Henry Northcote, 1st Baron Northcote - Governor-General of Australia

Governor-General of Australia

Northcote was still Governor of Bombay when the Colonial Secretary, Joseph Chamberlain, offered him the post of Governor-General of Australia in 1903. The first two Governors-General, Lord Hopetoun and Lord Tennyson, had served shortened terms and had had difficult relations with Australian ministers. Both the British and Australian governments wanted stability and continuity, and Northcote was appointed for a five-year term. His lifelong experience in politics and his time in Bombay made him a suitable appointment. He was neither as imperious as Hopetoun nor as stuffy as Tennyson, and he made a good impression with both politicians and the public.

This was just as well, because Northcote was the first Australian Governor-General to have to deal with political instability. In doing this, he sought the advice of the Chief Justice of the newly created High Court of Australia, Sir Samuel Griffith. In April 1904 the Prime Minister, Alfred Deakin, resigned, and was succeeded in quick succession by the Labor leader Chris Watson, the Free Trade leader George Reid and then Deakin again. Both Watson and Reid asked Northcote to dissolve Parliament before their resignations, and in both cases he refused. At this time no-one doubted that the Governor-General had a discretion in these cases. It is a measure of Northcote's standing that all these leaders respected his decisions.

Like his predecessors, Northcote saw himself as a diplomatic representative of the British government as well a vice-regal representative. He was actively involved in negotiations between the British and Australian governments over contentious trade and shipping issues, although his role diminished after 1906 when the Liberal Party came to power in Britain, cutting off much of his influence in London.

In 1907 Northcote and Deakin had a falling out when the Governor-General, on instructions from London, declined to give his assent to a bill restricting appeals from the Australian courts to the Privy Council in London. Deakin, although a loyal Imperialist, believed that Australian parliaments should be sovereign in Australia, and bluntly told Northcote so. This prompted Northcote to announce in February 1908 that he wished to resign, a year early. He left Australia in September. He had been made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1904 and in 1909 he was sworn of the Privy Council.