List of prime ministers of Australia by age

This is a list of Prime Ministers of Australia by age, including when they were born, what age they were when they were appointed prime minister, what age were they when they left the office and the age at which they died, or their current age as of 4 February 2021 if they are still alive. The table can be sorted by each different category.

Living as of 17:07, Thursday, February 4, 2021 (UTC)
Prime Minister Date of birth Prime Minister
John Howard (1939-07-26) 26 July 1939 19962007
Paul Keating (1944-01-18) 18 January 1944 19911996
Malcolm Turnbull (1954-10-24) 24 October 1954 20152018
Kevin Rudd (1957-09-21) 21 September 1957 20072010, 2013
Tony Abbott (1957-11-04) 4 November 1957 20132015
Julia Gillard (1961-09-29) 29 September 1961 20102013
Scott Morrison (1968-05-13) 13 May 1968 2018

The date of appointment as prime minister is the date on which they were sworn in by the Governor-General for their first term. The day on which they departed office is the final day of their final term. This is either the day a new prime minister was appointed or their date of death if they died whilst in office.

Overview

The median age of a Prime Minister on the first day of their first term is 52 years, and 353 days which falls between Joseph Cook and Billy Hughes. The youngest person to assume the office was Chris Watson (age 37 years, 18 days). The oldest person to assume office was John McEwen (age 67 years, 265 days).

The oldest living former Prime Minister is John Howard, born 26 July 1939 (age 81 years, 193 days). The youngest living former Prime Minister is Julia Gillard, born 29 September 1961, (age 59 years, 128 days). The youngest living Prime Minister is the incumbent Scott Morrison, born 13 May 1968, (age 52 years, 267 days).

The longest-lived Prime Minister was Gough Whitlam who died on 21 October 2014 at the age of 98 years, 102 days. Frank Forde was the second longest-lived Prime Minister, at the age of 92 years, 194 days. Whitlam surpassed Forde's lifespan on 21 January 2009. The oldest living Prime Minister, John Howard, will tie Whitlam if he lives to 5 November 2037. The shortest-lived Prime Minister was Harold Holt, at the age of 59 years, 134 days (See footnote below explaining his disappearance).

The Prime Minister with the longest retirement is Gough Whitlam. He left office on 11 November 1975, and died 38 years, and 344 days later on 21 October 2014. The prime minister with the shortest retirement is Ben Chifley, who died on 13 June 1951, 1 year and 176 days after leaving office on 19 December 1949.

