Robert Mackenzie (Queensland politician)
Encyclopedia
Sir Robert Ramsay Mackenzie, 10th Baronet (21 July 1811 - 19 September 1873) was premier of Queensland
, Australia
from August 1867 to November 1868.
, Scotland
, fourth son of Sir George Steuart Mackenzie FRS, (7th baronet), and wife Mary, fifth daughter of Donald Macleod of Geanies, Ross-shire.
, New South Wales
, with £750 joining his brother James. He purchased sheep for £500 and grazed them at Riddlesdale (near Dungog, New South Wales
). After land speculation with his brother James, Robert Mackenzie bought a station, got into debt and borrowed money from his Scottish relatives. His financial situation worsened and he was declared bankrupt in 1844. In 1846 he was discharged from bankruptcy
and was appointed a magistrate in 1847, living in Clifton, New England
.
.
Mackenzie represented Burnett
in the Queensland Legislative Assembly
1860–1869. Mackenzie formed a government on the resignation of Arthur Macalister
, taking on the roles of premier and colonial treasurer. He resigned on 25 November 1868.
in 1871.
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, 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...
from August 1867 to November 1868.
Early life
Mackenzie was born in Coul, Ross-shireRoss-shire
Ross-shire is an area in the Highland Council Area in Scotland. The name is now used as a geographic or cultural term, equivalent to Ross. Until 1889 the term denoted a county of Scotland, also known as the County of Ross...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, fourth son of Sir George Steuart Mackenzie FRS, (7th baronet), and wife Mary, fifth daughter of Donald Macleod of Geanies, Ross-shire.
New South Wales
In April 1832 Mackenzie arrived on the Wave in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, with £750 joining his brother James. He purchased sheep for £500 and grazed them at Riddlesdale (near Dungog, New South Wales
Dungog, New South Wales
Dungog is a country town on the Williams River in the upper Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia. Located in the middle of dairy and timber country, it is the centre of the Dungog Shire Local Government Area and at the 2006 census it had a population of 2,102 people. The area includes the...
). After land speculation with his brother James, Robert Mackenzie bought a station, got into debt and borrowed money from his Scottish relatives. His financial situation worsened and he was declared bankrupt in 1844. In 1846 he was discharged from bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
and was appointed a magistrate in 1847, living in Clifton, New England
New England (Australia)
New England or New England North West is the name given to a generally undefined region about 60 kilometres inland, that includes the Northern Tablelands and the North West Slopes regions in the north of the state of New South Wales, Australia.-History:The region has been occupied by Indigenous...
.
Political career
Queensland was declared a separate colony in 1859, Mackenzie entered politics and became colonial treasurer on 18 December 1859 in the ministry of Robert HerbertRobert Herbert
Sir Robert George Wyndham Herbert, GCB , was the first Premier of Queensland, Australia.-Early years:Born in Brighton, England, Herbert was the only son of the Hon. Algernon Herbert, a younger son of the first Earl of Carnarvon. He was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford...
.
Mackenzie represented Burnett
Electoral district of Burnett
The district of Burnett is an electoral division of the Queensland Legislative Assembly in central Queensland, Australia.It covers most of the coastal region south of Gladstone, as well as coastal and inland regions around Bundaberg. Towns within its boundaries include Miriam Vale, Agnes Water,...
in the Queensland Legislative Assembly
Queensland Legislative Assembly
The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. Elections are held approximately once every three years. Voting is by the Optional Preferential Voting form of the Alternative Vote system...
1860–1869. Mackenzie formed a government on the resignation of Arthur Macalister
Arthur Macalister
Arthur Macalister, CMG was three times Premier of Queensland, Australia.-Early life:Macalister was born in Glasgow, Scotland, son of John Macalister, a cabinet maker, and his wife Mary, née Scoullar. Macalister was educated in Glasgow and emigrated to Australia with his wife Elizabeth Wallace née...
, taking on the roles of premier and colonial treasurer. He resigned on 25 November 1868.
Late life
Robert Mackenzie succeeded his brother William on his death on 21 December 1868 to the baronetcy and Robert returned to live on the family estate in ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1871.
Additional resources listed by the Australian Dictionary of Biography
- C. A. Bernays, Queensland Politics During Sixty Years (Brisb, 1919)
- J. F. Campbell, ‘Discovery and early pastoral settlement of New England’, JRAHS, 8 (1922)
- Brisbane CourierThe Courier-MailThe Courier-Mail is a daily newspaper published in Brisbane, Australia. Owned by News Limited, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner northern suburbs, and it is printed at Murarrie, in Brisbane's...
, 28 July 1862 - The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
(London), 24 September 1873, p 5 - P. D. Wilson, The Political Career of Hon. A. Macalister (B.A. Hons thesis, University of Queensland, 1969)
- Bankruptcy papers, 1250 (State Records New South Wales)
- Land and Colonial Secretary's files (Queensland State Archives).