Unity in Autonomy: A Federal History of the Founding of the Liberal Party
Edited by Zachary Gorman
Hardback, 500 pages, $59.95
ISBN: 9781923224377
September 2024 Release
A Jeparit Book (Connor Court Publishing and The Robert Menzies Institute)
Australian liberalism is the nation’s oldest political tradition, yet
its belief in freedom of thought and action has often inhibited its
adherents from joining together in common purpose.
Resolving this dilemma was the task which lay before Robert Menzies and
the varied supporters of the liberal cause in the wake of the disastrous
1943 federal election wipeout. Their solution was Unity in Autonomy - a
new party with a clear ‘philosophy’ to inspire
and unite people behind the principles of freedom, opportunity,
enterprise and individual dignity, combined with the autonomy of state
divisions to organise and articulate liberalism in their own way. This
landmark history of the founding of the Liberal Party
is the first to explore the party’s pervasive federalism, and how
forging a structure that can uphold core principles while accommodating
local differences, has helped the party long outlive its centre-right
predecessors.
Introduction – Zachary Gorman
1. A Party with a Philosophy – David Kemp AC
2. Organisational Federalism – Andrew Kemp
3. Founding The Liberal Party of Australia: How Women Made A Difference – Anne Henderson AM
4. ‘Bold We Brag’: The New South Wales Division – Zachary Gorman
5. The Origins and Early Years of the Victorian Liberals – Stephen Wilks
6. Queensland Liberalism: The Queensland People’s Party 1943–49 - Lyndon Megarrity
7. South Australia’s Liberal and Country League in the Formation of the Liberal Party of Australia – Baden Teague
8. The Wild West: Formation of the Liberal Party of Western Australia – Sherry Sufi
9. Conservative Arcadia: Non-Labor Parties in Tasmania 1903 to 1950 – Stefan Petrow
10. The Australian Capital Territory: Liberalism’s furthest frontier – Gary Humphries AO
11. The Liberals Up North – Shane Stone AC
12. The Country Party, the foundation of the Liberal Party, and the
birth of the modern Liberal-Nationals Coalition - John Anderson AC and
Terry Barnes
Dr Zachary Gorman is the Historian and Research Manager for the Robert
Menzies Institute at the University of Melbourne. An expert on the
history of Australian liberalism, he has authored or edited eight books
covering figures like Robert Menzies, George Reid,
Joseph Cook, Joseph Carruthers and William Wentworth.
[ITEMPRICE]