Prime Ministers' ages

# Prime Minister Born Took office Age Left office Age Died Length of retirement Lifespan
1 Edmund Barton 18 January 1849 1 January 1901 51 years, 348 days 24 September 1903 54 years, 249 days 7 January 1920 16 years, 105 days 70 years, 354 days
2 Alfred Deakin 3 August 1856 24 September 1903 47 years, 52 days 29 April 1910 53 years, 269 days 7 October 1919 9 years, 161 days 63 years, 65 days
3 Chris Watson 9 April 1867 27 April 1904 37 years, 18 days 18 August 1904 37 years, 131 days 18 November 1941 37 years, 92 days 74 years, 223 days
4 George Reid 25 February 1845 18 August 1904 59 years, 175 days 5 July 1905 60 years, 130 days 12 September 1918 13 years, 69 days 73 years, 199 days
5 Andrew Fisher 29 August 1862 13 November 1908 46 years, 76 days 27 October 1915 53 years, 59 days 22 October 1928 12 years, 361 days 66 years, 54 days
6 Joseph Cook 7 December 1860 24 June 1913 52 years, 199 days 17 September 1914 53 years, 284 days 30 July 1947 32 years, 316 days 86 years, 235 days
7 Billy Hughes 25 September 1862 28 October 1915 53 years, 33 days 9 February 1923 60 years, 137 days 28 October 1952 29 years, 262 days 90 years, 33 days
8 Stanley Bruce 15 April 1883 9 February 1923 39 years, 300 days 22 October 1929 46 years, 190 days 25 August 1967 37 years, 307 days 84 years, 132 days
9 James Scullin 18 September 1876 22 October 1929 53 years, 34 days 6 January 1932 55 years, 110 days 28 January 1953 21 years, 22 days 76 years, 132 days
10 Joseph Lyons 15 September 1879 6 January 1932 52 years, 113 days 7 April 1939[1] 59 years, 204 days 7 April 1939 N/A 59 years, 204 days
11 Earle Page 8 August 1880 7 April 1939 58 years, 242 days 26 April 1939 58 years, 261 days 20 December 1961 22 years, 238 days 81 years, 134 days
12 Robert Menzies 20 December 1894 26 April 1939 44 years, 127 days 26 January 1966 71 years, 37 days 15 May 1978 12 years, 109 days 83 years, 146 days
13 Arthur Fadden 13 April 1894 29 August 1941 47 years, 138 days 7 October 1941 47 years, 177 days 21 April 1973 31 years, 196 days 79 years, 8 days
14 John Curtin 8 January 1885 7 October 1941 56 years, 272 days 5 July 1945[1] 60 years, 178 days 5 July 1945 N/A 60 years, 178 days
15 Frank Forde 18 July 1890 6 July 1945 54 years, 353 days 13 July 1945 54 years, 360 days 28 January 1983 37 years, 199 days 92 years, 194 days
16 Ben Chifley 22 September 1885 13 July 1945 59 years, 294 days 19 December 1949 64 years, 88 days 13 June 1951 1 year, 176 days 65 years, 264 days
17 Harold Holt 5 August 1908 26 January 1966 57 years, 174 days 17 December 1967[2] 59 years, 134 days 17 December 1967[2] N/A 59 years, 134 days
18 John McEwen 29 March 1900 19 December 1967 67 years, 265 days 10 January 1968 67 years, 287 days 20 November 1980 12 years, 315 days 80 years, 236 days
19 John Gorton 9 September 1911 10 January 1968 56 years, 123 days 10 March 1971 59 years, 182 days 19 May 2002 31 years, 70 days 90 years, 252 days
20 William McMahon 23 February 1908 10 March 1971 63 years, 15 days 5 December 1972 64 years, 286 days 31 March 1988 15 years, 117 days 80 years, 37 days
21 Gough Whitlam 11 July 1916 5 December 1972 56 years, 147 days 11 November 1975 59 years, 123 days 21 October 2014 38 years, 344 days 98 years, 102 days
22 Malcolm Fraser 21 May 1930 11 November 1975 45 years, 174 days 11 March 1983 52 years, 294 days 20 March 2015 32 years, 9 days 84 years, 303 days
23 Bob Hawke 9 December 1929 11 March 1983 53 years, 92 days 20 December 1991 62 years, 11 days 16 May 2019 27 years, 147 days 89 years, 158 days
24 Paul Keating 18 January 1944 20 December 1991 47 years, 336 days 11 March 1996 52 years, 53 days 24 years, 330 days 77 years, 17 days
25 John Howard 26 July 1939 11 March 1996 56 years, 229 days 3 December 2007 68 years, 130 days 13 years, 63 days 81 years, 193 days
26 Kevin Rudd 21 September 1957 3 December 2007 50 years, 73 days 18 September 2013 55 years, 362 days 7 years, 139 days 63 years, 136 days
27 Julia Gillard 29 September 1961 24 June 2010 48 years, 268 days 27 June 2013 51 years, 271 days 7 years, 222 days 59 years, 128 days
28 Tony Abbott 4 November 1957 18 September 2013 55 years, 318 days 15 September 2015 57 years, 315 days 5 years, 142 days 63 years, 92 days
29 Malcolm Turnbull 24 October 1954 15 September 2015 60 years, 326 days 24 August 2018 63 years, 304 days 2 years, 164 days 66 years, 103 days
30 Scott Morrison 13 May 1968 24 August 2018 50 years, 103 days Incumbent Incumbent Incumbent 52 years, 267 days

Timeline of living prime ministers

This is a chronological list of all who served as the Prime Minister of Australia and were still living, at different periods in history. There has been one time period each when there was either one, two, or three living prime ministers, beginning with the appointment of Edmund Barton in 1901 and ending with the appointment of George Reid in 1904.

There have been two time periods when 9 living current or former prime ministers co-existed. The earliest period was from the October 1941 appointment of John Curtin to the November 1941 death of Chris Watson. The most recent and the longest period was a two-year period beginning with the July 1945 appointment of Ben Chifley to the July 1947 death of Joseph Cook.

If one includes future Prime Ministers as well as past and current Prime Ministers, there has been only one time period when 21 different prime ministers co-existed.

