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Former Member Details

Mr Robert LOWE (1811 - 1892)

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Date of Birth: 04/12/1811
Place of Birth: Bingham, Nottinghamshire, England
Date of Death: 27/07/1892
Place of Death: Warlingham, Surrey, England
Parliamentary Service
Position Start End Period Notes
Member of the NSW Legislative Council 01 Jul 1848 01 Nov 1849 1 year 4 months 2 days An Elective Member of the first Legislative Council 1843 - 1856 for City of Sydney
Member of the NSW Legislative Council 01 Apr 1845 20 Jun 1848 3 years 2 months 20 days An Elective Member of the first Legislative Council 1843 - 1856 for Counties of St Vincent and Auckland
Member of the NSW Legislative Council 07 Nov 1843 09 Sep 1844 10 months 3 days A Non-Elective Member of the first Legislative Council 1843 – 1856
Political Party Activity
Community Activity
Qualifications, occupations and interests
Lawyer (barrister). Educated at Winchester. In June 1829 he matriculated at University College, Oxford (B.A 1833 and M.A 1836), where he made a name for himself as a scholar and a speaker in Union debates. In 1835 he was awarded a scholarship at Magdalen, and enrolled at Lincoln's Inn. became a successful private tutor but returned to Lincoln's Inn and was diagnosed with imminent blindness and journeyed to Australia to practise law. Became a member of the Legislative Council as an unofficial nominee. Returned to England on 27 January 1850
Military Service
Honours Received
Membership of other Parliaments & Offices Held
Member of the House of Commons for Kidderminster 1852 - 1859; for Calne 1859 - 1868; and for London University 1868 - 1880. Joint secretary of the Board of Control December 1852 - January 1855; vice-president of the Board of Trade and Paymaster-General, August 1855 - March 1858; vice-president of the committee of the Council on Education June 1859 - April 1864; Chancellor of the Exchequer, December 1869 - August 1873; Home Secretary, August 1873 - February 1874. Elevated to the House of Lords as Viscount Sherbrooke, 25 May 1880.
Local Government Activity
Personal
Second son of the Reverend Robert Lowe, prebendary of Southwell and rector of Bingham, near Nottingham, England, and his wife Ellen Pyndar. Married (1) Georgiana Orred on 26 March 1836 (died November 1884), second daughter of George Orred of Tranmere, Cheshire, and Aigburth Hall, Lancashire, and they adopted 2 children, Bobby and Polly Jamieson, offspring of a victim of a client of his. Married (2) Caroline Sneyd in February 1885, daughter of Thomas Sneyd of Ashcombe Park, Staffordshire and had no issue.
Additional Information
Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2 R. L. Knight, Illiberal Liberal: Robert Lowe in New South Wales 1842 - 1850, Melbourne, 1966

The Parliament of New South Wales acknowledges and respects the traditional lands of all Aboriginal people, and pays respects to all Elders past and present. We acknowledge the Gadigal people as the traditional custodians of the land on which the Parliament of New South Wales stands.