William Morris Hughes

William Morris Hughes (1862-1952), Australian politician who served as prime minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923. Hughes is noted for having led both the Australian Labor Party and the chief parties opposing it.

Born in London, England, Hughes immigrated to Queensland in 1884 and did a variety of jobs before moving to Sydney, where he opened a secondhand bookshop. Becoming active in the Labor Party, he was elected to the New South Wales legislature in 1894 and in 1901 transferred to the federal House of Representatives. During this period he had also been studying law, and he was admitted to the bar in 1903. He went on to serve as attorney general under Andrew Fisher, succeeding him as prime minister in 1915. In 1916 Hughes was expelled from the Labor Party, partly because of his overbearing personality and partly because of his campaign, contrary to party policy, in favor of conscription. He remained prime minister, however, supported by other ex-Labor members and the Liberal Party. These two groups united to form the Nationalist Party, which Hughes led to victory in 1917 and again in 1919. After the 1922 election resulted in a hung parliament, Hughes was replaced as prime minister. In 1929 his refusal to support industrial relations legislation brought the government down, and he was consequently expelled from the Nationalist Party. He then joined its successor, the United Australia Party, and held various ministerial posts, but was expelled in 1944 for disobeying party instructions. The following year he joined the new Liberal Party. One of the most controversial figures in the history of Australian politics, Hughes achieved a record span of over 50 years of parliamentary service.