Sir Walter Massy-Greene KCMG (6 November 187416 November 1952) was an Australian politician and businessman. As a Liberal and

Nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

, he became a protégé of Prime Minister

Billy Hughes William Morris Hughes (25 September 1862 – 28 October 1952) was an Australian politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923. He led the nation during World War I, and his influence on national politics s ...

and was groomed as his successor. He served as Minister for Trade and Customs (1919–1921), Defence (1921–1923), and

Health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...

(1921–1923), but his prime ministerial aspirations were brought to an abrupt halt by his defeat at the 1922 federal election. Massy-Greene subsequently served two terms as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

for

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

(1923–1925, 1926–1938), but never regained his earlier influence in politics. In retirement he held numerous company directorships.

Early life

Walter Massy Greene was born on 6 November 1874 in

Camberwell Camberwell ( ) is an List of areas of London, area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles' Church, Camberwell, St Giles ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, England (now part of

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

). He was the second son of Julia (née Sandeman) and John Greene, a brewer and hotel proprietor. His maternal grandfather was General Robert Turnbull Sandeman, and his uncle Sir Robert Groves Sandeman was a colonial administrator in India. The family surname was Greene, but at some point Walter chose to treat his middle name as an additional surname; he officially added a hyphen in March 1933. Greene grew up in

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

before boarding at Lynton House College in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

. He was sent to Australia in 1891 for health reasons, and worked as a farm and sawmill labourer in northern

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

for a period. He was later joined by his family, who took up land near Kyneton, Victoria. In 1895, Greene joined the

Bank of New South Wales The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW), also known as The Wales, was the first bank in Australia. It was established in 1817 in Sydney. During the 19th century, the bank opened branches throughout Australia and New Zealand, expanding into Oceania ...

and was posted to the gold-rush town of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. After a few years he joined the bank's head office in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, and then was transferred to

Lismore, New South Wales Lismore is a city located in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia and the main population centre in the City of Lismore Local government in Australia, local government area, it is also a regional centre in the Northern River ...

. From 1902 ,he farmed a property near Nimbin with his two brothers. He was elected to the newly created Terania Shire Council in 1906 and chosen as the inaugural shire president.

Politics

Early years

Massy-Greene joined the newly created Federal Liberal League in 1909. At the 1910 federal election, he was elected to the

Division of Richmond The Division of Richmond is an Electorates of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales. It is the northeasternmost division in New South Wales, c ...

with the support of small farmers. He joined the parliamentary

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

and soon became known for his attacks on the Fisher government's financial legislation. Massy-Greene retained his seat at the 1913 election, which saw the Liberals win a one-seat majority in the House of Representatives. He was appointed as

party whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline (that members of the party vote according to the party platform rather than their constituents, individual conscience or donors) in a legislature. Whips a ...

by Prime Minister

Joseph Cook Sir Joseph Cook (7 December 1860 – 30 July 1947) was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the sixth Prime Minister of Australia, prime minister of Australia from 1913 to 1914. He held office as the leader of the Fusion L ...

, and subsequently played a key role in maintaining party discipline.

Hughes government

In 1917, following the Australian Labor Party split of 1916, the Liberal Party and the National Labor Party formed a coalition and Massy-Greene became a member of the resultant Nationalist Party. He continued to represent Richmond until 1922 when he was defeated by a Country Party candidate. He was appointed as a Nationalist Party Senator for New South Wales in 1923 and served to the 1925 election, when he was elected to the Senate from July 1926. He remained in the Senate until his retirement in 1938. In the fourth Hughes Ministry Massy-Greene was an Honorary Minister in charge of matters relating to price-fixing (27 March 191817 January 1919). He was then promoted to be Minister for Trade and Customs (17 January 191921 December 1921). On 10 March 1921 he became the first

Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

, a position he held until 5 February 1923. He then became Minister for Defence until 5 February 1923. He was relegated to the back bench during the Bruce Ministry.

