Norman Makin

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4th Ambassador of Australia to
the United States
In office
5 September 1946 – 1 January 1951
Preceded byFrederic Eggleston
Succeeded byPercy Spender
Personal details
Born
Norman John Oswald Makin

(1889-03-31)31 March 1889
Petersham, New South Wales
Died20 July 1982(1982-07-20) (aged 93)
Adelaide, South Australia
NationalityAustralian
Political partyAustralian Labor Party
SpouseRuby Florence nee Jennings
ChildrenLloyd John Makin
Parent(s)John Hulme Makin and Elizabeth, née Yates[1]
OccupationMetal worker

Norman John Oswald Makin

President of the United Nations Security Council in 1946, and served as Ambassador to the United States from 1946 to 1951.[2]

Early life

Makin was born in

Amalgamated Society of Engineers.[1][4][5]

He moved to Adelaide in 1911, and married Ruby Florence Jennings on 10 August 1912. He worked in a

James Martin & Company at Gawler. He had difficulty finding work at times due to his political activities, and returned to Broken Hill for a period, but returned to Adelaide in 1914 to work at Gray Bros. at Port Adelaide, and then in the Islington Railway Workshops. Having been involved in the labour movement from an early age, Makin was president of the North Adelaide district branch of the Amalgamated Society of Engineers in 1914 and secretary of its political committee in 1917.[6] He was an unsuccessful Labor candidate for Barossa at the 1915 state election, reportedly riding over 2000 miles during the campaign, and again for Wakefield at the 1917 federal election. He publicly campaigned against conscription during World War I, and was president of the South Australian branch of the Labor Party from 1918 to 1919, in the aftermath of the 1916 Labor split over the issue.[1][4][7][8][9][10][11] In 1918, he published a book on the progress of the labour movement in South Australia entitled A Progressive Democracy.[12]

Makin was a lifelong Methodist, and in 1977 received a certificate from the church commending him on having been a lay preacher for seventy years.[5]

Early political career

Makin in 1930, as Speaker of the House of Representatives

Makin was elected to the House of Representatives for Hindmarsh at the 1919 federal election, defeating Nationalist MP and 1916 Labor defector William Archibald in an acrimonious campaign.[13] He was re-elected without difficulty in 1922, 1925 and 1928, reverting Hindmarsh to its traditional status as a safe Labor seat. He spent ten years in Opposition before the election of the Scullin Labor government in 1929.[1] While in opposition, he served as secretary to the Labor caucus and had been touted in 1925 as a potential successor to John Gunn as state Labor leader and Premier of South Australia.[14][15]

Upon the election of the Scullin government, Makin was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, defeating four candidates in the Labor selection vote.[16] As with his Labor predecessor Charles McDonald, he declined the ceremonial wig and gown.[17] He was described as having been a "well-respected" Speaker, and was commended for his "dignity and impartiality" as Speaker as the 1931 Labor split unfolded.[18][19] Following the defeat of the Scullin government in 1931 amidst the split, Makin was an outspoken loyalist of official Labor, alleging that he had been subject to an attempt to bribe him to leave the party, condemning both the pro-Premiers' Plan and Lang Labor defectors, and repeatedly clashing with Premier Lionel Hill.[20][21][22][23] His staunch opposition to the Premiers' Plan led to him being rumoured as a potential challenger to Scullin for the federal Labor leadership, although he denied interest and no challenge eventuated.[24][25][26][27] At the 1931 federal election, Makin was the only Labor member elected from South Australia.

During his second stint in opposition in the 1930s, he was again secretary of the Labor caucus, and served as federal president of the Labor Party from 1936 to 1938.[28][1] He stood for leader of the Labor Party in 1935, following Scullin's resignation, but received only two votes. He shifted his vote to John Curtin on the second ballot, allowing him to win by a single vote over Frank Forde.[29]

Makin was one of the three Labor members on the Advisory War Council from October 1940.

