsel appointments".NSW Bar Association.Retrieved5 February2021.
- ^"Cook and Westmoreland election: re-election of Mr Martin".The Sydney Morning Herald.New South Wales, Australia. 22 September 1857. p. 4.Retrieved22 April2019– via Trove.
- ^"No. 23494".The London Gazette.4 May 1869. p. 2620.
- ^NSW Dept of Planning, Industry and Environment (5 November 2020)."James Martin honour unveiled".NSW Dept of Planning, Industry and Environment.Retrieved19 January2021.
References
[edit]- Serle, Percival(1949)."Martin, James".Dictionary of Australian Biography.Sydney:Angus & Robertson.
- The Honourable Sir James Martin, Kt – Law and History 2: Lawlink NSW
- Boase, George Clement(1893). .InLee, Sidney(ed.).Dictionary of National Biography.Vol. 36. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
- 1820 births
- 1886 deaths
- Premiers of New South Wales
- Chief justices of New South Wales
- Judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales
- Australian Knights Bachelor
- Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council
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- People educated at Sydney Grammar School
- Burials at Waverley Cemetery
- Australian King's Counsel
- Attorneys general of the Colony of New South Wales
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- 19th-century Australian politicians
- 19th-century Australian judges
- People from Midleton
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