By Greg Blood

SIR JOHN GREY GORTON GCMG AC CH

LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

19^th Prime Minister: 1968-1971

John Grey Gorton became prime minister with the unexpected tragic death of Harold Holt. In his three years as prime minister, Gorton highlighted that community sport was important for health, social cohesion and assimilation. This view most likely was formed in his mid-twenties when he moved to rural Victoria to take over managing his family’s orchard. During this period, pre- and post-World War Two, he participated on local Australian football, cricket and tennis competitions. He continued the philosophy of Menzies and Holt government’s that it should have limited involvement in sport.

Birth: 9 September 1911, Melbourne – Death: 19 May 2002, Sydney

Political Appointments

• Federal Senator for Victoria: 10 December 1949 – 1 February 1968
• Federal Member for Higgins, Victoria: 24 February 1968 – 11 November 1975
• Leader of the Federal Parliamentary Liberal Party of Australia: 10 March 1971 – 20 December 1972
• Ministries: Minister for the Navy 10 December 1958 – 18 December 1963 ; Minister Assisting the Minister for External Affairs  23 March 1960 – 18 December 1963 ; Minister for the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation 16 February 1962 – 18 December 1963 ; Minister for the Interior 18 December 1963 – 4 March 1964 ; Minister for Works 18 December 1963 – 28 February 1967 ; Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Commonwealth activities in Education and Research 18 December 1963 – 14 December 1966 ; Minister for Education and Science 14 December 1966 – 28 February 1968 ; Minister for Defence 10 March 1971 – 13 August 1971
• Prime Minister: 10 January 1968 – 10 March 1971

Gorton was born out of wedlock to Alice Sinn and John Rose Gorton. His first few years were in Port Melbourne, living with his mother’s parents due his parents’ frequent trips overseas. His father was married to Kathleen O’Brien who refused to divorce When he was five, his parents moved to Sydney and he attended Edgecliff Preparatory School. His birth mother Alice Sinn died of tuberculosis in 1920 and he was sent to live with his father’s estranged wife Kathleen who lived in Killara, Sydney. He attended Headfort College and then Sydney Church of England Grammar School (Shore) from 1924 to 1926. He failed his Intermediate certificate at his first attempt but was regarded as good at sport.

Gorton spent his school holidays at his father’s citrus orchard at Kangaroo Flat near Mystic Park, Victoria. He attended Geelong Grammar from 1927 to 1930 where he represented the school at Associated Schools athletics and was a member of Australian football XXVIII and first eights rowing. The Barwon Rowing Club reported on his Geelong Grammar School eights performance at the 1930 Head of the River where it clashed oars with Wesley College leading it being disqualified. It stated:

“The sympathies of the whole crowd went out to the Geelong boys, whose months of hard work had gone for nought. In trying to avoid the dead water on the north bank their cox had kept too far out. But it wasn’t the cox, D. L. Green: the fault lay with 7 seat, one John G. Gorton. Years later Gorton could still feel the pain he caused and experienced during the Head of River race in 1930. Gorton’s oar dislodged from its rowlock at the start of the final; and, as the cox failed in his struggle to hold his line, the Geelong Grammar School boat came in sharply, collided with Wesley, and was disqualified.” [2]

Gorton passed the exam to enter Brasenose College, Oxford University and commenced a degree covering history, politics and economics. In 1932, he was a member and captain of Brasenose College Boat Club crew that won the Oxford University Boat Club fours. Stanley Bruce, prime minister from 1923 to 1929, rowed for Cambridge University.

Whilst overseas, he met his future wife Bettina Brown. The death of his father in 1936 led Gorton returning to Australia to managing the family citrus orchard.  On 8 November 1940, Gorton enlisted as a pilot in the RAAF. During World War Two, he survived four accidents that could have killed him but one accident left him with facial injuries. Gorton was discharged in December 1944 and returned to run the family orchard. 

In 1950, he was elected a Liberal Party Senator for Victoria in the Australian Senate. From 1958 to 1968, he held a range of ministries in the Menzies and Holt Government’s. He was elected the 19th prime minister with the sudden death of Harold Holt in December 1967. He was replaced by William McMahon as prime minister in 1971 after resigning due to a tied confidence vote in his leadership.

In his later time in Parliament, Gorton played in the annual press gallery versus politicians cricket matches in Canberra. In the 1970 match a reporter remarked that he was “looking like overgrown schoolboy, made seven” [3] and in 1971 after losing the prime ministership, The Bulletin noted that besides batting he bowled “slow bobby, lobs”. [4]

Gorton remained in Parliament until November 1975.

Australian football

Gorton played Australian football at Geelong Grammar and in local competitions near the family orchard until the age of 37. He stated that he gave up playing football due to constant injuries and being sore between weekly matches.

