La Trobe: The Making of a Governor
La Trobe: The Making of a Governor cover

All downloadable
book files are provided
in Acrobat PDF

La Trobe: The Making of a Governor is available as both an e-book (downloadable PDF files) or a d-book (print-on-demand). Both versions are available for online purchase at the MUP e-store.

Charles Joseph La Trobe was Superintendent of the Port Phillip District of New South Wales and Victoria’s first Lieutenant-Governor (1851–54). His administration, which coincided with the turbulent challenges of the Victorian gold rushes, was highly controversial.

He departed from office a disappointed man whose contribution to the development of the colony was not immediately recognised. His was a vision of a cultured, economically viable and Christian society, with equality of opportunity for all. Any recognition of his achievements eluded him, especially regarding the Aboriginal people and the goldfields administration.

As Dianne Reilly Drury shows in this fascinating investigation of the man, La Trobe’s actions, ideas and behaviours during his fifteen years in office in Melbourne may be best understood by an examination of the way his character was shaped—especially by the influences on him of the Moravian faith and education, by his passion for travel and by the devotion and support of his family and friends in England and Switzerland

Chapter Synopses

 

Introduction

The Introduction to La Trobe is available as a free download.

free download

Appendices

free download

Bibliography

free download

Index

free download

Chapter 1: A Huguenot Heritage

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 2: The Young Man, 1824–1832

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 3: North America and Mexico through Anglo-European Eyes

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 4: Creation of a Civil Servant: La Trobe in the West Indies

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 5: A Position ‘Not Without Its Difficulties’: La Trobe Encounters the Port Phillip District

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 6: A Cultured European in a Distant Colony: La Trobe’s Civilising Mission

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 7: ‘Duties of No Ordinary Difficulty’: La Trobe as Administrator, 1839–1854

back to top

buy chapter

Chapter 8: The Aftermath of Office: ‘The Hedger’s Glove’

back to top

buy chapter