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Ralph Darling

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General
Sir Ralph Darling
GCH
7thGovernor of New South Wales
In office
19 December 1825 – 21 October 1831[1]
MonarchsGeorge IV
William IV
Preceded byThomas Brisbane
Succeeded byRichard Bourke
Personal details
Born1772
Ireland
Died(1858-04-02)2 April 1858 (aged 85-86)
Brighton,England
Military service
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Branch/serviceBritish Army
RankGeneral
CommandsBritish troops on Mauritius
51st (2nd Yorkshire West Riding) Regiment of Foot
Battles/warsNapoleonic Wars
AwardsKnight Bachelor
Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order

GeneralSir Ralph Darling,GCH(1772[2]– 2 April 1858) was aBritish Armyofficer who served asGovernor of New South Walesfrom 1825 to 1831. He is popularly described as a tyrant, accused oftorturing prisonersand banning theatrical entertainment. Local geographical features named after him include theDarling RiverandDarling HarbourinSydney.

Early career[edit]

Darling seems to have been unique in the British Army of this period, as he progressed from anenlisted manto become ageneral officerwith aknighthood.Born in Ireland, he was the son of asergeantin the45th Regiment of Footwho subsequently gained the unusual reward of promotion to officer rank as alieutenant.Like most of the small number of formernon-commissioned officersin this position, Lieutenant Darling performed only regimental administrative duties. He struggled to support his large family on asubaltern's pay.[3]

Ralph Darling enlisted at the age of fourteen as aprivatein his father's regiment, and served in the ranks for at least two years on garrison duty in theWest Indies.Eventually, as an "act of charity" to the family, young Ralph was granted an officer's commission as anensignon 15 May 1793, without having to makethe usual payment.[2][3]The new officer soon found opportunities to show his ability, alternating front-line activity and high-level administrative duties, and in August 1796 he was appointed as military secretary toSir Ralph Abercromby,the British commander-in-chief in the West Indies. By the time he returned to Great Britain in 1802, still aged only twenty-nine, the sergeant's son and one-time private soldier was a highly respected lieutenant-colonel.[3]

During theNapoleonic Wars,Colonel Darling alternated between periods of regimental command and important administrative appointments, leading the51st Regiment of Footat theBattle of Corunnaand serving as assistant adjutant general during theWalcheren Expedition,before returning to the headquarters atRoyal Horse Guardsin London, where he served for almost a decade as head of British Army recruiting.[3]In this role, Darling was subsequently promoted tobrevetcolonel on 25 July 1810, major general on 4 June 1813, and deputy adjutant general in 1814.[2][4]General Darling was also able to further the careers of his younger brothersHenryand William, and subsequently his nephewCharles;the three brothers all became generals, and Charles also earned a knighthood.

Darling married in 1817.[3]Between February 1819[2]and February 1824, General Darling commanded the British troops onMauritius,before serving as acting governor of the colony for the last three years of his stay. In this role, Darling again exhibited his administrative ability, but he also became very unpopular in Mauritius: he was accused of allowing a British frigate to breach quarantine and start an epidemic of cholera, and he then suspended the island'sConseil de Communewhen it protested his actions; in reality, however, there was no evidence that the frigate had been carrying cholera, and the opposition to General Darling appears to have been motivated in large part by his vigorous actions against theslave trade,and the fact that British rule in Mauritius was still little more than military occupation of a proudFrench colony.[3]Notwithstanding the criticism from some quarters, it was largely on account of his service in Mauritius that Darling was appointed the seventhGovernor of New South Walesin 1824.[2]

Governor of New South Wales[edit]

Darling initiated the construction, from 1826, of the convict-builtGreat North Road,linking theHawkesburysettlements aroundSydneywith those in theHunter Valley.In 1826 he also defined theNineteen Countiesin accordance with a government order fromLord Bathurst,the Secretary of State in the British parliament; these were the limits of location in the colony of New South Wales. Settlers were only permitted to take up land within these counties. From 1831 the granting of free land ceased and the only land that was to be made available for sale was within theNineteen Counties.