Bruce–Page government and opposition

On 19 November 1929, Massy-Greene resigned from the Nationalist Party to protest the expulsion of four dissident MPs from the party – Hughes, Walter Marks, George Maxwell and Senator Walter Duncan. In a letter to Nationalist leader John Latham he stated "I have no desire to continue a membership with a party whose policy does not appeal to me; to be ground between the upper and nether millstone of a machine operated in the manner which appears acceptable to those who now control it". After leaving the Nationalists, Massy-Greene joined the provisional committee of Hughes' new Australian Party on 5 December 1929, with he and Duncan its only representatives in the Senate. He resigned from the Australian Party on 26 December 1930 to rejoin the Nationalists. He subsequently joined the new

United Australia Party The United Australia Party (UAP) was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. The party won four Elections in Australia, federal elections in that time, usually governing Coalition (Australia), in coalition ...

in early 1931, along with Hughes and Duncan.

Lyons government

In the First Lyons Ministry he became the minister assisting the Leader of the Government in the Senate (6 January 193223 June 1932) and Assistant Treasurer (6 January 193225 September 1933). He was appointed a Knight Commander of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

in June 1933, in recognition of his service as Assistant Treasurer.It's an Honour
/ref> He subsequently formally changed his surname to Massy-Greene to reflect his usage over the previous two decades.

Later life

Business career

In 1936, Massy-Greene became chairman of Associated Pulp and Paper Mills Ltd. on its formation, a post which he held until his death. He was also the chairman of the

Emu Bay Railway The Emu Bay Railway was a Tasmania, Australian railway company. The railway was significant during full operation, in that it linked the Tasmanian Government Railways system at Burnie with that at Zeehan that further linked to the Mount Lye ...

Company and a director of the Electrolytic Zinc Company, Felt and Textiles of Australia Ltd., Yarra Falls Ltd., and many other companies.

Other activities

During World War II, Massy-Greene served as chairman of the Treasury Finance Committee and as a member of the National Security Capital Issues Advisory Board and Defence Board of Business Administration. In 1940, he led the Australian delegation to the Eastern Group Supply Conference which led to the creation of the Eastern Group Supply Council. Although he never attended university, Massy-Greene also served on the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

council from 1939 to 1949, including as deputy chancellor from 1945 to 1947.

Personal life

Massy-Greene married Lula May Lomax in

Mungindi, New South Wales Mungindi is a town and locality on the border of New South Wales (NSW) and Queensland, Australia. The town is within Moree Plains Shire in New South Wales. Within Queensland, the locality is split between the Shire of Balonne (the western part ...

on 6 February 1915. The couple had three children together. His son Sir Brian Massy-Greene served as chairman of the Commonwealth Banking Corporation. After the deaths of

George Pearce Sir George Foster Pearce KCVO (14 January 1870 – 24 June 1952) was an Australian politician who served as a Senator for Western Australia from 1901 to 1938. He began his career in the Labor Party but later joined the National Labor Party, ...

and Billy Hughes in 1952, Massy-Greene was the sole survivor of the Hughes Nationalist ministries. On 13 November 1952, he was admitted to Freemasons Hospital, Melbourne, where he underwent an operation on his gall bladder the following day. After "progressing satisfactorily" he died on 16 November. A

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...

was held at St John's Anglican Church, Toorak, before a cremation at

Springvale Botanical Cemetery The Springvale Botanical Cemetery is the largest crematorium and memorial park in Victoria, Australia, located in the southeastern Melbourne suburb of Springvale, Victoria, Springvale. History Originally known as The Necropolis Springvale, the c ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Massy-Greene, Walter Members of the Cabinet of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Richmond Members of the Australian House of Representatives 1874 births 1952 deaths Commonwealth Liberal Party members of the Parliament of Australia Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Australian Party members of the Parliament of Australia United Australia Party members of the Parliament of Australia Australian Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Australian Senate for New South Wales Ministers for defence of Australia Australian businesspeople People from Camberwell English emigrants to colonial Australia Australian people of Anglo-Irish descent Ministers for health of Australia People from Wimbledon, London Australian MPs 1910–1913 Australian MPs 1913–1914 Australian MPs 1914–1917 Australian MPs 1917–1919 Australian MPs 1919–1922