Robertson ministry (1868–70)

The second Robertson ministry was the eleventh ministry of the Colony of New South Wales, and was led by the Honourable John Robertson. It was the second of five occasions that Robertson was Leader of the Government. Robertson was elected in the first free elections for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly held in March 1856.

Second Robertson ministry
11th Cabinet of the Colony of New South Wales
Premier John Robertson and the Colony of New South Wales (1863–1900)
Date formed	27 October 1868 (1868-10-27)
Date dissolved	20 January 1870 (1870-01-20)
People and organisations
Head of state	Queen Victoria (represented by The Earl Belmore)
Head of government	John Robertson
No. of ministers	8
Member party	unaligned
Status in legislature	Minority government
Opposition party	unaligned
Opposition leader	James Martin Charles Cowper
History
Predecessor	Second Martin ministry
Successor	Fifth Cowper ministry

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 27 October 1868 until 12 January 1870, when Robertson resigned his commission after he failed to gain support of the Assembly.[1][2] Robertson stood aside for his colleague, Charles Cowper.

Composition of ministry

Portfolio	Minister	Term start	Term end	Term length
Premier Colonial Secretary	Hon. John Robertson MLA	27 October 1868	12 January 1870	1 year, 77 days
Colonial Treasurer	Hon. Saul Samuel MLA
Secretary for Lands	Hon. William Forster MLA
Secretary for Public Works	Hon. John Sutherland MLA
Attorney-General	Hon. Sir William Manning MLC
Solicitor General	Hon. Joshua Josephson MLA		9 September 1869	317 days
	Hon. Julian Salomons MLA	18 December 1869	12 January 1870	25 days
Postmaster-General	Hon. Daniel Egan MLA	27 October 1868		1 year, 77 days
Representative of the Government in Legislative Council	Hon. Robert Owen MLC^a

:^a A Member of the Government with a Seat in the Cabinet.

See also

• John Robertson - fifth Premier of New South Wales
• Self-government in New South Wales
• Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 1864–1869
• First Robertson ministry (1860–1861)
• Third Robertson ministry (1875–1877)
• Fourth Robertson ministry (1877)
• Fifth Robertson ministry (1885–1886)

References

1. Serle, Percival. "Robertson, Sir John (1816-1891)". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Project Gutenberg Australia. Retrieved 13 March 2007.
2. "Former Members - Chronological List of Ministries 1856 to 2009 (requires download)" (Excel spreadsheet). Project for the Sesquicentenary of Responsible Government in NSW. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 2 January 2010.

Preceded by Second Martin ministry	Second Robertson ministry 1868–1870	Succeeded by Fifth Cowper ministry