James Macarthur-Onslow

Major General James William Macarthur-Onslow, VD (7 November 1867 – 17 November 1946) was a soldier, grazier and politician. The son of a prominent New South Wales family, he was commissioned in the New South Wales Mounted Rifles in 1892 and served in the Chitral Expedition, Second Boer War and the First World War. Afterwards he served in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and New South Wales Legislative Council.

Major General James Macarthur-Onslow VD
James MacArthur-Onslow c. 1930
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council
In office 4 July 1922 – 22 April 1934
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Eastern Suburbs
In office 20 March 1920 – 17 February 1922
Preceded by	New seat
Succeeded by	Hyman Goldstein
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Bondi
In office 6 December 1913 – 18 February 1920
Preceded by	New seat
Succeeded by	Seat abolished
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Waverley
In office 10 September 1907 – 6 November 1913
Preceded by	Thomas Jessep
Succeeded by	James Fingleton
Personal details
Born	7 November 1867 Camden Park Estate, New South Wales
Died	17 November 1946 (aged 79) Camden Park Estate, New South Wales
Political party	Liberal Reform Party (1910–17) Nationalist Party (1917–20) Progressive Party (1920–31) United Australia Party (1931–34)
Spouse(s)	Enid Emma Macarthur ​ (m. 1897)​
Father	Arthur Onslow
Alma mater	Trinity College, Cambridge
Military service
Allegiance	Colony of New South Wales Australia
Branch/service	New South Wales Military Forces (1892–01) Citizens Military Force (1901–25)
Years of service	1892–1925
Rank	Major General
Commands	1st Light Horse Brigade (1907–10) 2nd Light Horse Regiment (1903–07) 5th Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse (1902)
Battles/wars	Chitral Expedition Second Boer War First World War
Awards	Colonial Auxiliary Forces Officers' Decoration Mentioned in Despatches

Early life

James William Macarthur-Onslow was born on 7 November 1867 at Camden Park Estate, near Menangle, New South Wales, the son of Captain Arthur Alexander Walton Onslow and his wife Elizabeth née Macarthur, the granddaughter of wool pioneer John Macarthur. He was educated at Sydney Grammar School. After his father died in 1882 and his mother Elizabeth changed her name to Macarthur-Onslow and in 1887 she took her children to the United Kingdom to complete their education while she studied dairy farming.

Macarthur-Onslow read law at Trinity College, Cambridge, receiving Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degrees in 1890.[1] He returned to Australia in 1891. He married Enid Emma Macarthur, the granddaughter of Hannibal Hawkins Macarthur in 1897.[2] – James' great-grandfather and Enid's great-grandfather were brothers.

Military career

Macarthur-Onslow was commissioned captain of the Camden Squadron of the New South Wales Mounted Rifles in 1892. In 1894 he was selected by commandant of the military forces in New South Wales, Colonel Edward Hutton, for training in India with the 11th Hussars, the Royal Artillery, and the 1st Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps of the British Army. He served in India from 1894 to 1895, seeing active service in the Chitral Expedition.[2]

In 1900 Macarthur-Onslow made his own way to South Africa in 1900 to participate in the Second Boer War,[2] where he served as aide-de-camp to Hutton, who was now a major general. He participated in operations in the Orange Free State from February to May 1900, including the actions at Vet River and Zand River, and operations in the Transvaal from May to November 1900.[3] For this service, he was mentioned in despatches by Field Marshal Lord Roberts.[4] He returned to Australia in March 1901,[3] but was later appointed to command the 5th Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse.[5]

Macarthur-Onslow served as aide-de-camp to the Governor-General of Australia, the Earl of Hopetoun in 1902. He commanded the 2nd Light Horse Regiment from July 1903 until December 1907 when he was promoted to colonel on assuming command of the 1st Light Horse Brigade. He was on the unattached list in January 1910. Although too old for active service during the First World War, Macarthur-Onslow held the rank of colonel with the Sea Transport Service of the Australian Imperial Force, commanding troop ships travelling between Australia, the Middle East and Britain between 1915 and 1917. He was aide-de-camp to the Governor-General a second time from 1917 to 1920. He retired with the rank of major general in 1925.[2]

Political career

Macarthur-Onslow served the people of New South Wales as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the seats of Waverley from 1907 to 1913,[6] Bondi from 1913 to 1920,[7] and Eastern Suburbs from 1920 to 1922.[5][8] He was nominated to the New South Wales Legislative Council in 1922, then a lifetime appointment, and served there until 1933, but was largely inactive.[2]

Later life

Macarthur-Onslow served as a director of The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited and The Colonial Sugar Refining Company Limited. His other appointments included president of the Australian Club and director of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital 1909 until 1929.[5]

Macarthur-Onslow died at Camden Park and was survived by his wife, his son and his two daughters.[2] His papers are in the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales.[5]

Family

A small selection of other notable family members includes:

Father

• Captain Arthur Alexander Walton Onslow (1833–1882) – father[9]
• Arthur Pooley Onslow – Arthur Alexander's father
• Rosa Roberta, née Macleay – Arthur Pooley Onslow's wife (married 1832) – Arthur Alexander's mother
  • Their children, Arthur Alexander's siblings, included:
  • Sir Alexander Campbell Onslow (1842–1908)[10]
• Alexander Macleay (1767–1848)[11] – Rosa Roberta's father – Arthur Alexander's grandfather. Fathered 17 children, including:
  • William Sharp Macleay (1792–1865)[12] He never married and the heir to his estate was his brother, George W. J. Macleay
  • Sir George Macleay (1809–1891)[13]
  • James Robert (1811–1892) secretary of the commission for the suppression of the slave trade in Cape Colony.
  • Margaret (b. 1802) married Archibald Clunes Innes (1800–1857)[14] in 1829
  • Christiana Susan (b.1799) married Captain William Dumaresq (1793–1868)[15] in 1830
  • Barbara Isabella (b.1797) married Pieter Laurentz Campbell (1809–1948)[16] in 1834.
• Sir William John Macleay (1820–1891)[17] – Alexander Macleay's nephew

