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Joseph Aloysius Lyons ( September 15, 1879 - April 7, 1939), Australian politician and tenth Prime Minister of Australia, was born in Stanley, Tasmania, the son of Irish immigrants. He left school at nine to work as a messenger and printer's devil. But with the assistance of two aunts, he was able to resume his education and become a teacher. He also became an active trade unionist and was an early member of the Labor Party in Tasmania.In 1909 Lyons was elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly. From 1914 to 1916 he was Treasurer (finance minister) and Minister for Education and Railways in John Earle's Labor government. In 1915 he married Enid Burnell, an 18-year old teacher. She was a strong-minded woman who exercised great influence over Lyons, while raising their eleven children. He succeeded Earle as Labor leader and in 1925 he was elected Premier, holding office until 1928Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 See also 1928 in aviation 1928 in film 1928 in literature 1928 in mu.
In 1929Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 See also 1929 in aviation 1929 in film 1929 in literature 1929 in mu Lyons entered Federal politics, winning the seat of Wilmot in Labor's landslide victory under James ScullinJames Henry Scullin ( September 18 1876 January 28 1953), Australian politician and ninth Prime Minister of Australia, was born in the small town of Trawalla, in western Victoria, the son of a railway worker of Irish descent. He was educated at state prim. He was appointed Postmaster-General and Minister for Works and Railways. When the DepressionThe Great Depression was a global economic slump that began in the United States following Black Thursday, the Wall Street panic of October 1929. On October 24, 1929, share prices on Wall Street collapsed catastrophically, setting off a chain of bankruptc struck in 19301930 is the common year starting on Wednesday. see link for calendar) Events January-February January 6 The first diesel-engine automobile trip is completed ( Indianapolis, Indiana, to New York City). January 27 Miguel Primo de Rivera resigns January 30 G, the Scullin government split over its response. Lyons became an advocate of orthodox finance and conservative policies and an opponent of Treasurer Ted TheodoreEdward Granville Theodore ( 29 December 1884 28 February 1950), Australian politician, was born in Adelaide, South Australia, the second son of a Romanian immigrant called Basil Teodorescu. He was educated at a state primary school in Adelaide, but left s.
When Scullin reappointed Theodore to the Cabinet in 19311931 is the common year starting on Thursday. see link for calendar) Events January January 4 Female aviator Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa January 6 Thomas Edison submits his last patent application. January 22 Sir Isaac Isaacs sworn in as the, Lyons resigned from the Cabinet and then the Labor Party. He formed a new party, the United Australia PartyUnited Australia Party or UAP was an Australian political party that was the political successor to the Nationalist Party of Australia. It was formed in 1932 when Joseph Lyons, a Labor MP, and his supporters crossed the floor to bring down the Scullin Lab (UAP), which absorbed the Nationalist Party. The Scullin government fell when the supporters of New South Wales Premier Jack Lang defeated it in the House of Representatives. At the subsequent election, Lyons won a huge victory. He was the third ex-Labor man to become a non-Labor Prime Minister.
The UAP ruled on its own for one term, but after the 1934 election it formed a coalition with the Country Party. In office, Lyons followed the same conservative financial policy he had advocated during the Scullin government. He benefited politically from the gradual world-wide recovery that took place after 1932. In foreign affairs he supported Britain with little criticism, and was a strong supporter of the League of Nations.
In 1934 the ambitious and talented Robert Menzies was elected to Parliament, and was immediately seen as Lyons's successor, although he denied that he was seeking to displace Lyons. The government won a third term in 1937, but as the international situation darkened in the late 1930s, Lyons, a lifelong pacifist, became increasingly depressed. Most politicians expected that he would soon be replaced by Menzies, who resigned from Cabinet in protest at the government's inaction. In April 1939 Lyons died suddenly of a heart attack - the first Australian Prime Minister to die in office.
Lyons was one of the most genuinely popular men to hold the office of Prime Minister, and his death caused widespread grief. It is likely, however, that he would have made a poor wartime leader. His widow, Dame Enid Lyons, later went into politics in her own right, in 1943 becoming the first woman to sit in the House of Representatives.
