Cowper ministry (1865–66)

The fourth Cowper ministry was the ninth ministry of the Colony of New South Wales, and fourth occasion of being led by the Honourable Charles Cowper.

Fourth Cowper ministry
9th Cabinet of the Colony of New South Wales
Premier Charles Cowper and the Colony of New South Wales (1863–1900)
Date formed	3 February 1865 (1865-02-03)
Date dissolved	21 January 1866 (1866-01-21)
People and organisations
Head of state	Queen Victoria (represented by Sir John Young)
Head of government	Charles Cowper
No. of ministers	7
Member party	unaligned
Status in legislature	Minority government
Opposition party	unaligned
Opposition leader	James Martin
History
Election(s)	1864–65
Predecessor	First Martin ministry
Successor	Second Martin ministry

Cowper was elected in the first free elections for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly held in March 1856, and fought unsuccessfully with Stuart Donaldson to form Government. When Donaldson's Government faltered a little over two months after it was formed, Cowper formed Government on the first occasion, but he also lost the confidence of the Assembly a few months later. Cowper formed Government on the second occasion between 1857 and 1859; but it also lost the confidence of the Assembly. On the third occasion, Cowper formed Government following the decision by Premier John Robertson to step aside and focus on land reform,[1] however Cowper then lost the confidence to James Martin.[2] Cowper retained government by defeating Martin at the 1864–65 general election.[3]

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. These by-elections are only noted when the minister was defeated; in general, he was elected unopposed.

This ministry covers the period from 3 February 1865 until 21 January 1866, when Martin was asked to form government after Cowper again lost the confidence of the Assembly in December 1865.[4]

Composition of ministry

Portfolio	Minister	Term start	Term end	Term length
Premier Colonial Secretary	Hon. Charles Cowper MLA	3 February 1865	21 January 1866	352 days
Colonial Treasurer	Hon. Thomas Smart MLA		19 October 1865	258 days
	Hon. Saul Samuel MLA	20 October 1865	3 January 1866	75 days
	Hon. Marshall Burdekin MLA	4 January 1866	21 January 1866	17 days
Attorney-General	Hon. John Darvall MLA	3 February 1865	20 June 1865	137 days
	Hon. John Plunkett MLA	25 August 1865	21 January 1866	149 days
Solicitor-General Representative of the Government in Legislative Council	Hon. John Hargrave MLA	3 February 1865		352 days
Secretary for Lands	Hon. John Robertson MLA		19 October 1865	258 days
	Hon. William Arnold MLA	20 October 1865	30 October 1865	10 days
	Hon. John Robertson, MLA	1 January 1866	21 January 1866	20 days
Secretary for Public Works	Hon. William Arnold, MLA	3 February 1865	19 October 1865	258 days
	Hon. Thomas Smart MLA	20 October 1865	21 January 1866	93 days
Postmaster-General^a	James Cunneen	1 October 1865		112 days

:^a A Member of the Government without a Seat in the Cabinet.

See also

• Charles Cowper – second Premier of New South Wales
• Self-government in New South Wales
• Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 1864–1869
• First Cowper ministry (1856)
• Second Cowper ministry (1857–1859)
• Third Cowper ministry (1861–1863)
• Fifth Cowper ministry (1870)

References

1. Nairn, Bede. "Robertson, Sir John (1816–1891)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Australian National University. Retrieved 22 February 2007.
2. Serle, Percival. "Martin, James (1820–1886)". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Project Gutenberg Australia. Retrieved 18 February 2007.
3. Ward, John M. "Cowper, Sir Charles (1807–1875)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Australian National University. Retrieved 20 February 2007.
4. "Former Members – Chronological List of Ministries 1856 to 2009 (requires download)". Project for the Sesquicentenary of Responsible Government in NSW. Parliament of New South Wales. Archived from the original (Excel spreadsheet) on 15 March 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2010.

Preceded by First Martin ministry	Fourth Cowper ministry 1865–1866	Succeeded by Second Martin ministry