1914 in Australia

1914 in Australia
Monarchy	George V
Governor-General	Thomas Denman, 3rd Baron Denman Ronald Munro Ferguson
Prime minister	Joseph Cook Andrew Fisher
Population	4,948,990
Elections	Federal, Victoria, Western Australia

1914 in Australia was dominated by the outbreak of World War I. Andrew Fisher, who became Prime Minister a month after Australia entered the war vowed that Australia would "stand beside our own to help and defend Britain to the last man and the last shilling." ^[1] In 1914, the Australian war effort was dominated by recruiting and equipping a force to fight overseas.

The southern winter rainfall zone of the continent suffered its worst rainfall failure until 1982. This led to record low wheat yields and exacerbated the problems caused by outbreak of World War I.

Incumbents

Monarch – George V
Governor-General – Thomas Denman, 3rd Baron Denman (until 18 May), then Ronald Munro Ferguson
Prime Minister – Joseph Cook (until 17 September), then Andrew Fisher

State premiers

Premier of New South Wales – William Holman
Premier of Victoria – William Alexander Watt (until 18 June), then Alexander Peacock
Premier of Queensland – Digby Denham
Premier of South Australia – Archibald Peake
Premier of Western Australia – John Scaddan
Premier of Tasmania – Albert Solomon (until 6 April), then John Earle

State governors

Governor of New South Wales – Gerald Strickland
Governor of Victoria – Sir John Fuller, 1st Baronet (until 31 January), then Arthur Stanley (from 23 February)
Governor of Queensland – William MacGregor
Governor of South Australia – Day Bosanquet (until 22 March), then Henry Galway (from 18 April)
Governor of Western Australia – Harry Barron
Governor of Tasmania – William Ellison-Macartney

Events

27 January – Thomas Denman resigns as Governor-General.
9 February – Ronald Munro Ferguson, a landholder and provost of Kirkcaldy appointed as the new Governor-General.
16 February – Charles Heydon of the New South Wales Industrial Court finds that a "living wage" for a family of four would be 48 shillings a week but more than a living wage should be paid. His recommendation was a minimum wage of 8s 6d for unskilled workers and 9s for heavy work.
1 March – The first military aircraft in Australia are flown.
18 May – Sir Ronald Munro Ferguson commences duties as Governor-General.
8 June – Joseph Cook persuades Ferguson to hold Australia's first double dissolution election after the Government Preference Bill prohibiting preference to unionists in Australian Government employment was twice rejected by the Senate of Australia.
16 July – Maurice Guillaux leaves Melbourne to fly to Sydney in a Blériot monoplane in the first delivery of airmail. He arrived in Sydney on 18 July after nine and a half hours of flying time.
31 July – As the likelihood of Britain being involved in a European war became more likely, the leaders of both major parties pledge their support. Opposition Leader Andrew Fisher states in a speech at Colac, Victoria Australians will stand beside her own to help and defend her to our last man and our last shilling. Prime Minister Joseph Cook states in Horsham, Victoria "All of our resources in Australia are ... for the preservation and the security of the empire".
4 August – The United Kingdom declares war on Germany – as a consequence Australia enters the war.
5 August – Australia fires its first shot in World War I at Fort Nepean in Victoria. The German merchant ship Pfalz was leaving Port Phillip Bay at 12.10am when news of involvement in the war had just reached the fort. The battery fired shots across its bows forcing the ship to surrender. This is believed to be the first shots fired in anger by British Empire forces during the war.
10 August – Recruiting begins for the First Australian Imperial Force. Australia had offered a force of 20,000 troops.
18 August – The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force of 1500 men leaves Sydney to capture German New Guinea.
5 September – The Australian Labor Party led by Andrew Fisher wins the Federal election of 1914 winning 42 out of 75 seats in the Australian House of Representatives and 31 out of 36 seats in the Australian Senate.
9 September – The light cruiser HMAS Melbourne captures the German radio station in Nauru.
11 September – Australian troops land in German New Guinea.
13 September – Rabaul occupied.
14 September – The Australian submarine HMAS AE1 lost with all 35 men while patrolling New Britain.
17 September – The acting governor of German New Guinea surrenders.
29 October – The War Precautions Act 1914, which gave the Government of Australia special powers for the duration of World War I and for six months afterwards, was passed by the Parliament of Australia.
1 November – The first contingent of the First Australian Imperial Force leaves for Egypt.
6 November – Australian forces occupy Nauru.
9 November – Australia's first naval victory as HMAS Sydney defeats SMS Emden in the Battle of Cocos.
30 November – The first aviation unit to leave for active service is sent to New Guinea.
21 December – Lieutenant-General Sir William Birdwood arrives in Egypt to take command of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