When Darling was commissioned as governor, the Colony's western boundary – set in 1788 at135 degrees east longitude– was extended by 6 degrees west to the129 degrees east longitude.This line of longitude subsequently became the border dividingWestern AustraliaandSouth Australia.To the south, everything beyondWilsons Promontory,the southeastern 'corner' of the Australian continent, ceased to be under the control ofNew South Walesand was placed under the authority of theLieutenant Governor of Van Diemen's Land.He proclaimedVan Diemen's Landas a separate colony on 3 December in 1825.

Controversies[edit]

Darling was a professional soldier, military governor of what was still effectively apenal colonyundermartial law,and having lived entirely within the authoritarian structure of the army since childhood, he lacked experience in dealing with civilian society. As a result, he came into conflict with the liberal "emancipists" who wished to introduce greater political and social freedom in New South Wales.[3]Their accusations of tyrannical misrule were publicised by opposition newspapers in England and Australia (including theAustralian,run byWilliam WentworthandRobert Wardell).[2]

Darling tended to rely upon like-minded military men for his administration, and it was soon subject to criticism for nepotism and favouritism. That criticism, as well as the accusations of tyrannical rule, could not be stifled. Darling's predecessor,Thomas Brisbane,had ended press censorship, creating in effectpress freedombefore Darling arrived in the colony. Darling's subsequent attempt to control the press through new legislation failed, because the Chief Justice,Francis Forbes,advised that the measures were not compatible with the laws of England.[5]

It is certainly the case that Darling made land grants to relatives, including his brothers-in-lawHenryandWilliam Dumaresq,and others that he favoured, such asGeorge BowenandStewart Ryrie,a brother-in law of Darling's first Lieutenant-Governor,William Stewart.Those same favoured people received appointments within his administration. He employed his nephew,Charles Henry Darling,as an assistant private secretary.[6]

In keeping with official policy and the governor's own disciplinarian instincts, Darling's administration certainly strengthened the punitive aspects oftransportation.Perhaps the most controversial act of his tenure was the harsh treatment of soldiers Joseph Sudds and Patrick Thompson, who had committed theft in the belief that seven years in an outlying penal colony would be an easier life than two decades of army discipline. As an example to others, the Governor had them placed in irons and assigned to achain gang,leading to the death of Sudds.

Some believe this death was officially downplayed. It was stated as having been due to a pre-existing illness which the Governor had not been properly informed about. However, the incident proved intensely and persistently controversial at the time and formed a major element in the rising career of Mr William Charles Wentworth as a political thorn in the side of the establishment and a leading advocate for the self-government of the Australian colonies.

Wentworth, who was also famous for crossing the Blue Mountains withBlaxlandandLawson,became the Colony's leading political figure of the 1820s-30s. He called for representative government, the abolition of transportation, freedom of the press and trial by jury. Wentworth became the most bitter enemy of Governor Ralph Darling and his 'exclusives' led by the wealthy grazierJohn Macarthur.In one account disfavourable to the Governor written byMarcus Clarke[7]the following claims regarding Governor Darling's "act of tryanny" of 22 November 1826 are made: "it was given forth that Sudds had died from combined dropsy and bronchitis. Mr. Wentworth - a native-born Australian barrister, of some eloquence and intense capacity for hating - would not rest satisfied with this explanation, and little by little the facts of the case leaked out"; "the ingenious Darling had placed round their necks spiked iron collars attached by another set of chains to the ankle fetters. The projecting spikes prevented the unhappy men from lying down at ease, and the connecting chains were short enough to prevent them from standing upright. Under the effects of this treatment Sudds had died. Public fury now knew no bounds. Tradesmen put up their shutters as though in mourning for some national calamity. The fiercest denunciations met the Governor on all sides, and he was accused of wilful murder"; after Sudds' death Thompson was taken in a bullock-cart to Penrith gaol, and thence conveyed to "No. 1, Iron-chain-gang party" onLapstone-hill,being at the face of the Blue Mountains. At three o’clock on the first day he was taken out and set to work with the gang, having the spiked collar that had killed Sudds on his neck the whole time. After eight hot days of this work Thompson refused to continue working and was taken to gaol and was finally sent on board the hulks. What became of him seemed unknown to some but he was eventually ordered to rejoin his regiment (Sydney Gazette, 28 March 1829), and was sent back to England in October 1829 (Australian, 23 October 1829).