Small Arms Ammunition Factories around the country. These were key posts in a wartime government.[31] In 1945 he also became Minister for Aircraft Production.[32] He established good relations with service chiefs and played an important role in Australia's successful transition to a wartime economy, and later advocated for munitions factories to be retained in government control and adapted to civilian use to boost post-war manufacturing.[33]

When Curtin died in 1945, Makin contested the leadership ballot along with Ben Chifley and caretaker Prime Minister Frank Forde. He was unsuccessful, winning only seven votes out of 70 caucus members.[34]

Diplomat

Makin had sought a diplomatic post as early as 1944 and had been in consideration for the positions of

Commissioner in Singapore.[37][38] In January 1946, he was selected by Chifley to lead the Australian delegation to the first General Assembly of the United Nations, having previously represented Australia at the London conference in early 1945.[39][40] The government had initially planned to send only an official delegation to the United Nations, but made a late decision to send Makin after significant criticism that the lack of ministerial presence was inadequate for the importance of the event. The selection of Makin was nonetheless criticised by the opposition and some media due to a perception that he lacked experience in external affairs and did not have the stature of a figure such as Evatt.[41][42][43][44]

On 14 January 1946, the day Makin arrived in

Daily Mirror defended Makin, stating that he had "conducted proceedings with scrupulous fairness, great care, obvious sincerity and no small degree of skill", and deriding what they labelled a "campaign to belittle and disparage" him.[54] He again served as President of the Security Council when the presidency returned to Australia in January 1947.[55]

In June 1946, Chifley announced that Makin would be appointed as

Washington DC, and presented his credentials in September.[56][57][58] He retained his Cabinet posts until the 1946 election, reportedly because Chifley was unsure whether his desired successor would replace Makin.[59] The United States ambassadorship was a position of great importance in the gathering Cold War atmosphere of the post-war years, atop a rapidly-expanding Australian presence in Washington. The teetotal Makin found the cocktail party circuit "arduous", and although he acknowledged the opportunities for more informal diplomacy, resented the limitations of the demanding social calendar on his home life. His practice of drinking only orange juice at such events was described as "almost unique among high-living diplomats".[60] In 1947, he was involved in canvassing support in the United Nations for the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, and signed the papers bringing Australia into the International Monetary Fund.[61][62] He remained in the post after Labor lost government to Robert Menzies in 1949, and served until 1951. His last official act as ambassador was to read the opening prayers for the United States Senate.[63][64]

Return to politics and later life

After leaving his diplomatic post, Makin returned to Australia. In October 1951, several months after his return, he campaigned for a "no" vote in the

1951 referendum on banning the Communist Party.[65] In 1954, he decided to return to electoral politics, although he was by then 65 years old. At the 1954 election he captured the marginal Liberal seat of Sturt for Labor, defeating incumbent Keith Wilson with a 53 percent primary and two-party vote from a 5.4 percent swing.[66][67] Sturt was significantly redistributed prior to the 1955 election. Most of the Labor-friendly territory in Sturt was shifted to the newly created Bonython. While this redistribution made Sturt notionally Liberal, Bonython was notionally a comfortably safe Labor seat. Makin opted to transfer to Bonython, a move which proved prescient; while Makin won Bonython easily, Wilson retook Sturt for the Liberals almost as easily.[68][69] While still a Member of Parliament in 1961 he authored a book with brief biographies of all leaders of the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party until that time.[70] He retired at the 1963 election, following an amendment to Labor Party rules that introduced a mandatory retirement age of seventy, though Makin unsuccessfully appealed the decision to the federal executive.[71] He remained active in Labor affairs for many years following his retirement.[1]

He died in 1982 at the age of 93, at Glenelg, where he had spent his last years in a Uniting Church aged care home, and was cremated. He was survived by two sons, who published Makin's memoirs, The Memoirs of Norman John Oswald Makin, 31 March 1889 – 20 July 1982, posthumously later that year.[5][1] He was the second-last surviving member of the Curtin Cabinet behind Frank Forde, who died the following year.[72]

Honours

He was made an

Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the 1980 Australia Day Honours.[73]

