Background
Born in London, Denman was the son of Richard Denman, a court clerk and Helen Mary McMicking.
politician governor-general of Australia
Born in London, Denman was the son of Richard Denman, a court clerk and Helen Mary McMicking.
He was educated at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, intending a military career, but in 1894 unexpectedly inherited a peerage from his great-uncle and was able to take his seat in the House of Lords on his 21st birthday the following year.
Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman, Lord Chief Justice of the King"s Bench, was his great-grandfather. He continued his military career in the Royal Scots, where he was promoted to lieutenant on 4 March 1896, but resigned in May 1899 and was placed in the Reserve. Returning to the army on the outbreak of the Second Boer War, Lord Denman was on 3 February 1900 commissioned as a lieutenant of the 11th Battalion, Imperial Yeomanry.
He was promoted to captain in the battalion on 18 July 1900, and the following year was appointed a captain in the Middlesex (Duke of Cambridge´s Hussars) Imperial Yeomanry, followed by a promotion to major on 30 April 1902.
Denman was then able to devote his time to public life and served in the Liberal administrations of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and H. H. Asquith as a Lord-in-Waiting (government whip in the House of Lords) from 1905 to 1907 and as Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (government chief whip in the House of Lords) between 1907 and 1911. He was admitted to the Privy Council in 1907.
The Colonial Secretary offered Denman the post of of Australia to get him out of domestic politics. The Denmans arrived in Melbourne on 31 July 1911.
They found Andrew Fisher"s Labor government firmly in control.
As the most politically liberal yet appointed, he got on well with the Labor ministers, and his modesty and generosity with his father-in-law"s money made him popular with the public. In October 1912, the New South Wales Premier, James McGowen "evicted" him from Government House, Sydney. On 12 March 1913, he inaugurated the site of the future national capital and Lady Denman formally announced its name, Canberra.
But Denman found that he had less real political influence than any previous The appointment of an Australian High Commissioner in London further reduced the "s diplomatic role.
In May 1913 the Labor government was unexpectedly defeated at a general election by Joseph Cook"s Liberals. But Labor retained control of the Senate and was determined to frustrate Cook"s government at every turn.
By early 1914 it was clear that a constitutional crisis was developing. He felt he lacked the strength to deal with the political situation, and in May 1914 he resigned.
With the outbreak of the Great War, Denman commanded a Yeomanry regiment from 1914 until 1915.