Having gathered considerable evidence of his own, Wentworth wrote toSir George Murray,the Secretary of State, and forwarded to him a long bill of indictment against the Governor. On 8 July 1828, Mr. Stewart, a member of the British House of Commons, rose to move for "papers connected with the case of Joseph Sudds and Patrick Thompson". The "rascally newspapers" had not been idle either, and "Miles", a correspondent of the Morning Chronicle, took up the cudgels for Mr. Wentworth. The Morning Chronicle commented severely on the conduct of the Tory Governor of New South Wales. The Tory papers duly retaliated, but eventually Darling moved to resign. The controversy still persisted, and lasted years after Governor Darling's resignation - with the Whig party clamouring for vengeance, and with "Miles", persistently chronicling all of Darling’s misdeeds in order to seek that Darling be tried for his life. There was, however, no "trial for murder" and the Government expressed itself fully satisfied with the conduct of Sir Ralph Darling. Wentworth having got for Governor Major-General SirRichard Bourke(who was generally liked), turned his attention to other pursuits. Wentworth published in England a series of pamphlets containing an account of this whole business.

Governor Darling is also said to have "ruthlessly and implacably countered all attempts to establish a theatre in Sydney". He even introduced a law effectively banning the performance of drama. The law stated that no form of public entertainment could take place without approval from the colonial secretary, and Darling ensured that all such applications were rejected. He did permit concerts of music to take place.[8]

His departure for England, upon the shipHooghly,was greeted by public rejoicing,[8]but his modern biographer has described this display as being "orchestrated by his opponents".[3]

Darling sought to ensure the education of child prisoners, improve the treatment of female convicts, and promote the use of Christian teaching as a means of rehabilitation, and he made efforts to give theindigenous populationthe protection of British justice.[3]The annual distribution of blankets to Aboriginal people was initiated by him in 1826, originally as rewards to those who assisted in the capture ofbushrangersat the request of the Bathurst magistrates.[9][10][11]

Later life[edit]

Ralph Darling left Australia in 1831, returning to England in 1832. Continuing pressure from political opponents led to the formation of aselect committeeto examine his actions in Australia, but the inquiry exonerated him, and the day after it concluded, he was knighted bythe kingin a dramatic display of official favour. The controversy in Australia may have contributed to the fact that he was not given any significant new military or political assignments, but further promotion and various honorific appointments did follow, and he was happy to devote much of his time to raising his young children.[3]

He was given the colonelcy of the90th Regiment of Footin 1823, transferring as Colonel to the41st (Welch) Regiment of Footin 1837 and to the69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Footin 1848, a post he held until his death.

Darling died inBrightonon 2 April 1858 at the age of eighty-six, survived by his widow, three sons and four daughters.[2]

Family[edit]

Eliza Darling, 1825 portrait byJohn Linnell

On 13 October 1817, Darling married the 19-year-oldElizabeth Dumaresq,known as Eliza (1798–1868). She was the daughter of Colonel John Dumaresq, a landowner inShropshire.The marriage was a happy one.[3]Of ten children, four daughters and three sons survived to adulthood.[12]

