Tenterfield Oration
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The Tenterfield Oration was a speech delivered by Sir Henry Parkes, Premier of the Colony of New South Wales, at the Tenterfield School of Arts in Tenterfield, New South Wales, Australia, on 24 October 1889.<ref name="speech">Template:Cite web</ref>
In the oration, Parkes called for the Federation of the six Australian colonies, which were then self-governing but remained under the authority of the British Colonial Secretary. The speech is regarded as the catalyst for the federation process in Australia, ultimately leading to the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia 12 years later, in 1901.<ref name="Federation story">Template:Cite web</ref>
Background
The northern region of the New South Wales suffered from administrative disunity, as it was geographically distant from the colony's capital, Sydney, yet closer to commercial hubs across the border in Queensland. The imposition of border import tariffs by Queensland further complicated trade, frustrating many in neighboring districts who strongly supported free trade.
The primary reason given by Premier Parkes<ref name="NAA">Template:Cite web</ref> for federation in the Tenterfield Oration was the necessity of a united defence of the Australian continent. In a 1999 address, Bob Carr, Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, compared the significance of the Tenterfield Oration for Australia to that of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address in the United States.<ref name="Carr">Template:Cite web</ref>
At Tenterfield, Parkes urged the seven colonies (including the Colony of New Zealand) to "unite and create a great national government for all Australia." He explicitly cited the United States as an inspiration, emphasizing its achievement of independence from British rule.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="speech"/> This call for unity resonated deeply with the colonists. The speech was widely published in Australian newspapers,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Parkes' subsequent efforts in petitioning the Queen and drafting the Constitution<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> earned him the title of "Father of Federation".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The site of the Tenterfield Oration was formally commemorated by the Commonwealth Governor-General in 1946.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Prompted by Parkes' Tenterfield Oration, the colonies agreed to send delegates to a Constitutional Conference in Melbourne in 1890. This initiated the process of drafting and adopting the Commonwealth Constitution over the course of the 1890s, ultimately leading to the unification of the colonies and the establishment of a system of federalism in Australia.<ref name="Carr" />
The Speech
The speech referred to the Parliament of New South Wales and the Parliament of Queensland, and quoted the poem The Dominion by James Brunton Stephens:
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See also
- Canadian Confederation
- Articles of Confederation (United States)
References
Further reading
- Bolton, Geoffrey. Edmund Barton: The one man for the job (Allen & Unwin, 2000).
- Dando-Collins, Stephen. Sir Henry Parkes, the Australian Colossus ((2013). The most up-to-date biography.
- Fredman, L. E. "The Tenterfield oration: legend and reality." Australian Quarterly 35.3 (1963): 59-65. online
- Martin, A.W. Henry Parkes: a Biography (Melbourne University Press, 1980).online edition at ACLS E-Books
- Shaw, A. G. L. "Centennial reflections on Sir Henry Parkes' Tenterfield oration.-1889. Nan Phillips Memorial Lecture (3rd: 1989: Canberra)-." Canberra Historical Journal ns 25 (1990): 2-10.
- Travers, Robert (1992). The Grand Old Man of Australian Politics: The Life and Times of Sir Henry Parkes (Kangaroo Press, 1992)
Primary sources
- Parkes, Henry. Fifty Years in the Making of Australian History (1892), memoir online
- Parkes, Henry. The Federal Government of Australasia: Speeches.... (1890) 189 pages; online edition