William Forster (Australian politician)
| William Forster | |
|---|---|
 |
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| 4th Premier of New South Wales | |
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In office 27 October 1859 – 9 March 1860 |
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| Governor | Sir William Denison |
| Preceded by | Charles Cowper |
| Succeeded by | John Robertson |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
16 October 1818 Madras, India |
| Died | 30 October 1882 (aged 64) Edgecliff, Sydney, New South Wales |
| Spouse(s) | Eliza Jane Wall (m. 1846) |
William Forster (16 October 1818 – 30 October 1882) was an Australian politician, Premier of New South Wales from 27 October 1859 to 9 March 1860 and poet.
Forster was described in his youth as a "sallow, thin, saturnine young gentleman". He was not a great orator but was a debater of ability, though his habit of indulging in bitter personalities detracted from the effectiveness of his speeches. James Martin once described him as "disagreeable in opposition, insufferable as a supporter, and fatal as a colleague" but, however true that may have been, it was only one side of his character. A cultured and honest man, thoroughly aware and disdainful of the tricks and shifts of party government, he tried to hold an independent course and do what was best for his country. This was appreciated by the constituencies that elected him to all but one of the parliaments of his lifetime.
Forster was born in Madras, India, the son of Thomas Forster, army surgeon, and his wife Eliza Blaxland, daughter of Gregory Blaxland. His parents married in Sydney and travelled to India in 1817, Wales in 1822, Ireland in 1825 and settled down in 1829 in Brush Farm,Eastwood, built by Blaxland in about 1820, and the birthplace of the Australian wine industry. He continued his education in Australia at W. T. Cape's school and The King's School.
Forster became a squatter near Port Macquarie and the Clarence River, in New England, on Gin Gin on the Wide Bay and Burnett River (near Hervey Bay). In 1867 he still controlled over 30,000 hectares in Queensland. In 1846 he married Eliza Wall and he settled with her on Brush Farm in 1854. They had two sons and six daughters, including World War I surgeon Laura Forster, before Eliza died in 1862. He was appointed a magistrate in 1842, but was sacked in 1849, when an aboriginal was shot by one of his Blaxland relations.
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