Eliza's widowed mother Ann Dumaresq was a devout philanthropist, and lived inCheltenham.[13]Eliza was influenced byHannah MoreandSarah Trimmer.[14]In Australia, she consulted the penal reformerElizabeth Fry,with reference in particular to female convicts. She was also involved in the establishment of the Female School of Industry atParramatta.[15]

After Darling's position in New South Wales ended, the family returned to England. They lived at Cheltenham, then Brighton where Darling died in 1858.[16]

Named after Ralph Darling[edit]

The following features are named after Ralph Darling or members of his immediate family:

TheLogan Riverin South-East Queensland was named the Darling River in 1826 byCaptain Patrick Logan,in honour of the then-Governor Darling. However, Darling decided to, "[return] the compliment by renaming the river the Logan, to recognise Logan's enthusiasm and efficiency."[17]

Popular culture[edit]

Darling appears as a character in the radio playSpoiled Darlingsand the mini seriesThe Patriots.

References[edit]

  1. ^"GOVERNORS".Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser(EVENINGS. ed.). Vic. 6 January 1868. p. 4.Retrieved2 May2012– via National Library of Australia.
  2. ^abcdefgDarling, Sir Ralph (1772–1858).Melbourne University Press. 1966. pp. 282–286.Retrieved14 August2007.{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help)
  3. ^abcdefghijk"Darling, Sir Ralph (1772–1858)".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography(online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2009.doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/7157.Retrieved2 May2014.(Subscription orUK public library membershiprequired.)
  4. ^"Notes and Queries".Australian Town and Country Journal.NSW. 7 August 1880. p. 17.Retrieved1 November2013– via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^Currey, C. H.,"Forbes, Sir Francis (1784–1841",Australian Dictionary of Biography,Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University,retrieved21 August2021
  6. ^Crowley, F. K.,"Sir Charles Henry Darling (1809–1870)",Australian Dictionary of Biography,Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University,retrieved8 April2024
  7. ^Clarke, Marcus(1871)."Governor Ralph Darling's Iron Collar".Old Tales of a Young Country.Retrieved26 August2021.
  8. ^abEric Irvin.Dictionary of the Australian Theatre 1788–1914.(Sydney: Hale & Iremonger). 1985.
  9. ^O'Brien, Anne (June 2008). "Kitchen Fragments and Garden Stuff".Australian Historical Studies.39(2): 150–166.doi:10.1080/10314610802033148.S2CID141697603.
  10. ^"Number of blankets served out to Aborigines at Bathurst".Curio.State Library of NSW.Retrieved18 December2019.
  11. ^Smithson, Michael Anthony (1992),A misunderstood gift: the annual issue of blankets to Aborigines in New South Wales, 1826-48,retrieved18 December2019
  12. ^"Eliza, Lady Darling".Moore College.
  13. ^Clune, David (2009).The Governors of New South Wales 1788-2010.Federation Press. p. 150.ISBN978-1-86287-743-6.
  14. ^Shiell, Annette (2014).Fundraising, Flirtation and Fancywork: Charity Bazaars in Nineteenth Century Australia.Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 61.ISBN978-1-4438-6477-0.
  15. ^Clune, David (2009).The Governors of New South Wales 1788-2010.Federation Press. p. 157.ISBN978-1-86287-743-6.
  16. ^"Design & Art Australia Online, Elizabeth Darling b. c.10 November 1798".
  17. ^"An early history of Logan".Logan City Council.Retrieved20 August2022.

Sources[edit]

Additional resources listed by theAustralian Dictionary of Biography[edit]

External links[edit]

Government offices
Preceded by Governor of New South Wales
1825–1831 		Succeeded by
Military offices
Preceded by Colonel of the69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot
1848–1858 		Succeeded by
Ernest Frederick Gascoigne
Preceded by Colonel of the41st (Welsh) Regiment of Foot
1837–1848 		Succeeded by
Charles Ashe a'Court Repington
Preceded by
Hon. Robert Meade
 Colonel of the90th Regiment of Foot
1823–1837 		Succeeded by
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