Charles Du Cane
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| Sir Charles Du Cane KCMG | |
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| In office January 15, 1869 – November 30, 1874 |
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| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | Colonel Thomas Browne |
| Succeeded by | Frederick Weld |
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| Born | February 25, 1889 Ryde, Isle of Wight, England United Kingdom |
| Died | February 25, 1889 (aged 63) Witham, Essex, England United Kingdom |
| Nationality |  British |
| Spouse | Georgiana Susan Copley |
Sir Charles Du Cane, KCMG (5 December 1825 – 25 February 1889) was a British politician and colonial administrator who was Governor of Tasmania from 1868 to 1874.
Du Cane was born in Ryde on the Isle of Wight, England in 1825. He was educated at the Charterhouse School in Surrey and Exeter College, Oxford. From 1848 to 1855, Du Cane played first class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club as a batsman.[1]
In 1852, he was elected to the House of Commons as a representative for Maldon in Essex, but his election was declared void after it was discovered that Du Cane's agents had been involved in bribery although it was established that Du Cane was unaware of the corruption.[2]
Du Cane was appointed Governor of Tasmania, and was sworn in at Hobart Town on 15 January 1869. He faced a minor constitutional crisis when the Premier of Tasmania, James Milne Wilson, threatened to resign after a taxation scheme he had proposed was defeated in parliament, which would have left Tasmania without a government, although Wilson withdrew his resignation and a general election took place.
Du Cane's tenure in Tasmania saw the colony grow strong and prosperous, partly due to industrial and resources booms and the improvement of communication between Tasmania, the mainland and England. He left Hobart in November 1874, and was appointed KCMG the next year after his return to England. Du Cane died at his family estate in Braxted Park, Essex on 25 February 1889.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Charles Du Cane (England), CricInfo.
- ^ Hansard's Parliamentary Debates: House of Commons - Maldon Election, Parliament of Great Britain, March 18, 1853.
- ^ Gordon Rimmer, 'Du Cane, Sir Charles (1825 - 1889)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 4, Melbourne University Press, 1972, pp 106-107.
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| Preceded by Thomas Gore Browne |
Governor of Tasmania 1869 – 1874 |
Succeeded by Frederick Weld |
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