The House of Representatives

electorate of Makin, established in 1984 in Adelaide's northeastern suburbs, is named after him.[74]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Lowe, David (2012). "Makin, Norman John (1889–1982)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography. Archived from the original on 27 February 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  2. ^ "James Scullin: Key people". Australia's Prime Ministers. National Archives of Australia. Archived from the original on 21 February 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  3. The Chronicle
    . Vol. LI, no. 2, 645. Adelaide. 1 May 1909. p. 42. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ a b "Paper, Sir?". The News. Vol. XIII, no. 1, 953 (Home ed.). Adelaide. 18 October 1929. p. 8. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^
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    . Vol. 56, no. 17, 100. 23 July 1982. p. 12. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "A Union's Withdrawal". The Daily Herald. Vol. 7, no. 2170. Adelaide. 5 March 1917. p. 4. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "Mr. Makin's New Post". The Advertiser. Adelaide. 21 December 1945. p. 9. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ "Society of Engineers". Express & Telegraph. Vol. LI, no. 15, 284. Adelaide. 31 July 1914. p. 2. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. ^ "Barossa". The Daily Herald. Vol. 6, no. 1558. Adelaide. 20 March 1915. p. 9. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ^ "Labor Candidate Honored". The Daily Herald. Vol. 6, no. 1619. Adelaide. 31 May 1915. p. 3. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. ^ "No Vote Assured Hindmarsh Awake". The Daily Herald. Vol. 8, no. 2402. Adelaide. 30 November 1917. p. 6. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. ^ "Our Bookshelf". Westralian Worker. No. 622. Perth. 12 July 1918. p. 2. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. ^ "Division of Hindmarsh". The Daily Herald. Vol. X, no. 3038. Adelaide. 15 December 1919. p. 6. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  14. ^ "A New Leader?". The Recorder. No. 8, 558. Port Pirie. 9 August 1926. p. 1. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  15. Evening News
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  17. The Chronicle
    . Vol. LXXII, no. 3, 815. Adelaide. 31 October 1929. p. 45. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  18. ^ Fraser, Malcolm (17 August 1982). "Condolence Motion for Norman Makin". Government of Australia. Archived from the original on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  19. ^ "Was Calm in Midst of Confusion". The Evening News. No. 2978. Rockhampton. 19 March 1931. p. 7. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  20. ^ "Labof M.P.'s in Verbal War". The News. Vol. XIX, no. 2, 870. Adelaide. 29 September 1932. p. 10. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  21. ^ "The Federal Speaker". The Age. No. 23760. Melbourne. 5 June 1931. p. 9. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  22. Barrier Miner
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  23. ^ "When They Parted Company". The Advertiser. Adelaide. 22 October 1931. p. 12. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
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  25. Barrier Miner
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  26. Barrier Miner
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  27. ^ "Mr. Makin as Labor Leader?". The Advertiser. Adelaide. 29 July 1932. p. 19. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  28. ^ "Mr. Makin's Comments". The Age. No. 26374. Melbourne. 27 October 1939. p. 8. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  29. ^ McMullin, Ross (1991). The Light on the Hill: The Australian Labor Party 1891–1991, Oxford University Press, pp. 185–186.
  30. ^ "Dr Evatt Defeated in Ballot". The Evening News. No. 5770. Rockhampton. 23 October 1940. p. 2. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  31. ^ Macintyre, Stuart (2015). Australia's Boldest Experiment: War and Reconstruction in the 1940s. NewSouth Publishing. pp. 82, 84.
  32. ^ "Six Ministers Get New Jobs". The News. Vol. 44, no. 6, 712. Adelaide. 2 February 1945. p. 3. Retrieved 26 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  33. ^ Macintyre, Stuart (2015). Australia's Boldest Experiment: War and Reconstruction in the 1940s. NewSouth Publishing. p. 222.
  34. ^ Macintyre, Stuart (2015). Australia's Boldest Experiment: War and Reconstruction in the 1940s. NewSouth Publishing. p. 283.
  35. ^ "Makin Likely Minister To Washington Next Year". The Mercury. Vol. CLXII, no. 23, 415. Tasmania. 21 December 1945. p. 9. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  36. Sydney Morning Herald
    . No. 33, 703. 31 December 1945. p. 2. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  37. ^ "Siam To Pay In Rice For Her Share Of Eastern War". The Mercury. Vol. CLXIII, no. 23, 424. Tasmania. 2 January 1946. p. 2. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  38. ^ "Commissioner to Singapore". The Advertiser. Adelaide. 4 January 1946. p. 7. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  39. Canberra Times
    . Vol. 20, no. 5, 853. 10 January 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  40. Mudgee Guardian & North-western Representative
