Condor Laucke
Encyclopedia
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(9 November 1914 – 30 July 1993) was an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Liberal Party
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
who served in both the South Australian House of Assembly
South Australian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.- Overview :...
and the Federal Senate
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
, before becoming Lieutenant Governor of South Australia.
Biography
Condor Laucke was the eldest son of a GermanGermans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
immigrant, Friedrich Laucke, who had migrated to South Australia from Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
in 1895. In 1899 he established Laucke Mills at Greenock
Greenock, South Australia
Greenock is a small town on the north-west edge of the Barossa Valley. Located 66 km from Adelaide on the Sturt Highway , Greenock is characterised by tree-lined streets with shady peppercorn trees which offer welcome relief from the blistering summers which are characteristic of the area.The...
in South Australia's Barossa Valley
Barossa Valley
The Barossa Valley is a major wine-producing region and tourist destination of South Australia, located 60 km northeast of Adelaide. It is the valley formed by the North Para River, and the Barossa Valley Way is the main road through the valley, connecting the main towns on the valley floor of...
. He was educated at Immanuel College
Immanuel College, Adelaide
Immanuel College, is a Lutheran school in Adelaide, South Australia. It is the only Lutheran college in Adelaide that has boarders. Its sister schools include Concordia College in Adelaide and Kyushu Lutheran College in Kumamoto, Japan.- History :...
and the School of Mines in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, and after graduating, joined the family business, becoming Director and General Manager of what was now a large milling and stock feed enterprise in 1947.
Laucke was elected to the South Australian House of Assembly
South Australian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.- Overview :...
in the 1956 election
South Australian state election, 1956
State elections were held in Australia on 3 March 1956. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV defeated the Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition Mick...
, representing the Electoral District of Barossa as part of Sir Thomas Playford
Thomas Playford IV
Sir Thomas Playford, GCMG was a South Australian politician. He served continuously as Premier of South Australia from 5 November 1938 to 10 March 1965, the longest term of any elected government leader in the history of Australia. His tenure as premier was marked by a period of population and...
's Liberal and Country League
Liberal and Country League
The Liberal and Country League was a major political party in South Australia throughout its forty year existence. Thirty-four years were spent in government, in part due to the electoral malapportionment known as the Playmander, introduced after coming to power.Created on 9 June 1932 as the...
government. He was re-elected in 1959
South Australian state election, 1959
State elections were held in Australia on 7 March 1959. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV defeated the Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition Mick...
and 1962
South Australian state election, 1962
State elections were held in Australia on 3 March 1962. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV defeated the Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition...
, and from 1962 to 1965 served as Government Whip and was regarded by colleagues as a potential future leader of the Liberal and Country League. However Laucke lost his seat to Labor candidate Molly Byrne in the 1965 election
South Australian state election, 1965
State elections were held in Australia on 6 March 1965. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV, in power since 1938, was defeated by the Australian Labor Party led by...
which swept the Liberal and Country League from office after 32 years in government—an election campaign in which Barossa, where northern Adelaide urban sprawl was overflowing into an otherwise rural and conservative electorate, was particularly targeted by Labor.
Laucke then moved into Federal politics, being appointed as a Senator
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
for South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
to fill the vacancy left by the death of Senator Clive Hannaford, his term beginning on 2 November 1967. He represented South Australia until 1981, being re-elected in 1967
Australian Senate election, 1967
Half-senate elections were held in Australia on 25 November 1967.Independent: Reg Turnbull -See also:*Candidates of the Australian Senate election, 1967*Members of the Australian Senate, 1968–1971-References:...
, 1974
Australian federal election, 1974
Federal elections were held in Australia on 18 May 1974. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 60 seats in the Senate were up for election, due to a double dissolution...
and 1975
Australian federal election, 1975
Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 December 1975. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate were up for election following a double dissolution of both Houses....
, and was President of the Australian Senate
President of the Australian Senate
The President of the Australian Senate is the presiding officer of the Australian Senate, the upper house of the Parliament of Australia. The presiding officer of the lower house is the Speaker of the House of Representatives....
from 17 February 1976 until 30 June 1981.
In 1974, Laucke was one of the founding members of the Barons of Barossa, an organisation formed to promote the Barossa Valley and its winemaking and grape growing industries, to preserve its heritage, traditions and standards, and to carry out philanthropic works.
On 30 December 1978, Laucke was made a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
"for Services to the Parliament of Australia."
After retiring from the Federal Parliament, Laucke acted as Lieutenant Governor of South Australia from July 1982 to April 1992, during which time he performed the role of Governor for more than 300 days, while Governor Sir Donald Dunstan
Donald Dunstan (Australian Governor)
Lieutenant General Sir Donald Beaumont Dunstan, AC, KBE, CB was an Australian Army officer who was Governor of South Australia from 23 April 1982 until 5 February 1991.-Military career:...
was either ill, out of the state or visiting remote areas.