Mother

• Elizabeth née Macarthur (1840–1911) – mother
  • Arthur and Elizabeth had 8 children: 6 boys and 2 girls – see siblings below
  • She inherited the estates of her childless uncles Sir Edward and Sir William, and that of her father James.
  • She changed her name to Macarthur-Onslow in 1892.
• James Macarthur (1798–1867) – Elizabeth's father[18]
• John Macarthur (1767–1834) – Elizabeth's grandfather[19]
• Elizabeth Macarthur (1766–1850) – John's wife.[20] Their other children included:
• 1. Sir Edward Macarthur (1789–1872)[21] Married Sarah 1862. Died childless.
• 2.
• 3. John – lawyer – remained in England
• 4. James (1798–1867)
• 5. Sir William Macarthur (1800–1882)[22] Died unmarried.

Siblings (5 brothers, 2 sisters)

• James William Macarthur-Onslow (1867–1946)
• William died in WWI
• Emily Susan (1869–1876)
• Rosa Sibella Macarthur Onslow (1871–1943)[23] Unmarried.
• Brigadier General George Macleay Macarthur-Onslow (1875–1931) – brother
  • He had married at Manar, near Braidwood, Violet Marguerite Gordon on 16 October 1909. She and their daughter survived him.
• (Francis) Arthur Macarthur-Onslow (1879–1938) – brother (served in the South African War)
  • He was survived by his wife Sylvia Seton Raymond, née Chisholm, whom he had married on 16 May 1903 at Goulburn, and by three sons and a daughter.
  • Major General Sir Denzil Macarthur-Onslow – Arthur's eldest son

Wife

• Enid Emma Macarthur – wife
  • John Macarthur was James Macarthur-Onslow's great-grandfather
  • John's elder brother James was Enid's great-grandfather
• Hannibal Hawkins Macarthur – Enid's grandfather – John Macarthur's nephew[24]
  • Hannibal had 6 daughters and 5 sons
  • 3. George Fairfowl Macarthur (1825–1890)[25] 3 sons and 2 daughters

Children

• James Arthur (1898–1959) married Constance Herbert, disinherited and bankrupted by his father
• Helen Maud (1899–1968) married Major General Sir Reginald Stanham and inherited Camden Park
  • Brigadier Richard Quentin Macarthur-Stanham – after her death it passed to her son
• Elizabeth Enid (1903–1990) married Frederick Rothe

Notes

1. "Onslow (post Macarthur-Onslow), James William Macarthur (ONSW887JW)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
2. Walsh, G P. "Macarthur-Onslow, James William (1867–1946)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Melbourne University Press. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 2 November 2019 – via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
3. "B2455 ONSLOW James William Macarthur". National Archives of Australia. Retrieved 15 November 2009.
4. "No. 27353". The London Gazette. 10 September 1901. p. 5927.
5. "Major General James William Macarthur-Onslow (1867–1946)". Former Members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
6. Green, Antony. "Elections for Waverley". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
7. Green, Antony. "Elections for Bondi". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
8. Green, Antony. "Elections for Eastern Suburbs". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
9. Nairn, Bede. "Onslow, Arthur Alexander Walton (1833–1882)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. 5. Melbourne University Press. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 2 November 2019 – via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
10. Braybrooke, E K. "Onslow, Sir Alexander Campbell (1842–1908)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. 5. Melbourne University Press. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 2 November 2019 – via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
11. "McLeay, Alexander (1767–1848)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. 2. Melbourne University Press. 1967. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 2 November 2019 – via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
12. David S. Macmillan, 'Macleay, William Sharp (1792–1865)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp. 182–183.
13. David S. Macmillan, 'Macleay, Sir George (1809–1891)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp. 180–182.
14. E. Flowers, 'Innes, Archibald Clunes (1800–1857)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp. 3–4.
15. Nancy Gray, 'Dumaresq, William John (1793–1868)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 1, Melbourne University Press, 1966, pp. 333–335.
16. Hazel King, 'Campbell, Pieter Laurentz (1809–1848)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 1, Melbourne University Press, 1966, pp. 201–202.
17. Michael Hoare, Martha Rutledge, 'Macleay, Sir William John (1820–1891)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 5, Melbourne University Press, 1974, pp. 185–187.
18. J. D. Heydon, 'Macarthur, James (1798–1867)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University PresNs, 1967, pp. 149–153.
19. Margaret Steven, 'Macarthur, John (1767–1834)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp. 153–159.
20. Jill Conway, 'Macarthur, Elizabeth (1766–1850)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp. 144–147.
21. A. J. Hill, 'Macarthur, Sir Edward (1789–1872)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 5, Melbourne University Press, 1974, pp. 122–123.
22. Ruth Teale, 'Macarthur, Sir William (1800–1882)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 5, Melbourne University Press, 1974, pp. 124–125.
23. Caroline Simpson, 'Macarthur Onslow, Rosa Sibella (1871–1943)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 10, Melbourne University Press, 1986, pp. 198–199.
24. Bede Nairn, 'Macarthur, Hannibal Hawkins (1788–1861)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp. 147–149.
25. K. J. Cable, 'Macarthur, George Fairfowl (1825–1890)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 5, Melbourne University Press, 1974, pp. 123–124.