Color key: Pre-UAP Conservatives UAP / Liberal Party Country Party Labor Party
Number of prime ministers alive at each date in Australian history
Start End Start event Interval End event Living PMs
1 January 1901 24 September 1903 Appointment of Edmund Barton 2 years, 266 days Appointment of Alfred Deakin 1 Barton
24 September 1903 27 April 1904 Appointment of Alfred Deakin 216 days Appointment of Chris Watson 2 Barton

Deakin

27 April 1904 18 August 1904 Appointment of Chris Watson 113 days Appointment of George Reid 3 Barton

Deakin

Watson

18 August 1904 13 November 1908 Appointment of George Reid 4 years, 87 days Appointment of Andrew Fisher 4 Barton

Deakin

Watson

Reid

13 November 1908 24 June 1913 Appointment of Andrew Fisher 4 years, 223 days Appointment of Joseph Cook 5 Barton

Deakin

Watson

Reid

Fisher

24 June 1913 27 October 1915 Appointment of Joseph Cook 2 years, 125 days Appointment of Billy Hughes 6 Barton

Deakin

Watson

Reid

Fisher

Cook

27 October 1915 12 September 1918 Appointment of Billy Hughes 2 years, 320 days Death of George Reid 7 Barton

Deakin

Watson

Reid

Fisher

Cook

Hughes

12 September 1918 7 October 1919 Death of George Reid 1 year, 25 days Death of Alfred Deakin 6 Barton

Deakin

Watson

Fisher

Cook

Hughes

7 October 1919 7 January 1920 Death of Alfred Deakin 92 days Death of Edmund Barton 5 Barton

Watson

Fisher

Cook

Hughes

7 January 1920 9 February 1923 Death of Edmund Barton 3 years, 33 days Appointment of Stanley Bruce 4 Watson

Fisher

Cook

Hughes

9 February 1923 22 October 1928 Appointment of Stanley Bruce 5 years, 256 days Death of Andrew Fisher 5 Watson

Fisher

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

22 October 1928 22 October 1929 Death of Andrew Fisher 1 year, 0 days Appointment of James Scullin 4 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

22 October 1929 6 January 1932 Appointment of James Scullin 2 years, 76 days Appointment of Joseph Lyons 5 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

6 January 1932 7 April 1939 Appointment of Joseph Lyons 7 years, 91 days Death of Joseph Lyons 6 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Lyons

7 April 1939 26 April 1939 Appointment of Earle Page 19 days Appointment of Robert Menzies 6 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

26 April 1939 29 August 1941 Appointment of Robert Menzies 2 years, 125 days Appointment of Arthur Fadden 7 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

29 August 1941 7 October 1941 Appointment of Arthur Fadden 39 days Appointment of John Curtin 8 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

7 October 1941 18 November 1941 Appointment of John Curtin 42 days Death of Chris Watson 9 Watson

Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Curtin

18 November 1941 5 July 1945 Death of Chris Watson 3 years, 229 days Death of John Curtin 8 Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Curtin

5 July 1945 13 July 1945 Appointment of Frank Forde 8 days Appointment of Ben Chifley 8 Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

13 July 1945 30 July 1947 Appointment of Ben Chifley 2 years, 17 days Death of Joseph Cook 9 Cook

Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

Chifley

30 July 1947 13 June 1951 Death of Joseph Cook 3 years, 318 days Death of Ben Chifley 8 Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

Chifley

13 June 1951 28 October 1952 Death of Ben Chifley 1 year, 137 days Death of Billy Hughes 7 Hughes

Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

28 October 1952 28 January 1953 Death of Billy Hughes 92 days Death of James Scullin 6 Bruce

Scullin

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

28 January 1953 20 December 1961 Death of James Scullin 8 years, 326 days Death of Sir Earle Page 5 Bruce

Page

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

20 December 1961 26 January 1966 Death of Earle Page 4 years, 37 days Appointment of Harold Holt 4 Bruce

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

26 January 1966 25 August 1967 Appointment of Harold Holt 1 year, 211 days Death of Stanley Bruce 5 Bruce

Menzies

Fadden

Forde

Holt

25 August 1967 17 December 1967 Death of Stanley Bruce 114 days Death of Harold Holt 4 Menzies

Fadden

Forde

Holt

17 December 1967 10 January 1968 Appointment of John McEwen 24 days Appointment of John Gorton 4 Menzies

Fadden

Forde

McEwen

10 January 1968 10 March 1971 Appointment of John Gorton 3 years, 59 days Appointment of William McMahon 5 Menzies

Fadden

Forde

McEwen

Gorton

10 March 1971 5 December 1972 Appointment of William McMahon 1 year, 270 days Appointment of Gough Whitlam 6 Menzies

Fadden

Forde

McEwen

Gorton

McMahon

5 December 1972 21 April 1973 Appointment of Gough Whitlam 137 days Death of Arthur Fadden 7 Menzies

Fadden

Forde

McEwen

Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

21 April 1973 11 November 1975 Death of Arthur Fadden 2 years, 204 days Appointment of Malcolm Fraser 6 Menzies

Forde

McEwen

Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

11 November 1975 15 May 1978 Appointment of Malcolm Fraser 2 years, 185 days Death of Robert Menzies 7 Menzies

Forde

McEwen

Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

Fraser

15 May 1978 20 November 1980 Death of Robert Menzies 2 years, 189 days Death of John McEwen 6 Forde

McEwen

Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

Fraser

20 November 1980 28 January 1983 Death of John McEwen 2 years, 69 days Death of Frank Forde 5 Forde

Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

Fraser

28 January 1983 11 March 1983 Death of Frank Forde 42 days Appointment of Bob Hawke 4 Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

