Parker ministry

The Parker ministry was the third ministry of the Colony of New South Wales, and was led by Henry Parker. Parker was elected in the first free elections for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly held in March 1856 and, following the failure of the Donaldson and Cowper Governments to maintain the confidence of the Assembly, was asked to form Government.[1][2]

Parker ministry
3rd Cabinet of the Colony of New South Wales
Premier Henry Parker and the Colony of New South Wales (1856–1859)
Date formed3 October 1856 (1856-10-03)
Date dissolved7 September 1857 (1857-09-07)
People and organisations
Head of stateQueen Victoria (represented by William Denison)
Head of governmentHenry Parker
No. of ministers6
Member partyunaligned
Status in legislatureMinority government
Opposition partyunaligned
Opposition leaderCharles Cowper
History
PredecessorFirst Cowper ministry
SuccessorSecond Cowper ministry

The title of Premier was widely used to refer to the Leader of Government, but not enshrined in formal use until 1920.

There was no party system in New South Wales politics until 1887. Under the constitution, ministers were required to resign to recontest their seats in a by-election when appointed.[3] Henry Parker narrowly won the by election for Parramatta.[4] John Darvall comfortably won the by-election for Cumberland North Riding,[5] and William Manning comfortably won the by-election for Cumberland South Riding,[6] Stuart Donaldson was defeated at the by election for Sydney Hamlets,[7] however he re-gained a seat in the parliament at the November by-election for Cumberland South Riding,[8] Only John Hay (Murrumbidgee) was re-elected unopposed.[9]

This ministry covers the period from 3 October 1856 until on 7 September 1857, when Parker resigned his commission, having lost an electoral bill.[1] During this period, there was a slight re-arrangement to the ministry, following the resignation of William Manning on account of ill-health, with John Darvall promoted to Attorney-General and Edward Wise being appointed to the junior role of Solicitor-General.[2]

Composition of ministry
Portfolio Minister Term start Term end Term length
Premier
Colonial Secretary
 Henry Parker MLA 3 October 1856 7 September 1857 339 days
Colonial Treasurer Stuart Donaldson MLA
Secretary for Lands and Works John Hay MLA
Attorney-General William Manning MLA 3 October 1856 25 May 1857 234 days
John Darvall MLA 26 May 1857 7 September 1857 339 days
Solicitor-General 3 October 1856 23 May 1857
Edward Wise MLA 23 May 1857 7 September 1857 107 days
Vice-President of the Executive Council
Representative of the Government in the Legislative Council		 Edward Deas Thomson MLC [lower-alpha 1] 3 October 1856 339 days

See also

Notes
  1. The NSW Parliamentary Record lists Edward Deas Thomson as having been appointed on 26 May 1857, however the New South Wales Government Gazette notified his appointment at on 3 October with the rest of the ministers.[10]

References
  1. Serle, Percival (1949). "Parker, Sir Henry Watson (1808–1881)". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Sydney: Angus and Robertson. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  2. "Part 6 Ministries since 1856" (PDF). NSW Parliamentary Record. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  3. Twomey, Anne (2004). The Constitution of New South Wales. Federation Press. pp. 442. ISBN 9781862875166. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  4. Green, Antony. "1856 Parramatta by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  5. Green, Antony. "October 1856 Cumberland (North Riding) by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  6. Green, Antony. "October 1856 Cumberland (South Riding) by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  7. Green, Antony. "October 1856 Sydney Hamlets by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  8. Green, Antony. "November 1856 Cumberland (South Riding) by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  9. Green, Antony. "1856 Murrumbidgee by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  10. "Executive Council". New South Wales Government Gazette (151). 3 October 1856. p. 2617. Retrieved 23 November 2020 – via Trove.
Preceded by
First Cowper ministry		 Parker ministry
1856–1857		 Succeeded by
Second Cowper ministry
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