Allan McLean (Australian politician) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Honourable Allan McLean
19th Premier of Victoria
In office 5 December 1899 – 19 November 1900
Governor	Lord Brassey
Preceded by	George Turner
Succeeded by	George Turner
Federal Minister for Trade and Customs
In office 18 August 1904 – 5 July 1905
Prime Minister	George Reid
Preceded by	Andrew Fisher
Succeeded by	William Lyne
Member of the Australian House of Representatives
In office 29 March 1901 – 12 December 1906
Preceded by	New Seat
Succeeded by	George Wise
Constituency	Gippsland
Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
In office February 1880 – March 1901
Preceded by	Charles Gavan Duffy
Succeeded by	Hubert Keogh
Constituency	Gippsland North
Personal details
Born	3 February 1840 Oban, Argyll, Scotland
Died	13 July 1911(1911-07-13) (aged 71) Albert Park, Victoria, Australia
Political party	Protectionist
Spouses	Margaret Shinnick ​ (m. 1866⁠–⁠1884)​ Emily Macarthur ​ (m. 1885)​

Allan McLean (born 1840, died 1911) was an important Australian politician. He served as the 19th Premier of Victoria, which is like being the leader of the state government. He held this role from 1899 to 1900.

Later, he was elected to the new federal parliament. There, he became a government minister, working under Prime Minister George Reid.

McLean was born in Argyll, Scotland. He moved to Australia as a child with his family. They settled in the Gippsland area of Victoria. He eventually owned a sheep station near Lake Wellington.

In 1880, McLean was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly. This was Victoria's state parliament. He became a minister in the government in 1890. He served under several Premiers, including James Munro and George Turner. In 1899, he became Premier himself, taking over from George Turner. However, his government lost the next election.

When Australia formed its federal government in 1901, McLean was elected to the new parliament. He was a member of the Protectionist Party. In 1904, he became the Minister for Trade and Customs in George Reid's government. He was a very influential figure in that government. He lost his seat in the 1906 election.

Early Life and Work

Allan McLean was born in the highlands of Scotland in 1840. He came to Australia in 1842 with his family. He later said they were "practically frozen out of Scotland" by a very cold winter.

His father, Charles McLean, was a farmer who raised livestock near Tarraville in the Gippsland region of Victoria. Allan went to the local state school. He helped his father on the farms. For a short time, he worked for the Gippsland Times newspaper.

Around 1870, he leased a sheep farm called 'The Lowlands'. It was on the shores of Lake Wellington near Sale. In 1872, he started his own business, A. McLean and Company. This company helped people buy and sell livestock and land in Maffra.

He became a local council member in Maffra in 1873. As the head of the shire (a local government area), he helped create the Municipal Association of Victoria. This group helped different local councils work together.

Victorian Politics

McLean was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly in May 1880. He represented the area of Gippsland North. He was known as a conservative politician, meaning he preferred traditional ways and gradual change.

From 1890 to 1891, he was the President of the Board of Land and Works and Minister of Agriculture. This was during James Munro's time as Premier. From 1891 to 1893, he was the Chief Secretary, a very important role. He kept this job when William Shiels became Premier.

In 1894, he became a minister without a specific department in George Turner's government. However, he resigned from this role in April 1898.

On 5 December 1899, McLean led a "vote of no-confidence" against the government. This means he convinced enough politicians to vote that they no longer supported the current leader. He won the vote and became Premier and Chief Secretary himself. But his government only lasted less than a year. In the 1900 election, his conservative party lost, and George Turner became Premier again.

Federal Politics

Allan McLean was not in favour of Australian federation at first. Federation was the process of joining the separate colonies into one country. He was not part of the meetings that created the Australian Constitution.

However, he later felt more confident about federation. In January 1900, he sent Alfred Deakin to London. Deakin represented Victoria in talks with the British government about federation.

In March 1901, McLean was elected to the first Australian House of Representatives. This was the lower house of the new federal parliament. He represented the area of Gippsland. He supported the Protectionist Party, led by Edmund Barton and Alfred Deakin.

McLean was part of the more conservative side of the Protectionist Party. He did not like that Deakin was becoming closer with the Labour Party.

In April 1904, Deakin resigned as Prime Minister. The Labour leader, Chris Watson, formed a government, but it did not have a majority of seats. Watson resigned in August. Then, George Reid, leader of the Free Trade Party, formed another government. This government was supported by the conservative Protectionists, including McLean.

McLean became the Minister for Trade and Customs in Reid's government. His position was so strong that people often called it the "Reid-McLean ministry." This shows how important he was.

However, this government did not last long. It was often attacked by the Labour Party and the more radical Protectionists who still followed Deakin. The government lasted less than 11 months. It fell when Deakin stopped supporting it.

This caused a lot of bad feelings within the Protectionist Party. In the 1906 election, McLean faced a strong challenge in Gippsland. George Wise, a radical Protectionist, narrowly defeated McLean with the help of the Labour Party.

Personal Life

Allan McLean had suffered from rheumatism (a condition causing pain in joints and muscles) for many years. He felt he could no longer do his best for the people he represented. So, he retired from politics before the next election.

He passed away at his home in Albert Park in 1911. Sir George Reid, a former Prime Minister, said that "no public man in Victoria was more widely or more affectionately esteemed." This means McLean was very well-liked and respected by many people.

McLean was married twice. First, in 1866, he married Margaret Bridget Shinnock. She passed away in 1884. Later, he married Emily Macarthur (whose maiden name was Linton). Emily survived him. He had five sons and two daughters from his first marriage. His oldest son, William Joseph McLean, was a well-known farmer and a senior partner in his father's business, A. McLean and Co.