Ernest Clark (governor)

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Sir Ernest Clark
CBE
15th Governor of Tasmania
In office
4 August 1933 – 4 August 1945
MonarchsGeorge V
Edward VIII
George VI
PremierJohn McPhee
Walter Lee
Albert Ogilvie
Edmund Dwyer-Gray
Robert Cosgrove
Preceded bySir James O'Grady
Succeeded bySir Hugh Binney
Personal details
Born(1864-04-13)13 April 1864
Plumstead, Kent, England
Died26 August 1951(1951-08-26) (aged 87)
Seaton, Devon, England
Resting placeCornelian Bay, Tasmania
Spouse(s)Mary Winkfield (1899–1944)
Harriet Jessie Constance McLennan (1947–51)

Sir Ernest Clark,

CBE (13 April 1864 – 26 August 1951) was a British civil servant who served as Governor of Tasmania
from 1933 to 1945.

Early life and education

Ernest Clark was born on 13 April 1864 in Plumstead, Kent to teacher Samuel Henry Clark, and his wife Ann Leaver. He was educated at King's College London, and entered the civil service in 1881, working for HM Treasury.

Civil service

Clark was called to the bar at Middle Temple in 1894, and joined the Treasury's legal staff. In 1904, he had his first experience managing colonial finances when he was seconded to the Cape Colony in Africa to establish the colony's taxation procedures, subsequently serving the government of the Union of South Africa.[1]

When the

Board of Inland Revenue as assistant secretary and deputy inspector of taxes. He was knighted in the 1920 Birthday Honours.[1]

Creation of Northern Ireland Civil Service

From 1920, Clark was appointed to Northern Ireland as assistant under-secretary – the equal in the six counties to Sir John Anderson, the head of the Dublin Castle administration – and was instrumental in resolving amicable relations between Northern Ireland and the newly formed Irish Free State.[2] He was described by Sir Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough as 'the midwife' of Northern Ireland.[3]


His friendship with

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1924.[1]

Governor of Tasmania

Clark visited Australia in 1928, as a member of a British government economic delegation tasked with examining the state of the Australian economy.[4] His report on Australian economics greatly impressed the Premier of Tasmania, Joseph Lyons, and it was believed that Lyons (by then prime minister) may have suggested Clark for the post of Governor of Tasmania in 1933. The post had been vacant since 1930 due to lack of funds, and Clark's appointment, with his background in finance and contacts in London business may aid both Tasmania and Australia.[1]

Clark's term as governor was extended three times due to the

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
at the end of hostilities.

Clark was a freemason. During his term as governor, he was also Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Tasmania.[5]

Clark returned to England in 1945, where he married his second wife Harriet McLennan in 1947. He died on 26 August 1951 at his home in Seaton, Devon, and his remains were shipped to Tasmania for interment at Cornelian Bay Cemetery.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e John Reynolds, Clark, Sir Ernest (1864–1951), Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 8, Melbourne University Press, 1981, pp 6–7.
  2. ISBN 0-521-45933-8
    .
  3. ^ Sir Ernest Clark
  4. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
    , 1 March 1928.
  5. ^ "KentHenderson". Archived from the original on 9 April 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2012.

External links

Government offices
Preceded by Governor of Tasmania
1933–1945 		Succeeded by
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