Sir Cecil Stephen Hincks (18 February 1894 – 1 January 1963),

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n politician, was a member of the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly (also known as the lower house) is one of two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia, the other being the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assem ...

who was Minister of Lands, Irrigation and Repatriation in Thomas Playford's government.

Early life

Cecil Hincks was born on 18 February 1894, in the township of

Maitland, South Australia Maitland () is a town on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. By road, it is west of Adelaide, south of Port Pirie and north of Minlaton. The town lies in the traditional lands of the Narungga, whose name for the district is Maggiwarda. ...

, the son of

miller A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...

Henry Stephen Hincks and his wife Emily Frances Picton (''née'' Parkins). He was educated at Port Victoria Public School and the Collegiate School of St Peter, and followed his father into the flour milling trade after completion of his schooling, while training with the cadets and citizens' force. In 1914, he was considered to try out for the

Port Adelaide Football Club Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, Alberton, South Australia. The club's senior men's team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), where it is nicknamed the ...

, but his trial was cancelled due to the outbreak of

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 ...

.Stock, Jenny Tilby
'Hincks, Sir Cecil Stephen (1894 - 1963)'
''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Volume 14,

Melbourne University Press Melbourne University Publishing (MUP) is the book publishing arm of the University of Melbourne. The press is currently a member of the Association of University Presses. History MUP was founded in 1922 as Melbourne University Press to sell text ...

, 1996, pp 454-455.

Military career

World War I

At the outbreak of the war, the Hincks family was living in the town of

Gawler Gawler, established in 1839, is the oldest country town in the state of South Australia. It was named after the second Governor (British Vice-Regal representative) of the colony of South Australia, George Gawler. It is about north of the st ...

, north of Adelaide. Hincks travelled to

Morphettville Morphettville is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Marion. The northern part of the suburb is bounded by the Glenelg tram line, and fully occupied by the Morphettville Racecourse (horseracing track). The tram barn storage an ...

, where he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 28 August 1914 and was assigned to the South Australian 10th Battalion's 'G' Company as a

Lance Corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many English-speaking armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal. Etymology The presumed origin of the rank of lance corp ...

.Richards, Anne
Gawler's Soldiers: A portrait of six of the first young men from Gawler to enlist for service in the First World War, 1914-1918
, Gawler Public Library, 2009. Hincks served with the 10th Battalion in the Gallipoli Campaign, coming ashore at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915 ahead of the main landing of Australian forces. On 28 April, Hincks was promoted to Corporal, and on 4 August to

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

. In September 1915, Hincks was evacuated to

Mudros Moudros () is a town and a former municipality on the island of Lemnos, North Aegean, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lemnos, of which it is a municipal unit. It covers the entire eastern peninsula o ...

after he was found to have developed

influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...

and an intestinal disease. In October he was admitted to hospital in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

, and nearly a year later he was discharged from hospital in

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

and returned to rejoin his unit at the Western Front on 23 August 1916. At the Battle of Lagnicourt, part of the Battle of Arras in 1917, Hincks received gunshot wounds to his legs and chest, and was sent to

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

where his condition was assessed as "dangerously ill". He was evacuated to England to recover, and after surgery over the following year, his injured leg was

amputated Amputation is the removal of a limb or other body part by trauma, medical illness, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is ...

. In 1918, he married Gladys Lottie Merritt in Surbiton, Surrey. He remained in England on extended sick leave for most of 1919, but left to return to Australia on 10 December. He was discharged from the 10th Battalion a year later on 13 December 1920. His marriage to Gladys ended in divorce shortly afterwards.

World War II

Lieutenant Hincks served as an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

recruiting officer during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, working out of the Central Recruiting Depot (CRD) in Yorketown. He was promoted to Temporary Captain and transferred to the Reserve of Officers in August 1941, and was discharged on 16 May 1946.

Political career

Following his discharge from the army, Hincks worked for the Wheat Harvest Board before setting up his own grain and insurance management business and starting a farm. He was a member of several charitable organisations, and a state councillor in the Returned Sailors' Soldiers' nd AirmensImperial League (1922–1946). At the South Australian state election in August 1941, Hincks was elected to the

, representing the electoral district of

Yorke Peninsula The Yorke Peninsula, known as Guuranda by the original inhabitants, the Narungga people, is a peninsula located northwest and west of Adelaide in South Australia, between Spencer Gulf on the west and Gulf St Vincent on the east. The peninsula ...

for the

Liberal and Country League The South Australian Liberal Party, officially known as the Liberal Party of Australia (South Australian Division), and often shortened to SA Liberals, is the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia. It was formed as the Lib ...

. After serving on a committee to inspect and assess land for the Federal government for

soldier settlement Soldier settlement was the settlement of land throughout parts of Australia by returning discharged soldiers under soldier settlement schemes administered by state governments after World War I and World War II. The post-World War II settlement ...

, Hincks was assigned to the related portfolios as Minister of Lands, Irrigation and Repatriation on 17 April 1946. Despite his poor health, Hincks was respected and admired for his hard work in the portfolios, which he held until his death in office from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

on 1 January 1963.

Honours and memorials

Hincks was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

on 1 January 1960, for service as Minister of Lands and Repatriation in South Australia. The

Hincks Conservation Park Hincks Conservation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia on the Eyre Peninsula located about north of Port Lincoln and south east of Lock in the gazetted locality of Tooligie. The conservation park was proclai ...

on the

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Earlier called Eyre's Peninsula, it was named after e ...

was named after him, and in 2004, the adjourning Hincks Wilderness Protection Area was declared as one of the first wilderness protection areas on mainland South Australia.Wilderness Protection in South Australia
, Department for Environment and Heritage, Government of South Australia. Retrieved 19 November 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hincks, Cecil 1894 births 1963 deaths Members of the South Australian House of Assembly Liberal and Country League politicians Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of South Australia Australian military personnel of World War I Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian Army officers Australian Knights Bachelor Australian amputees Deaths from cancer in South Australia People from Maitland, South Australia 20th-century Australian politicians Australian politicians with disabilities