John Curtin
|
The Right Honourable John Curtin |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
|
14th Prime Minister of Australia Elections: 1937, 1940, 1943 |
|
|
In office 7 October 1941 – 5 July 1945 |
|
| Monarch | George VI |
| Governor-General |
Lord Gowrie The Duke of Gloucester |
| Deputy | Frank Forde |
| Preceded by | Arthur Fadden |
| Succeeded by | Frank Forde |
| Leader of the Labor Party | |
|
In office 23 September 1935 – 5 July 1945 |
|
| Deputy | Frank Forde |
| Preceded by | James Scullin |
| Succeeded by | Ben Chifley |
| Leader of the Opposition | |
|
In office 23 September 1935 – 7 October 1941 |
|
| Prime Minister |
Joseph Lyons Earle Page Robert Menzies Arthur Fadden |
| Deputy | Frank Forde |
| Preceded by | James Scullin |
| Succeeded by | Arthur Fadden |
| Member of the Australian Parliament for Fremantle |
|
|
In office 15 September 1934 – 5 July 1945 |
|
| Preceded by | William Watson |
| Succeeded by | Kim Beazley |
|
In office 17 November 1928 – 19 December 1931 |
|
| Preceded by | William Watson |
| Succeeded by | William Watson |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
John Joseph Curtin 8 January 1885 Creswick, Colony of Victoria, British Empire |
| Died | 5 July 1945 (aged 60) Canberra, Australia |
| Nationality | British subject |
| Political party | Labor |
| Spouse(s) | Elsie Curtin |
| Children | 2 |
| Signature |  |
John Joseph Ambrose Curtin (8 January 1885 – 5 July 1945) was the 14th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1941 to 1945, and the Leader of the Labor Party from 1935 to 1945. Having first formed a minority government in 1941, Curtin led Labor to victory (and majority government) at the 1943 election, which remains Labor's greatest victory in a federal election (both in the House of Representatives and the Senate). As the Member for Fremantle, Curtin was the first and to date only prime minister to represent an electorate outside the Eastern states.
Curtin successfully led Australia through the period when the nation was directly threatened by the Japanese advance in World War II, and is today widely regarded as one of the country's greatest prime ministers. With the end of the war in sight, Curtin died in office on 5 July 1945 and was succeeded briefly by Frank Forde and then by Ben Chifley.
Curtin was born in Creswick, Victoria in 1885. His father was a police officer of Irish descent, and Curtin was initially raised a Roman Catholic. Curtin attended school until the age of 13, when he left to start working for a newspaper in Creswick. He soon became active in both the Australian Labor Party and the Victorian Socialist Party, which was a Marxist organisation. He wrote for radical and socialist newspapers. It is believed that Curtin's first bid for elected office came at this time, when he stood for the position of secretary of the Brunswick Football Club and was defeated. He had earlier played for Brunswick between 1903 and 1907.
...
Wikipedia