Archibald Peake

Archibald Henry Peake (15 January 1859 – 6 April 1920) was an Australian liberal conservative politician and Premier of South Australia.

Early Life and career

Peake's family migrated from Chelsea, London in 1862, initially settled in Victoria, before moving to South Australia two years later. Peake was educated at state schools under his father, but in later life widened his education by studying in English history and literature. He entered the service of the district council of Narracoorte, became district clerk in 1878. In 1893 he contested Albert in an election for the House of Assembly and was beaten by 50 votes, but four years later won the seat by two votes. He resigned his position as district clerk when he entered politics, and afterwards was in business at Mount Barker as a member of the firm of auctioneers, Monks and Peake.

=Parliamentarian= Peake was elected to Parliament as the Member for Albert representing Narracorte. After his election, Peake was at first an independent supporting the Liberal Governments of Charles Kingston and Frederick Holder. He became disillusioned with the Government of John Jenkins leading him to become leader of a group of 15 members under the Liberal banner.

Peake's group joined the Labor Government of Thomas Price in a coalition with Peake holding the positions of Treasurer and Attorney General after they won a six-seat majority. As Treasurer, he delivered three surplus budgets in a row as agricultural conditions improved.

In the 1906 election, Labor came close to a majority in their own right. However, Peake and his party resisted a change to the arrangements and it was only his good relationships with Price that held the coalition together. Peake had formed the Liberal and Democratic Union which had a network of branches in 1906.

Premier

After Price's death, the Labor Party demanded the Premier position for its new leader John Verran. Price refused and was able to form a Government which lasted for a year. The Liberal and Democratic Union relied on support from the conservative Australasian National League and the Farmers' and Producers' Political Union with representatives of both parties joining the Government.

Following the Labor victory in 1910, the Liberal and Democratic Union merged with its former coalition partners to form the Liberal Union under Peake's leadership. It was affiliated with the Commonwealth Liberal Party at the Federal level. Peake was elected as Premier in 1912 as Verran's Government had been unable to deal with a number of significant industrial disputes.

His Government created the Industrial Arbitration Court which established a minimum wage for state awards but limited the right to strike. During his premiership, he reached agreement with the Federal, New South Wales and Victorian Governments over the Murray River leading to the River Murray Commission which is now the Murray-Darling Basin Commission. Peake was a teetotaller Presbyterian who held a plebiscite establishing six o'clock closing for hotels in 1915 which became the law in South Australia for the next fifty years.

Peake lost to the Labor Party under Crawford Vaughan and lost his seat. However, he was elected as Member for Alexandra and became Leader of the Opposition. Vaughan lost his majority after the Labor Party split over conscription. Peake became Premier of a coalition government of Liberals and Nationalist Party of Australia members.

This government reformed apprenticeship arrangements and reformed divorce laws. It enjoyed a solid majority in the 1918 elections and established soldier settlements. However, the Nationalists crossed the floor to amend the Industrial Code Bill in concert with the ALP leading Peake to demand their full support. They refused leading Peake to form a totally Liberal Government. However, he died of a cerebral haemorrhage hours after the new Ministry was sworn in.

References

*Grainger, G. Peake, Archibald Henry (1859 - 1920), " [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A110181b.htm Australian Dictionary of Biography] ", Volume 11, Melbourne University Press, 1988, pp 175-177.
*Dictionary of Australian Biography|First=Archibald Henry|Last=Peake|Link=http://gutenberg.net.au/dictbiog/0-dict-biogP-Q.html

External links

* [http://www.parliament.sa.gov.au/pp/html/peake.shtm Archibald Peake] profile on SA Parliament website