Rear-Admiral Sir John Hindmarsh KH (baptised 22 May 1785 – 29 July 1860) was a naval officer and the first Governor of South Australia, from 28 December 1836 to 16 July 1838.

Family

His grandfather William Hindmarsh was a gardener in Coniscliffe, County Durham. At the time of the Battle of the Nile, Hindmarsh (senior) was the gunner of the Bellerophon,

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Hindmarsh joined the Royal Navy either in April 1793 (aged seven or eight), or on 19 July 1790 (aged five). Nelson knew of this incident and referred to it five years later when he gave Hindmarsh his promotion to lieutenant on 1 August 1803 on board the Victory.

Hindmarsh transferred to the in May 1800, and took part in the Battle of Algeciras Bay in 1801.

William Light captained the paddle steamer the Nile from London to Alexandria to join the Egyptian Navy in 1834, reaching Alexandria in September. Hindmarsh, who had prepared the steamer for delivery at Blackwall Yard on the River Thames, travelled as a passenger on the ship on its journey to Alexandria, and was made captain of the ship by November.

When the Naval General Service Medal, designed by William Wyon, was introduced in 1847, it was discovered that only two people were entitled to the medal with seven clasps (one clasp for each battle the recipient took part in): Sir John Hindmarsh and Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Alexander Gordon. The seven clasps on Hindmarsh's medal were for Java, Basque Roads 1809, Trafalgar, Gut of Gibraltar 12 July 1801 (the Second Battle of Algeciras), Nile, 17 June 1795 (known as Cornwallis's Retreat) and 1 June 1794 (the "Glorious First of June"). He was listed to be awarded a good service pension of £150 under the 1850-51 Navy Estimates. He was promoted to rear admiral on the retired list in 1856.

First Governor of South Australia

"Bluff Jack Hindmarsh", as he came to be known, arrived in Holdfast Bay on 28 December 1836, in the Buffalo. Prior to this, earlier arrivals included the Survey Brig , (carrying Colonel William Light's surveyors), , and . Initially they landed on Kangaroo Island, and sent out the team of surveyors led by Light to find a suitable place for the capital city of the new colony. Hindmarsh, who had no rights in the matter, wanted it at Port Lincoln,

Hindmarsh's proclamation on 28 December 1836 announced the commencement of colonial government and stated that Aborigines were to be treated justly and were 'equally entitled to the privileges of British subjects'. Although most South Australians have been taught that Hindmarsh's proclamation created the colony, it did not. William IV, having been empowered by an Act of Parliament in August 1834, in February 1836 Letters Patent 'Erected and Established' the Province of South Australia. No governor had the power to create colonies.

Hindmarsh was recalled to London in 1838.

Hindmarsh's Proclamation

Issued at Glenelg on 28 December 1836:

:In announcing to the Colonists of His Majesty's Province of South Australia the establishment of the Government, I hearby call upon them to conduct themselves at all times with order and quietness, duly to respect the laws, and by a course of industry and sobriety, by the practice of sound morality, and a strict observance of the ordinances of religion, to prove themselves to be worthy to be the Founders of a great and free Colony. It is also, at this time especially, my duty to apprise the Colonists of my resolution to take every lawful means for extending the same protection to the native population as to the rest of His Majesty's subjects, and of my firm determination to punish with exemplary severity all acts of violence and injustice which may in any manner be practised or attempted against the natives, who are to be considered to be as much under the safeguard of the law as the Colonists themselves, and equally entitled to the privileges of British subjects. I trust therefore, with confidence to the exercise of moderation and forbearance by all classes in their intercourse with the native inhabitants, and that they will omit no opportunity of assisting me to fulfill His Majesty's gracious and benevolent intentions towards them by promoting their advancement in civilisation, and ultimately, under the blessing of Divine Providence, their conversion to the Christian Faith.

Governor of Heligoland

In 1840, Hindmarsh was made Lieutenant-Governor of Heligoland, where he served until 7 March 1857.

Hindmarsh was knighted by Queen Victoria on 7 August 1851,

  • <!--only son-->John Hindmarsh (24 May 1820 – 4 August 1903) married Mary Long (1824 – 1871). He was a barrister of the Middle Temple and J.P. of Port Elliot, South Australia. He married again, to the widow Matilda Drew Absalom, née Leworthy ( – ) on 6 January 1872.

:*John Hindmarsh (1858–1922)

:*Alfred Humphrey Hindmarsh (18 April 1860 – 13 November 1918) was an MP and first Labour leader in New Zealand.

:*Mary Susan Hindmarsh (1862 – 1937)

:*George Felix Hindmarsh (1864–1909)

<!--H. T. Morris of Anlaby-->

Places named after John Hindmarsh

Adelaide

  • Hindmarsh Square, Adelaide is an open space public park within the City of Adelaide.
  • The Adelaide suburb of Hindmarsh was originally laid out as a speculative subdivision, the Village of Hindmarsh, on land owned by him. It was for many years the centre of a Local Government Area called the Town of Hindmarsh, which has now been amalgamated into the City of Charles Sturt
  • The Governor Hindmarsh Hotel, or "The Gov", on Port Road, Hindmarsh, a popular live music venue.
  • The Division of Hindmarsh federal electorate takes in the area near the proclamation site.

Regional SA

  • The Hindmarsh River, which flows into Encounter Bay at Victor Harbor, rises in the locality named "Hindmarsh Valley" and over a waterfall named "Hindmarsh Falls" about 15&nbsp;km from the river mouth.
  • Hindmarsh Island is near the town of Goolwa, close to the Murray Mouth.

Interstate

  • Lake Hindmarsh in the Wimmera region of western Victoria, Australia.
  • Hindmarsh Drive runs through the districts of Weston Creek and South Canberra in Canberra, Australia.

See also

  • Historical Records of Australia
  • Awake My Love - a play about Light and Hindmarsh

Notes

References

  • From Powder Monkey to Governor, the Life of Rear Admiral Sir John Hindmarsh, F Stewart Hindmarsh, Access Press 1995,
  • Letters Patent
  • The proclamation handwritten notes