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William Champ
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William Thomas Napier Champ (15 April 1808 – 25 August 1892) was the first Premier of Tasmania.
Champ was born in Maldon, Essex, England. He was a manager of the Port Arthur, Tasmania convict site and a colonial secretary to Governor Denison before becoming Premier.
In the 1850s, the British parliament passed legislation that would give Tasmania a responsible 'independent' government. This created the Tasmanian House of Assembly. The first elections for the Tasmanian House of Assembly took place in 1856. Prior to this Champ was a member of the Tasmanian Legislative Council chosen by the Governor from 1852 until 1856. He was elected as the member for Launceston in the new Tasmanian House of Assembly and became Premier in the first responsible government.
Champ held office from 1 November 1856 until 26 February 1857. Shortly into his term, his ministry collapsed and he was unable to govern. He was briefly opposition leader in 1857 but resigned shortly after. Leaving Tasmania, he later entered politics in Victoria, being a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly from 1871 until 1873. He died in Melbourne, Victoria.
| Preceded by New Creation |
Premier of Tasmania 1856-1857 |
Succeeded by Thomas Gregson |
| Premiers of Tasmania |  |
|---|---|
| Champ | Gregson | Weston | Smith | Chapman | Whyte | Dry | Wilson | Innes | Kennerley | Reibey | Fysh | Giblin | Crowther | Douglas | Agnew | Dobson | Braddon | E. Lewis | Propsting | Evans | Earle | Solomon | Lee | Hayes | Lyons | McPhee | Ogilvie | Dwyer-Gray | Cosgrove | Brooker | Reece | Bethune | Neilson | Lowe | Holgate | Gray | Field | Groom | Rundle | Bacon | Lennon | |