Fraser

11 March 1983 31 March 1988 Appointment of Bob Hawke 5 years, 20 days Death of William McMahon 5 Gorton

McMahon

Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

31 March 1988 20 December 1991 Death of William McMahon 3 years, 264 days Appointment of Paul Keating 4 Gorton

Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

20 December 1991 11 March 1996 Appointment of Paul Keating 4 years, 82 days Appointment of John Howard 5 Gorton

Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

Keating

11 March 1996 19 May 2002 Appointment of John Howard 6 years, 69 days Death of John Gorton 6 Gorton

Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

Keating

Howard

19 May 2002 3 December 2007 Death of John Gorton 5 years, 198 days Appointment of Kevin Rudd 5 Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

Keating

Howard

3 December 2007 24 June 2010 Appointment of Kevin Rudd 2 years, 203 days Appointment of Julia Gillard 6 Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

24 June 2010 18 September 2013 Appointment of Julia Gillard 3 years, 86 days Appointment of Tony Abbott 7 Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

18 September 2013 21 October 2014 Appointment of Tony Abbott 1 year, 33 days Death of Gough Whitlam 8 Whitlam

Fraser

Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

Abbott

21 October 2014 20 March 2015 Death of Gough Whitlam 150 days Death of Malcolm Fraser 7 Fraser

Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

Abbott

20 March 2015 15 September 2015 Death of Malcolm Fraser 179 days Appointment of Malcolm Turnbull 6 Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

Abbott

15 September 2015 24 August 2018 Appointment of Malcolm Turnbull 2 years, 343 days Appointment of Scott Morrison 7 Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

Abbott

Turnbull

24 August 2018 16 May 2019 Appointment of Scott Morrison 265 days Death of Bob Hawke 8 Hawke

Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

Abbott

Turnbull

Morrison

16 May 2019 present Death of Bob Hawke 1 year, 264 days present 7 Keating

Howard

Rudd

Gillard

Abbott

Turnbull

Morrison

Statistics

  • Because he was the first prime minister, and the fact that there have been at least four prime ministers living since the appointment of George Reid on 18 August 1904, Edmund Barton is the only person to ever hold the distinction of being the only living prime minister (from 1 January 1901 to 24 September 1903).
  • In addition, Alfred Deakin and Chris Watson are the only other persons to have been one of three or less living prime ministers (from 24 September 1903 to 18 August 1904).
  • During two periods in the History of Australia, have there been 9 persons alive to have been prime minister. The first such period was from 7 October 1941 to 18 November 1941 (when Chris Watson, Joseph Cook, Billy Hughes, Stanley Bruce, James Scullin, Earle Page, Robert Menzies, Arthur Fadden, and John Curtin were alive. The second and most recent period was from 13 July 1945 to 30 July 1947 (when Joseph Cook, Billy Hughes, Stanley Bruce, James Scullin, Earle Page, Robert Menzies, Arthur Fadden, Frank Forde, and Ben Chifley were alive). The longest period where there have been 9 living prime ministers was 2 years and 17 days, ending with the death of Joseph Cook in July 1947.
  • Chris Watson was the only person to be both one of the three or less living prime ministers (from 27 April 1904 to 18 August 1904) and one of the 9 living prime ministers (from 7 October 1941 to 18 November 1941).
  • There have been 17 administrations during which a prime minister has not died, the most recent being the administration of Malcolm Turnbull. This does not include the administration of Joseph Lyons (who was himself the only prime minister to die during his administration).
    • Conversely, only during the administration of Robert Menzies has there been as many as four deaths during an administration. Only twice (during the administrations of Billy Hughes and Malcolm Fraser) has there been as many as three deaths during an administration.
  • Although Joseph Lyons died in office in 1939, he holds the distinction of serving for the longest period without the death of a former prime minister during his term (7 years and 91 days). Alfred Deakin who served for a total period of 4 years and 313 days holds the distinction of serving for the longest period during which no prime ministers died without dying in office himself. In recent years, the prime minister who served the longest without a death in his term was Paul Keating, who served for 4 years and 82 days.
  • The longest period between deaths of prime ministers was the 14 years and 49 days between the deaths of William McMahon on 31 March 1988 and John Gorton on 19 May 2002. The shortest period is 92 days which has happened twice, firstly between the deaths of Alfred Deakin on 7 October 1919 and Edmund Barton on 7 January 1920, and most recently between the deaths of Billy Hughes on 28 October 1952 and James Scullin on 28 January 1953.
    • If the longest period between deaths is to be exceeded, no prime minister must die before 4 July 2033 (the current oldest and second oldest surviving prime ministers, John Howard and Paul Keating, would then be 94 and 89 years old respectively).
    • The second longest period was the 12 years and 155 days between the deaths of John Gorton on 19 May 2002 and Gough Whitlam on 21 October 2014.
  • Only once (in 1967) have two prime ministers died in the same year.
  • Following his administration's end in 1904, Chris Watson lived to see a record 15 administrations prior to his death in November 1941. Edmund Barton and Stanley Bruce follow with 10 administrations after their own administrations ended in 1903 and 1929 respectively, prior to their deaths in January 1920 and August 1967 respectively. In modern times, the prime minister to have lived to see the most administrations following their own was Bob Hawke, with 8 following the end of his administration in 1991.
  • If one includes future as well as past and current prime ministers, the record of living prime ministers sits at 21:
  • Since the appointment of Paul Keating on 20 December 1991 (a period of 29 years, 46 days), there have been at least five prime ministers living.