As North Melbourne VFL Club’s number one ticket holder, he addressed the North Melbourne Grand Breakfast in 1972. At the time, the Club had not won a VFL premiership but had recently appointed Ron Barassi, Melbourne premiership player and Carlton premiership coach, as its head coach in 1973. Gorton in his brief speech to the breakfast highlighted the sacrifices that had to be made to be successful in football and life. He said:

“If you want to be a league footballer, you have got to train, you have got to give up smoking, you have got to give up smoking, you also have to give up everything” [5]

Role of Sport

Gorton as prime minister made several statements highlighting his view of the role of sport in Australian society particularly in relation to health, migrants and First Nations people. In opening the Woy Woy’s Olympic Swimming Pool on 19 October 1968, he said:

“There must be room along the way for play and laughter and gaiety and song as well as the hard work; and for the provision of sporting facilities. such as this pool, or football ovals or the beaches that you have and I hope will preserve. These are the things which give  to our growing generation that opportunity for healthy recreation, that opportunity for building up their muscles which will in turn enable them to turn their minds and efforts to building a country and advancing it for their children.” [6]

When addressing the National Press Club in Ottawa, Canada in March 1969, he highlighted the important role of sport in the community particularly related to assimilation:

“But we do look for two things. We do look to see that such people integrate with the Australian community; in other words that they will belong to the local football club or the local tennis club and have a circle of friends amongst the community in which they live rather than communities of their own. This is of pretty great significance, we think. I believe that at the moment it is true to say there is less racial feeling in
Australia than almost any other country that I know.” [7]

In his 1969 Election Policy speech, Gorton stated its importance to First Nations people and sport. He stated ““We shall continue to foster Aboriginal culture and to give them a chance to participate in sport.” [8] Prior to this statement, in October 1968, he is said to have assisted First Nations Carlton footballer Syd Jackson in overcoming difficulties in obtaining a passport to travel with the Australian football’s overseas touring team the “Galahs‘ . Jackson had initially been denied a passport as I did not know his birth date and place of birth. Jackson was removed from his parents as a three-year-old. He was as a member of the “Stolen Generation“. Whilst visiting Bunbury, Western Australia, Jackson’s home town Gorton was informed of the passport issue and it was reported that Gorton said “I’ll fix it” and “It was one of those blasted bits of red-tape.”  [9]

South Africa and Apartheid

Gorton followed previous Menzies and Holt Government’s view regarding sport and politics not mixing. On June 1 1970, Gorton in a speech on South African sporting teams to the House of Representatives he stated:

“I think it would be a retrograde step if governments- this Government or any government in Australia- were to intervene in this matter and to say that they would not permit sporting fixtures to take place because they did not like the colour of some particular government abroad or because they did not like the policies that some particular governments followed” [10]

This issue became more contentious in the following McMahon Government with community protests against visiting South African sporting teams.

Olympic Games

As with previous Australian Governments, the Gorton Government supported the Australian Olympic Team to participate at the 1968 Mexico Olympics with a grant of $60,000. [11] In April 1969, in replying to a question from opposition leader Gough Whitlam, Gorton believed that Waltzing Matilda not God Save The Queen should be played at the Olympic Games for Australian victories.

It is my personal opinion, however, that ‘Waltzing Matilda is our national song. I feel it would be appropriate as a salute on occasions not involving the monarchy, such as the arrival at a ceremonial function of an Australian Prime Minister, or the presentation of a medal to an Australian athlete at the Olympic Games. [12]

Conclusion

Gorton’s brief time as prime minister meant that he had little impact on sport policy. However, he continued the conservative view that politics and sport should not mix. His statements on sport highlighted its role in health, community, social cohesion and assimilation.

Images

• John Gorton with the First Eight, Geelong Grammar School, Corio, Victoria, 1930, National Library of Australia
• John Gorton, The Prime Minister of Australia tries his hand as a “boatie” Peter Moscatt enjoys the row. The Prime Minister officially opened the extensions to the Surf Club House on 9 November 1968.
• John Gorton meeting Indian cricket team 19 January 1968
• John Goirton Batting and Bowing Press Gallery v Politicians Cricket Match in 1971

References

1. Online biographies – Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate, National Archives of Australia, Museum of Australian Democracy

2. The Barwon Boy in the Boat Race, Barwon Rowing Club

3. Douglas Lockwood, The Drum,  Papua New Guinea Post-Courier, 24 March 1970, p. 3

4. Marion MacDonald, A Nice Day’s Cricket, The Bulletin, 6 November 1971, p.26-27

5. John Gorton addressing the North Melbourne Football Club on 7 October 1972, Available online through Trove, National Library of Australia.

6, John Gorton, Speech in Opening of Olympic Swimming Pool Woy Woy, NSW, 19 October 1968, PM Transcripts.

7. John Gorton,  Press Conference Given at The National Press Club, Ottawa, 3 April 1969, PM Transcripts.

8. John Gorton, Federal Election 1969 Policy Speech, October 8, 1969

9. Sean Gorman, Syd Jackson’s Epic Journey Will Leave You ‘Slack-jawed and in Awe’, AFL website, 21 August 2020

10. John Gorton, South African Sporting Teams, House of Representatives Hansard, 2 June 1970

11. House of Representatives Standing Committee on Expenditure, The way we p(l)ay : Commonwealth assistance for sport and recreation / report from the November 1983

12. John Gorton, Australian National Anthem, House of Representatives Hansard, 30 April 1969