Arts and Literature

Main article: 1914 in Australian literature

4 September - William Henry Strahan published "The Bugle Call"

Sport

6 April – The Hawthorn Football Club joins the Victorian Football Association.
During the 1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand the British win the 3rd and deciding Ashes Test.
The 1914 NSWRFL Premiership is won by South Sydney
3 October - The Port Adelaide Football Club defeats Carlton to be crowned Champions of Australia for a record fourth time and becoming the only League club in Australian football to go through its entire season undefeated.

Births

11 February – Clyde Cameron (died 2008), politician
14 February – Norman Von Nida (died 2007), golfer
14 March – Robert Royce (died 2008), botanist
20 March – Tom Derrick (died 1945), soldier and Victoria Cross recipient
26 March – Ray Robinson (died 1965), cricketer
28 March – Kenneth Richard Norris (died 1983), entomologist
6 April – Gordon Stone (died 2015), rugby union player
10 April – Jack Badcock (died 1982), cricketer
7 May – Scobie Breasley (died 2006), jockey
21 May – Rhodes Fairbridge (died 2006), geologist
1 August – Hughie Edwards (died 1982), pilot, Victoria Cross recipient and Governor of Western Australia
3 August – Gordon Bryant (died 1991), politician
6 August – Gordon Freeth (died 1994), politician
18 August – Arthur Tange (died 2001), public servant
9 September – John Passmore (died 2004), philosopher
24 September – John Kerr (died 1991), 18th Governor-General of Australia
25 September – Ted Humphries (died 1994), NSW politician
4 October – Jim Cairns (died 2003), politician
20 October – Fred Chaney (died 2001), politician
7 November – Geoffrey Blackburn, Baptist minister
8 December – Ernie Toshack (died 2003), cricketer
16 December – Jo Gullett (died 1999), soldier and politician
21 December – Frank Fenner (died 2010), virologist
29 December – Albert Tucker (died 1999), artist

Deaths

11 March – John Mackay (born 1839), explorer, sailor and harbourmaster
23 April – Alexander Robert Edgar (born 1850), Methodist minister
23 June – John Stokell Dodds (born 1848), Chief Justice of Tasmania
17 July – William Piguenit (born 1836), artist
7 August – Bransby Cooper (born 1844), cricketer
13 August – Gregor McGregor (born 1848), politician and trade union leader
24 August – Normand MacLaurin (born 1835), vice-chancellor of the University of Sydney
4 September – William Ramsay (born 1868), maker of Kiwi shoe polish
5 October – Albert Solomon (born 1876), 23rd Premier of Tasmania
13 October – Walter Withers (born 1854), landscape artist
9 December – John Arthur (born 1875), politician

References

↑ Imperial Ties And World War One, Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Unidentified newspaper clipping, 1914, from 'Press Clippings of WW1' in Papers of Atlee Hunt, National Library of Australia, NLA MS 1100 cited on ABC Online "A Place in the World" .Australians:A Historical Record uses the words her own instead of our own

Years in Australia (1788–present)

1788 1789 1790 1791 1792 1793 1794 1795 1796 1797 1798 1799 1800

1801 1802 1803 1804 1805 1806 1807 1808 1809 1810 1811 1812 1813 1814 1815 1816 1817 1818 1819 1820 1821 1822 1823 1824 1825 1826 1827 1828 1829 1830 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835 1836 1837 1838 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900

1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Timeline of Australian history

1914 in Oceania

Sovereign states	Australia Federated States of Micronesia Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Nauru New Zealand Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu

Associated states of New Zealand	Cook Islands Niue

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