Difference between revisions of "John Curtin"
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'''John Curtin''' was the Prime Minister of [[Australia]] during the [[World War II|second World War]]. | '''John Curtin''' was the Prime Minister of [[Australia]] during the [[World War II|second World War]]. | ||
| − | He became Prime Minister just before the war started, and died in office a month before the war ended. He is often regarded as the Greatest Australian Prime Minister by numerous polls | + | He became Prime Minister just before the war started, and died in office a month before the war ended. He is often regarded as the Greatest Australian Prime Minister by numerous polls.<ref>Such as the one conducted by The Age in 2004. Other polls include Newspoll and reputable news program Today Tonight.</ref> |
| − | == | + | Curtin led the transition from Australia as part of the British Empire to an independent nation more dependent upon the United States for its security and economy. Even before Singapore fell to the Japanese in 1942, Curtin declared that Australia "looks to America free of any pangs as to our traditional links or kinship with the United Kingdom." The threat of a Japanese invasion in 1942 convinced Australia to link up with the U.S. |
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| + | Curtin appealed to the Australian Labor Party to allow the use of the Citizen Military Forces outside Australia, a dramatic reversal of historic labor policy. Hasluck (1970) argues Curtin was motivated by electoral calculations and a shrewd response to | ||
| + | the campaign of the opposition. In addition American General [[Douglas MacArthur]] influenced Curtin, and the move should be seen in the light of Curtin's appeal for greater assistance from the United States at a time when the Southwest Pacific was low on the list of global priorities. That is, the Americans insisted that Australian soldiers fight as hard for Australia as American soldiers were doing. | ||
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| + | The Curtin and subsequent [[Ben Chifley]] Labor governments sought to manage the economy and encourage industry and full employment without resorting to nationalization, socialism or the welfare state. | ||
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| + | ==Further reading== | ||
| + | * Edwards, John. ''Curtin's Gift: Reinterpreting Australia's Greatest Prime Minister'' (2005) [http://www.questia.com/read/108661368?title=Curtin's%20Gift%3a%20%20Reinterpreting%20Australia's%20Greatest%20Prime%20Minister online edition] | ||
| + | * Hasluck, Paul. ''The Government and the People 1942-43'' (1970) | ||
| + | * Johnson, Carol. ''The Labor Legacy: Curtin, Chifley, Whitlam, Hawke, Sydney'' (1989) | ||
| + | * McKernan, Michael. ''The Strength of a Nation: Six Years of Australians Fighting for the Nation and Defending the Homefront in WWII''(2006) [http://www.questia.com/read/113738054?title=The%20Strength%20of%20a%20Nation%3a%20%20Six%20Years%20of%20Australians%20Fighting%20for%20the%20Nation%20and%20Defending%20the%20Homefront%20in%20WWII onine edition] | ||
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| + | == External links== | ||
* National Museum of Australia, [http://www.nma.gov.au/education/school_resources/websites_and_interactives/primeministers/john_curtin/ John Curtin] | * National Museum of Australia, [http://www.nma.gov.au/education/school_resources/websites_and_interactives/primeministers/john_curtin/ John Curtin] | ||
{{Australian Prime Ministers}} | {{Australian Prime Ministers}} | ||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtin, John}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Curtin, John}} | ||
Revision as of 16:54, June 4, 2009
| John Curtin | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | 8 July 1885 |
| Date of death | 5 July 1945 |
| Wife | Elsie Curtin |
| Party | Australian Labor Party |
| As Prime Minister | |
| From | 7 October 1941 |
| To | 5 July 1945 |
| Succeeded | Arthur Fadden |
| Preceded | Francis Forde |
John Curtin was the Prime Minister of Australia during the second World War. He became Prime Minister just before the war started, and died in office a month before the war ended. He is often regarded as the Greatest Australian Prime Minister by numerous polls.[1]
Curtin led the transition from Australia as part of the British Empire to an independent nation more dependent upon the United States for its security and economy. Even before Singapore fell to the Japanese in 1942, Curtin declared that Australia "looks to America free of any pangs as to our traditional links or kinship with the United Kingdom." The threat of a Japanese invasion in 1942 convinced Australia to link up with the U.S.
Curtin appealed to the Australian Labor Party to allow the use of the Citizen Military Forces outside Australia, a dramatic reversal of historic labor policy. Hasluck (1970) argues Curtin was motivated by electoral calculations and a shrewd response to the campaign of the opposition. In addition American General Douglas MacArthur influenced Curtin, and the move should be seen in the light of Curtin's appeal for greater assistance from the United States at a time when the Southwest Pacific was low on the list of global priorities. That is, the Americans insisted that Australian soldiers fight as hard for Australia as American soldiers were doing.
The Curtin and subsequent Ben Chifley Labor governments sought to manage the economy and encourage industry and full employment without resorting to nationalization, socialism or the welfare state.
Further reading
- Edwards, John. Curtin's Gift: Reinterpreting Australia's Greatest Prime Minister (2005) online edition
- Hasluck, Paul. The Government and the People 1942-43 (1970)
- Johnson, Carol. The Labor Legacy: Curtin, Chifley, Whitlam, Hawke, Sydney (1989)
- McKernan, Michael. The Strength of a Nation: Six Years of Australians Fighting for the Nation and Defending the Homefront in WWII(2006) onine edition
External links
- National Museum of Australia, John Curtin
| Australian Prime Ministers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Edmund Barton (1901) Alfred Deakin (1903, 1905, and 1909) |
Stanley Bruce (1923) James Scullin (1929) |
Francis Forde (1945) Joseph Chifley (1945) |
Malcolm Fraser (1975) Robert Hawke (1983) |
- ↑ Such as the one conducted by The Age in 2004. Other polls include Newspoll and reputable news program Today Tonight.
