24
(18 February 1918 – 16 September 1923)
David Clune
From birth to death, Walter Edward Davidson’s life was bound up with the British Empire. Of Ulster descent, he was born on 20 April 1859 in Valletta, Malta, a British possession since 1814 and an important link in Imperial defence and communications. His father was employed by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company whose luxurious steamers transported passengers and mail around the Empire. Educated at Magdalen School, Oxford, Davidson won a scholarship to Christ’s Col- lege, Cambridge. He left after three terms to take up a colonial posting in 1880. Davidson went on to serve the Empire in various capacities in Asia, Africa, North America and Australia until his death in office as Governor of New South Wales in 1923.
Early career
Davidson’s first appointment was to the Ceylon Civil Service where he remained for the next 21 years.1 Rising steadily in prominence, he served as police magistrate, acting judge and Assistant Government Agent. The larger cities in Ceylon had a limited form of local government and in 1898 Davidson became Mayor of Colombo. He left Ceylon in 1901 to become assistant to Lord Milner, administrator of the former Boer states of Trans- vaal and Orange River Colony after their annexation by Britain. The next year Davidson was appointed CMG and promoted to Colonial Secretary in Transvaal where he was involved in the process of reconstruction after the Boer War. In 1904 he was appointed Governor of the Seychelles Islands which had just become a separate Crown Colony, having previously been under the control of Mauritius. Davidson served there for eight years. He wrote two books about Ceylon and compiled a volume on the history of the Seychelles. In 1913 Davidson was given a more significant Governor-
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Notes
1 This account of Davidson’s early career is based on Cunneen, C, “Davidson, Sir Walter”, Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol 8, MUP, Melbourne, 1981, pp 229-30; The Times, 17.9.1936, p 23; Annual Register (London), 1928; Who’s Who (Australia), 1922. 2 Nicholson, GWL, The Fighting Newfoundlander, first published 1964, reprinted 2006, McGill-Queen’s University Press, Montreal, p 101. 3 Noel, SJR, Politics in Newfoundland, University of Toronto Press, 1971, pp 121- 2. 4 Nicholson, p 132. 5 Noel, p 122. 6 Sydney Morning Herald, 13.9.1917, p 6; 16.6.1918, p 13; 18.2.1918, p 7; The Times, 17.9.1936, p 23. 7 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 15.7.1918, State Records NSW: The Governor, NRS 4512, Despatches, Circulars and Cables from the Secretary of State, 1781-1971 [7/1575.1, September-October 1921] (SRNSW). 8 Daily Telegraph, 19.7.1918, p 4. 9 Daily Telegraph, 8.10.1919, p 10. 10 Sydney Morning Herald, 4.3.1918, p 8. 11 Sydney Morning Herald, 15.3.1918, p 6. 12 Sydney Morning Herald, 22.3.1918, p 6. 13 Sydney Morning Herald, 24.4.1920, p 13. 14 Sydney Morning Herald, 13.11.1918, p 10. 15 Sydney Morning Herald, 14.11.1918, p 7. 16 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 4.11.1918, SRNSW. 17 Daily Telegraph, 6.12.1918, p 3. 18 Sydney Morning Herald, 21.10.1918, p 7. 19 Sydney Morning Herald, 26.5.1921, p 9. 20 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 4.11.1918, 8.2.1921, 1.7.1921, SRNSW. 21 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 28.5.1923, SRNSW. 22 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 28.5.1923, SRNSW. For Davidson’s con- cerns about moral degeneration, see also Sydney Morning Herald, 12.5.1922, p 8. 23 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 25.1.1919, SRNSW. 24 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 28.9.1920, SRNSW. 25 Godfrey, R (ed), Letters from a Prince: Edward, Prince of Wales to Mrs Freda Dudley Ward, March 1918-January 1921, Little, Brown and Co, London, 1998, p 327. 26 Sydney Morning Herald, 31.7.1919, p 6. 27 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 28.5.1923, SRNSW. AC Willis was the Secretary of the Miners’ Federation and a leading militant. JM Baddeley had been President of the Miners’ Federation and was ALP MLA for Newcastle. 28 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 1.7.1921, SRNSW. 29 New South Wales Parliamentary Debates, 10.7.1918, p 640; Daily Telegraph, 11.7.1918, p 4; Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 15.7.1918, SRNSW. 30 Sydney Morning Herald, 18.9.1918, p 11; 28.4.1920, p 10; 30.4.1920, p 8. 31 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 25.1.1919, SRNSW. 32 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 6.7.1920, SRNSW. See also comments by JT Lang acknowledging the assistance Davidson gave to the Storey Government, Sydney Morning Herald, 26.11.1925, p 10.
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33 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 8.2.1921, SRNSW. 34 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 7.1.1922, SRNSW. 35 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 1.7.1921, SRNSW. 36 Hagan, J, “John Storey”, in Clune, D, and Turner, K (eds), The Premiers of NSW, 1901-2005, Federation Press, Sydney, 2006, pp 148-9. 37 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 1.7.1921, SRNSW. The Upper House was relatively benign in its treatment of the Storey/Dooley Government’s legislation as the Governor suggests. See Clune, D, and Griffith, G, Decision and Deliber- ation: The Parliament of New South Wales 1856-2003, Federation Press, Sydney, 2006, pp 272-3. 38 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 8.2.1921, SRNSW. 39 Bagnall’s action was a protest at the inclusion of the Progressives in the new Ministry. 40 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 7.1.1922, SRNSW. 41 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 25.1.1919, SRNSW. 42 Secret Despatch to Secretary of State, 28.5.1923, SRNSW. 43 Sydney Morning Herald, 19.9.1923. p 14. 44 The Bulletin, 20.9.1923, p 11.
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