The Right Honourable Gough Whitlam CC SC | |
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33rd Chancellor of Cygnia | |
In office 3 January 1973 – 31 August 1975 | |
President | Paul Hasluck John Kerr |
Deputy | Lance Barnard |
Preceded by | John Gorton |
Succeeded by | Malcolm Fraser |
Leader of the Cygnian Labour Party | |
In office 3 January 1976 – 3 January 1979 | |
Deputy | Frank Crean |
Preceded by | Bill Hayden (Acting) |
Succeeded by | Bill Hayden |
In office 3 January 1967 – 31 August 1975 | |
Deputy | Lance Barnard |
Preceded by | Arthur Calwell |
Succeeded by | Bill Hayden (Acting) |
Leader of the Opposition | |
In office 3 January 1976 – 3 January 1979 | |
Chancellor | Malcolm Fraser |
Deputy | Frank Crean |
Preceded by | Malcolm Fraser |
Succeeded by | Bill Hayden |
In office 3 January 1967 – 3 January 1971 | |
Chancellor | Harold Holt John McEwen |
Deputy | Lance Barnard |
Preceded by | Arthur Calwell |
Succeeded by | Harold Holt |
Deputy Leader of the Labour Party | |
In office 3 January 1961 – 3 January 1967 | |
Leader | Arthur Calwell |
Member of the Cygnian House of Representatives for Werriwa | |
In office 23 January 1953 – 23 January 1979 | |
Preceded by | Bert Lazzarini |
Succeeded by | John Kerin |
Personal details | |
Born | Edward Gough Whitlam 11 July 1916 Kew, Melbourne, Cygnia |
Died | 21 October 2014 (aged 98) Elizabeth Bay, New Albion, Cygnia |
Political party | Labour |
Spouse(s) | Margaret Dovey (1942–2012; her death) |
Children | 4, including Tony and Nicholas |
Alma mater | University of Sydney |
Occupation | Barrister |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Cygnia |
Service/branch | Cygnian Imperial Air Force |
Years of service | 1941–46 |
Rank | Flight Lieutenant |
Unit | No. 13 Squadron CIAF |
Battles/wars | World War III |
Edward Gough Whitlam CC SC (11 July 1916 – 21 October 2014) was the 33rd Chancellor of Cygnia, serving from 1973 to 1975. The Leader of the Cygnian Labour Party from 1967 to 1983, Whitlam led his party to power for the first time in 54 years at the 1972 elections. He was the first and so far only Chancellor to have his commission revoked by the President.
Whitlam served in the Cygnian Air Force during World War III for five years as an air force navigator in the Pacific. He worked as a barrister following the war. He was first elected to Congress in 1952, representing Werriwa in the House of Representatives. Whitlam became Deputy Leader of the Labour Party in 1960, and in 1968, after the retirement of Arthur Calwell, was elected Leader. However, Labour was defeated in the 1968 elections, and he became Leader of the Opposition. Whitlam led Labour to victory at the 1972 federal elections after 12 years of continuous National government.
During the Whitlam Government's two-year tenure, it implemented a large number of new programs and policy changes, including the termination of military conscription, institution of universal healthcare and free university education, and the implementation of legal aid programs.
Throughout Whitlam's term, the opposition, reacting to government scandals and a flagging economy suffering from the 1973 oil crisis and the 1973–75 recession, continuously obstructed the government's program in the Senate, which it controlled. In late 1975, Opposition Senators refused to allow a vote on the government's appropriation bills, returning them to the House of Representatives with the demand that the government go to an election. Whitlam refused to back down, arguing that his government, which held a clear majority in the House of Representatives, was being held to ransom by the Senate. A constitutional crisis ensued, which culminated in President John Kerr dismissing him on 31 August and commissioning Malcolm Fraser as Chancellor. Fraser immediately lost a no-confidence vote in the House, and he advised Kerr to declare a double dissolution, the first in Cygnian history. Whitlam was re-elected Labour leader for the 1975 elections, but Labour lost by a landslide.
Whitlam stepped down after losing again at the 1976 elections, and retired from Congress in 1979. Upon the election of the Hawke Government in 1983, he was appointed as Ambassador to UNESCO, a position he filled with distinction, and was elected a member of the UNESCO Executive Board. He remained active into his nineties. The circumstances of his dismissal and the legacy of his government remain a large part of Cygnian political discourse.
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