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Zachary Gorman, ‘Australia’s oldest political tradition’ The founding of the Liberal Party as an expression of Australian liberalism

Liberalism is Australia’s oldest political tradition. Even before the advent of democracy in the Australian colonies, Australian liberals fought key political battles that secured equal rights for ex-convicts, trial by jury, religious freedom, and which prevented the establishment of a bunyip aristocracy. By the time they had won the right to democracy in 1856, virtually every politician called themselves liberal and a pervasively liberal order was imposed upon the continent. In the early 20th century this liberal epoch would be eclipsed by the First World War and the onset of the Great Depression, but Menzies was able to tap into the nation’s history and culture to recall the liberal dream under a new political banner. The Liberal Party of Australia has since been Australia’s most successful political party, and a large reason for this is that it can draw upon values deeply imprinted on the Australian psyche.

In this week’s episode of the Afternoon Light podcast, Robert Menzies Institute CEO Georgina Downer talks to the Institute’s Academic Coordinator Dr Zachary Gorman, who explores the founding of the Liberal Party as a key moment in the broader history of Australian liberalism.

Dr Zachary Gorman is the Academic Coordinator at the Robert Menzies Institute. A professional historian who has specialised in the history of Australian liberalism, he has been working as a researcher and academic since 2013, including several years at the University of Wollongong where he received his PhD. He has authored two books: Sir Joseph Carruthers: Founder of the New South Wales Liberal Party, which traces how Australian liberalism came to sit on the centre-right of politics, and Summoning Magna Carta: Freedom’s Symbol Over a Millennium, an examination of the importance of history & culture in securing individual rights. He also edited the 250th anniversary edition of Captain James Cook, R.N.: 150 Years After and The Young Menzies: Success, Failure, resilience 1894-1942, and has been published in a wide-range of peer reviewed academic journals.