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Article: Edmund Barton. (Book Reviews).(Review)
- Article from:
- Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society
- Article date:
- December 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Royal Australian Historical Society. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Geoffrey Bolton, Edmund Barton, St Leonards, 2000, Allen & Unwin, ISBN 1 865 08409 3, RRP $39.95.
In the weeks and months preceding celebrations for the Centenary of Federation, Australians were teased by a national advertising campaign which asked, almost in admonishment, `What sort of nation would forget the name of its first Prime Minister?' Opinion polls pointed to Australians' greater familiarity with the names of the American founding fathers than with the colonial statesmen who worked tirelessly in convincing the people to set aside their differences and unite as `one indissoluble Commonwealth' on 1 January 1901. The subtext of the message was easily ...