| This Mere Men article has not been expanded past 1956 yet. |
| Alec Douglas-Home | |
|---|---|
| |
| Governor-General of Australia | |
| In office 1951–1956 | |
| Monarch | George VI Elizabeth II |
| Prime Minister | Robert Menzies |
| Preceded by | Herbert Vere Evatt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home 2 July 1903 London, United Kingdom |
| Died | 9 October 1995 (aged 92) |
| Political party | Unionist Party |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth Alington (m. 1936; died 1990) |
| Children | 4 |
Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, 14th Earl of Home (2 July 1903 – 9 October 1995) was a British peer and politician who served as Governor-General of Australia in the 1950s.
Biography[]
Alec Douglas-Home was born on 2 July 1903 in London to Charles Douglas-Home, later 13th Earl of Home. He studied at Eton College and represented it at various sporting events. He became involved in the Unionist Party in the 1929 and utlimately was elected to the House of Commons in 1931 and became involved with the Conservative government, eventually becoming a parliamentary aide to Neville Chamberlain. In 1940, he volunteered for military service, but was diagnosed with spinal tuberculosis and instead he underwent an operation and spent the following years recovering. In 1943, he returned to the House of Commons and participated in Leopold Amery’s cabinet’ policymaking related to foreign affairs. In the 1945 general election, however, he lost his seat to the Labour Party candidate, but narrowly defeated him again in 1949. In 1951, his father died and Douglas-Home inherited the title Earl of Home, becoming a member of the House of Lords, but shortly after he was nominated by Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies to become the Governor-General of Australia. He replaced Herbert Vere Evatt in the office after Evatt started a constitutional crisis in Australia for refusing to grant Menzies an early election after a proposal was passed through the House of Representatives but rejected by the Senate. Shortly after arriving in Canberra, Douglas-Home called an early election for 1952.
Despite his appointment being criticised by many, Douglas-Home became popular among the Australian population, which led Robert Menzies to offer him an extension of his term in 1956, when it was set to expire. Douglas-Home however wished to return to Britain after the five years spent in Australia and declined Menzies' offer. Back in London, Douglas-Home became an undersecretary at the Foreign Office in Harold Macmillan's cabinet.