Oldest living Prime Ministers of Australia

Not all prime ministers live to become the oldest of their time. Of the 23 deceased prime ministers, 12 eventually became the oldest of their time, while 11 did not (including all 3 prime ministers who died in office, and 8 others). Joseph Cook became the oldest living prime minister when Edmund Barton died in 1920 and remained so until his death in 1947, for a record 27 years and 204 days. James Scullin became the oldest living prime minister after the death of Billy Hughes, but he survived Hughes by only 92 days.

On one occasion the oldest living prime minister lost this distinction not by his death, but due to the appointment of a prime minister who was older. Edmund Barton lost this distinction when George Reid was appointed, but when Reid died in 1918, Barton regained it again until his own death in 1920 for a total period of 4 years and 347 days.

Gough Whitlam was the oldest to acquire this distinction at the age of 85 years, and 312 days. Malcolm Fraser, who was 84 years, and 303 days old when he died, on 20 March 2015 was the oldest and most recent prime minister to die without ever acquiring this distinction.

Prime Minister Period when oldest living prime minister Age Duration
Start dateEnd dateat startat end
Edmund Barton 1 January 1901 18 August 1904 51 years, 348 days 55 years, 213 days 3 years, 230 days
George Reid 18 August 1904 12 September 1918 59 years, 175 days 73 years, 199 days 14 years, 25 days
Edmund Barton 12 September 1918 7 January 1920 69 years, 237 days 70 years, 354 days 1 year, 117 days
Joseph Cook 7 January 1920 30 July 1947 59 years, 31 days 86 years, 235 days 27 years, 204 days
Billy Hughes 30 July 1947 28 October 1952 84 years, 308 days 90 years, 33 days 5 years, 90 days
James Scullin 28 October 1952 28 January 1953 76 years, 40 days 76 years, 132 days 92 days
Earle Page 28 January 1953 20 December 1961 72 years, 173 days 81 years, 134 days 8 years, 326 days
Stanley Bruce 20 December 1961 25 August 1967 78 years, 249 days 84 years, 132 days 5 years, 248 days
Frank Forde 25 August 1967 28 January 1983 77 years, 38 days 92 years, 194 days 15 years, 156 days
William McMahon 28 January 1983 31 March 1988 74 years, 339 days 80 years, 37 days 5 years, 63 days
John Gorton 31 March 1988 19 May 2002 76 years, 204 days 90 years, 252 days 14 years, 49 days
Gough Whitlam 19 May 2002 21 October 2014 85 years, 312 days 98 years, 102 days 12 years, 155 days
Bob Hawke 21 October 2014 16 May 2019 84 years, 316 days 89 years, 158 days 4 years, 207 days
John Howard 16 May 2019 79 years, 294 days 1 year, 264 days
Prime MinisterStart dateEnd dateAge at startAge at endDuration

[3]

See also

References

  1. Died in office on this date.
  2. On 17 December 1967, Holt disappeared while swimming in the ocean. On 19 December, it was announced he was presumed dead.
  3. Updated daily according to UTC.
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