Alfred Deakin

Alfred Deakin was born on August 3, 1856, in Melbourne, Victoria. A gifted barrister, journalist, and mystical thinker, Deakin was elected to the Victorian Parliament at age twenty-three, pioneering state irrigation schemes after studying water management in California and India.

As Australia's second Prime Minister (serving three terms: 1903–1904, 1905–1908, 1909–1910), Deakin was the master builder of Australia's foundational Commonwealth institutions. He created the High Court of Australia, established the Australian Court of Conciliation and Arbitration, passed the Old-Age Pensions Act, and founded the Royal Australian Navy. His secret political diaries remain among the treasures of Australian political historiography.