Alfred Deakin was born in Collingwood, Victoria in 1856, the younger child of William and Sarah Deakin (nee Bill). He was educated at a boarding school in Kyneton and South Yarra and, from 1864, at Melbourne Church of England Grammar School. He then studied law at the University of Melbourne, while also working as a schoolteacher and tutor, and was admitted to the Victorian Bar in 1877. In the next few years he worked mainly as a journalist and was President of the Victorian Association of Spiritualists.
 
In February 1879, with the support of David Syme (owner of 'The Age'), Deakin was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly. He initially represented West Bourke (1879-89) and later Essendon and Flemington (1889-1900). In Victorian politics, he took a close interest in factory legislation, irrigation and public ownership of natural waters. He was Solicitor-General for a short time, Commissioner for Public Works (1883-86), Chief Secretary (1886-90) and Victoria's main representative at the 1887 Colonial Conference in London. When the Government was defeated in 1890, Deakin became a prominent backbencher and returned to practice law.
 
In the 1890s, Deakin played a significant part in the Federation movement and the drafting of the Constitution. He was a Victorian representative at all three Federal Conventions (Melbourne, 1890; Sydney, 1891; 1897-98) and Chairman of the Federation League of Victoria (1894). Seen as a progressive liberal and Australian nationalist, he preferred to influence rather than lead. In 1900, as Victorian delegate, he went to London to secure the passage of the Constitution Bill through the Imperial Parliament. He also supported the appointment of Edmund Barton as first Prime Minister. 

Deakin was elected to the first Federal Parliament as Member for Ballaarat. He was Attorney-General in the Barton Ministry, in which capacity he influenced the establishment of the High Court, the Commonwealth Public Service and the first Commonwealth departments. He also helped select the shadow cabinet and acted as Prime Minister in Barton's absence (May-October 1902).
 
The first decade of federal Parliament was dominated by instability (to which Deakin contributed) and three political parties:- Protectionist (Liberal), Free Traders and Labor. In September 1903, when Barton moved to the High Court, Deakin succeeded him as Prime Minister and Minister for External Affairs in a Protectionist Government. He resigned in April 1904. There followed two short periods of government by Fisher's Labor Party and Reid's Free Traders before Deakin returned to office in July 1905. In his second and most productive Ministry he was again both Prime Minister and Minister for External Affairs (1905-08). In this period, he was mainly concerned with economic protection, introduction of the basic wage and the old age pension, colonial interests in the South West Pacific (particularly New Hebrides and British New Guinea) and the development of an independent foreign policy. In 1907 he represented Australia at the Imperial Conference in London, but returned with personal health problems and difficulties in the relationship between his own party and Labor. 

Fisher's Labor Party returned to Government in November 1908 and in early 1909 Deakin became Leader of the Opposition. He returned to office as Prime Minister once more in June that year, this time in a Fusion Government comprising his own Liberal-Protectionists and some Free Traders. The third Deakin Ministry initiated legislation to transfer the Northern Territory to the Commonwealth and establish the High Commission in London, and arranged the visit of Lord Kitchener to advise on defence matters. However, the Government survived only until April 1910 when it was defeated in a general election. Deakin again became Leader of the Opposition, but retired in early 1913 after 33 years in politics.

In the Cook Government, Deakin declined an offer to be the first Chairman of the Inter-State Commission but accepted Chairmanship of the Royal Commission on Food Supplies and on Trade and Industry during the War (1914). In his long career, Deakin also declined a Knighthood (1887) and Privy Councillorship (1900 and again in 1907). He died in Melbourne on 7 October 1919 and is buried in St Kilda Cemetery.

Deakin had married Elizabeth Martha Anne (Pattie) Browne on 3 April 1882 and they had three children. Pattie Deakin (CP 932) died on 30 December 1934.

Publications

A New Pilgrim's Progress purporting to be given by John Bunyan (Melbourne, Terry, 1877)

Irrigated India: an Australian view of India and Ceylon, their irrigation and agriculture (London, W Thacker and Co, 1893)

Temple and Tomb in India (Melbourne, Melville, Mullen and Slade, 1893)

The Federal Story (Melbourne, Robertson and Mullens, 1944)

The Crisis in Victorian Politics, 1879-1881 (Melbourne University Press, 1957)

Deakin also contributed many articles to 'The Age' (from 1878), 'Leader', Morning Post' (London, as 'Sydney correspondent', 1900) and 'National Review' (London, 1904-05)

Sources

Australian Dictionary of Biography, Vol 8, 1891-1939, pp 248-256

Commonwealth Parliamentary Handbook, 3rd ed, 1901-1920, p 92

Macintyre, Stuart, 'Alfred Deakin' in M Grattan (ed), Australian Prime Ministers, (Sydney, New Holland, 2000), pp 36-53

Unregistered agencies associated with person

1879-1900: CO 6, Colony of Victoria, Legislative Assembly, member for West Bourke [positions held include Solicitor

General, Commissioner for Public Works, Minister of Water

Supply, Minister for Health]

1887 : Colonial Conference 1887

1890 : Australasian Federation Conference 1890