    . Mudgee. 10 January 1945. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  41. ^ "Makin Will Lead Aust. UNO Delegation; Leaves Shortly". The Telegraph. Brisbane. 9 January 1946. p. 1 (City Final Last Minute News). Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  42. Sydney Morning Herald
    . No. 33, 714. 12 January 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  43. The Mail
    . Vol. 34, no. 1, 756. Adelaide. 19 January 1946. p. 2. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  44. Daily Advertiser
    . Wagga Wagga. 12 January 1946. p. 2. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  45. ^ "Australia Gains Seat on Security Council – Dramatic Gesture By Canada To Withdraw". The Argus. No. 31, 005. Melbourne. 14 January 1946. p. 16. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  46. ^ "Makin To Lead Security Council". The Daily News. Vol. LXIV, no. 22, 080 (Home ed.). Perth. 14 January 1946. p. 3. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  47. Sydney Morning Herald
    . No. 33, 719. 18 January 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  48. Morning Bulletin
    . No. 26, 400. Rockhampton. 19 January 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  49. ^ "Makin Arranging Session to Study Appeal by Persia". The Sun. No. 11, 231. Sydney. 21 January 1946. p. 2 (Late Final Extra). Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  50. ^ "Russia Wants Inquiry on Greece, Indonesia". The Sun. No. 11, 232. Sydney. 22 January 1946. p. 1 (Late Final Extra). Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  51. Daily Examiner
    . Vol. 36, no. 9003. Grafton. 31 January 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
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  53. Daily Examiner
    . No. 9010. Grafton. 8 February 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  54. ^ "Sneering Attacks on Makin". The Australian Worker. Vol. 55, no. 7. Sydney. 13 February 1946. p. 12. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  55. Daily Advertiser
    . Wagga Wagga. 2 January 1947. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  56. ^ "Mr Makin for Washington". The Argus. No. 30, 983. Melbourne. 18 December 1945. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
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    . No. 26, 471. Rockhampton. 13 April 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  58. Daily Advertiser
    . Wagga Wagga. 6 September 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
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  61. doi:10.1080/10314619908596091
    .
  62. ^ "Mr. Makin Signs Up". Goulburn Evening Penny Post. Goulburn. 6 August 1947. p. 5. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
  63. ^ "Spender Replaces Makin As Ambassador In US". The Northern Star. Lismore. 3 March 1951. p. 5. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  64. Cairns Post
    . No. 15, 327. Cairns. 24 April 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  65. ^ "Mr. Makin to Support 'No' Campaign". The News. Vol. 57, no. 8, 762. Adelaide. 7 September 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  66. ^ "Mr. Makin Back After Eight Years". The Age. No. 30, 912. Melbourne. 31 May 1954. p. 6. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  67. ^ "Commonwealth of Australia Legislative Election of 29 May 1954". Psephos. Archived from the original on 9 July 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
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  69. ^ "Commonwealth of Australia Legislative Election of 10 December 1955". Psephos. Archived from the original on 11 July 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
  70. ^ Norman Makin (1961), Federal Labour Leaders, Union Printing, Sydney, New South Wales
  71. Canberra Times
    . Vol. 38, no. 10, 669. 17 October 1963. p. 1. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  72. ^ "Curtin was the noblest, PM says". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 732. 29 April 1974. p. 7. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  73. ^ "Makin, Norman John Oswald". It's An Honour. Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. Archived from the original on 2 September 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  74. ^ "Profile of the electoral division of Makin (SA)". Australian Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 11 October 2016. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Norman Makin (Australian politician).
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Hindmarsh
1919–1946 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives
1929–1931 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member for Sturt
1954–1955 		Succeeded by
New division Member for Bonython
1955–1963 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Ministers for the Navy
1941–1946 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Ministers for Munitions
1941–1946 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Ministers for Aircraft Production
1945–1946
Diplomatic posts
New title Head of the Australian Delegation to the United Nations
1945–1946 		Succeeded byas Permanent Representative
Preceded by
Australian Ambassador to the United States

1946–1951 		Succeeded by
New title
President of the United Nations Security Council

1946 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
President of the United Nations Security Council

January 1947 		Succeeded by
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