Robert John Solomon AM (2 November 1931 – 14 June 2024) was an Australian academic and politician. He was a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international Postgraduate education, postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world. Esta ...

and lectured in geography at the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College (University of Tasmania), Christ College, one of the unive ...

before his election to parliament at the 1969 federal election. He represented the

Division of Denison Division may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication * Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting of 10,000 t ...

as a Liberal until his defeat in 1972 after a single term. After leaving parliament he was prominent in

urban development Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

circles.

Early life

Solomon was born on 2 November 1931 in

Condobolin, New South Wales Condobolin is a town in the west of the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia, on the Lachlan River. At the , Condobolin had a population of 3,185. History Prior to European settlement, the area was inhabited by the Wiradjuri pe ...

. He completed his secondary schooling at

Barker College Barker College is an independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Mixed-sex education, co-educational Pre-school education, early learning, primary and secondary Day school, day and Boarding school, boarding school, located in Hornsby, New ...

, Sydney, where he was a state champion in junior athletics. He held the degrees of Bachelor of Arts (

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

), Master of Arts (

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

), and Doctor of Philosophy (

), as well as diplomas in education (University of Sydney) and law (

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

). He was the New South Wales

for 1955. Solomon was a senior lecturer in geography at the University of Tasmania from 1957 to 1969.

Politics

Solomon was a vice-president of the

Liberal Party of Australia (Tasmanian Division) The Tasmanian Liberal Party, officially known as the Liberal Party of Australia (Tasmanian Division) and more simply as the Tasmanian Liberals, is the state division of the Liberal Party of Australia in Tasmania. The party currently governs in ...

from 1965 to 1969. He was elected to parliament at the 1969 federal election, retaining the

for the Liberal Party following the retirement of Adrian Gibson. He was defeated by the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...

(ALP) candidate John Coates at the 1972 election. In 1973 Solomon was one of 32 candidates for Liberal preselection in the Sydney seat of Bradfield.

Later career

After losing his seat in parliament, Solomon advertised for work in ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...

''. He qualified as a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

, also serving as managing director of an urban research consultancy and as executive director of the Advertising Federation of Australia. Solomon had a long involvement with the Australian Institute of Urban Studies (AIUS), serving as chairman of the New South Wales division and twice as national chairman. He published his doctoral thesis in 1976 under the title ''Urbanisation: The Evolution of an Australian Capital'', and later published a history of

Broken Hill, New South Wales Broken Hill is a city in the Far West (New South Wales), far west region of outback New South Wales, Australia. An inland mining city, it is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Hi ...

. In 1987 he was appointed director of development at the

. He was responsible for co-ordinating fundraising efforts. Solomon was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AM) in the 2010 Queen's Birthday Honours, "for service to urban affairs, particularly through research, public discussion and policy development by the Australian Institute of Urban Studies, to the Association of Former Members of Parliament, and to athletics."

Death

Solomon died on 14 June 2024.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solomon, Robert 1931 births 2024 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Denison Members of the Australian House of Representatives Members of the Order of Australia Alumni of the University of Oxford University of Tasmania alumni Academic staff of the University of Tasmania Australian geographers Australian urban planners Australian barristers University of Sydney alumni Australian Rhodes Scholars People educated at Barker College People from Condobolin Australian MPs 1969–1972