thumbnail|Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick Chidley Irwin
Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick Chidley Irwin, KH (22 March 1794 – 31 March 1860) was acting Governor of Western Australia from 1847 to 1848.
Born in 1794 in Drogheda, Ireland, Frederick Chidley Irwin was the son of Reverend James Irwin and Elizabeth Chamney.
In 1808, he was commissioned into the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot. He saw service in Spain and Portugal, and took part in several major battles of the Peninsula War, for which he was awarded a medal. In 1816-17 he was stationed in Cape of Good Hope, and later in Ceylon.
During Irwin's period in charge the colony experienced difficulty in its relations with the Aboriginal people, and both colonists and Aboriginals were killed in different encounters such as the Pinjarra Massacre. While there, he published The State and Position of Western Australia, the first published account of the colony. He also sought religious assistance for the colony, resulting in the arrival of the colony's first missionary, Louis Giustiniani, in 1836. In 1837, having been promoted to Major, he returned to Western Australia, and was made permanent Commandant of the Western Australian Forces. He was further promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel in 1845.
On the death of Governor Andrew Clarke in February 1847, Irwin took office as acting Governor until the arrival of the new governor, Charles Fitzgerald, in August 1848. His administration was extremely unpopular with the settlers of Western Australia, due to both the poor financial state of the colony and his stern character,. She died five weeks later on 26 August 1834; they had no children.
Irwin's second marriage was to Elizabeth Courthope. They married on 28 December 1836 at Saint Clement Danes, Westminster, London. Elizabeth outlived her husband by over 20 years. She was a sister of auditor-general of Western Australia, Edward Lane Courthope. Irwin and Courthope had at least twelve children, nine of which who lived to adulthood:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+
!Name
!Date of birth
!Place of birth
!Marriage and children
!Date of death
!Place of death
!Comments
|-
|Frederick Courthope Irwin
|31 Jan 1838
|At sea
Baptised in Perth, WA, Aus
| -
|24 Aug 1861
|Nasirabad, India
|Lieutenant of the British army.
Died of cholera aged 23.
|-
|James Chamney Irwin
|9 Jul 1839
|Guildford, WA, Aus
|Mary Keeling
details unknown
|9 Sep 1877
|Wycheproof, Victoria
|
|-
|John Langhorne Irwin
|5 Apr 1841
|WA, Aus
|Mary Maloney
- Emma Langhorne Irwin
- Frederick Chidley Irwin
|12 Apr 1882
|Echuca,
Victoria
|
|-
|Sydney Graves Irwin
|1843
|Upper Swan, WA, Aus
| -
|6 Mar 1847
|Perth, Western Australia
|Died of meningitis aged 4
|-
|Emma Jane Irwin
|1845
|Upper Swan, WA, Aus
|Rev. John Julius Baker
Married 1867 England
- George Frederick Baker
- Dr Clement John Baker
- Caroline Elizabeth Baker
- Arthur William Baker
- Mabel Emma Baker
- Sophy Conyers Baker
- Francis Sidney Baker
|24 May 1923
|Hawthorn, Sussex, England
|Resided in Little Hallingbury, Essex until
husband's death then moved to Sussex.
|-
|Andrew Clarke Irwin
|1846
|WA, Aus
|Anna Julia Baker
Married 1875 India
(Sister of Rev. J J Baker)
- Sidney Conyers Irwin
- Guy Irwin
- George Chidley Irwin
- John Langhorne Irwin
- Margaret Sophy Irwin
- Elizabeth Julia Irwin
- Margaret Emma Faith Irwin
|20 Feb 1902
|Edmonton, Middlesex, Eng
|East India Merchant
|-
|Sidney Thomas Irwin
|1848
|WA, Aus
|Never married
|8 Sep 1911
|Bristol, England
|Schoolmaster.
Raised his niece Margaret
after her parents died
|-
|Elizabeth Mary Irwin
|1849
|Henley Brook, WA, Aus
|Frederick Haller Stevens
Married 1886 England
|12 Jul 1926
|Bristol, England
|Stevens was a mathematics teacher
who worked with Sidney Irwin
|-
|Harriet Frances Irwin
|8 Jul 1851
|Perth, WA, Aus
|Never married
|29 Apr 1915
|Bristol, England
|
|-
|Margaret Ellen Irwin
|Apr 1853
|Perth, WA, Aus
| -
|22 Nov 1853
|Perth, WA, Aus
|Aged 7 months
|-
|Arthur William Irwin
|Jun 1854
|Eng
| -
|29 Nov 1854
|Bath, Somerset, Eng
|Aged 5 months
|-
|Emily Agnes Irwin
|Apr 1857
|Eckington, Worcestershire, Eng
|Thomas Hastings Henry Crossley
Married 1883 England
- Guy Hastings Irwin Crossley
|3 Jun 1940
|Eastbourne, Sussex, Eng
|Crossley's mother was
Elizabeth Helen Irwin
|}
Death and legacy
Irwin retired from the army in 1854 and returned to the United Kingdom in 1856, where he died in Cheltenham in 1860.
In 1839 the explorer George Grey named the Irwin River after him while on his second disastrous exploration expedition along the Western Australian coast.
In 1948 the Irwin Army Barracks in Karrakatta were named after him, in recognition of his place in Western Australia's military history.
In 1991 the Frederick Irwin Anglican School was opened and named in honour of his contributions to Western Australia.