Arthur Ernest Ireland (2 September 1896 – 24 July 1989) was an Australian politician. He was born in East Doncaster to orchardist Elijah Ireland and Keziah Bowers. He attended the local state school and served during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the Australian Field Artillery. On his return he became an orchardist, and 21 February 1920 married Mabel Blanche Peter-Budge. He served on Doncaster & Templestowe City Council from 1922 to 1926 and from 1932 to 1962, serving four terms as president. In 1947 he was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...

as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

member for

Mernda Mernda is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 26 km north-east of Melbourne's central business district, located within the City of Whittlesea local government area. Mernda recorded a population of 23,369 at the 2021 census. Hi ...

. He served until his defeat in 1952. Ireland was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1968. He died in 1989.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ireland, Arthur 1896 births 1989 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century Australian politicians