Book Review John Curtin

Another book which I should have read before is the David Day biography of John Curtin.

Curtin is seen by most as one of our greatest Prime Ministers although war time leaders always have an advantage of others.

Curtin was a working class intellectual. He got this through his voracious reading.He also knew people of high intellects from whom he learnt as well.

Few people know he played and loved Aussie Rules and Cricket. On the few times he went to England he watched cricket. Unlike Menzies he needed the break as he pushed himself very hard.

He had a very strong work ethic. While clearly bot a christian I think it is likely he was a deist.

Like any political leader he had to ditch policies he previously championed as he wanted to win (and then maintain) Government.

He was not an alcoholic more a cheap drunk and got drunk when he had promised he would not drink went out of the public gaze.
He had many battles with Churchill, like Menzies before him, however unlike Churchill he did not hold grudges.
Finally his early death was tragic for a number of reasons. He worked far too hard and 'felt' the pain of possible mishaps more than others.
He clearly was a great leader. Neither Forde, Chifley nor Evatt were. At best we can say Forde was an able Deputy leader but hopeless acting leader. Chifley was a grand treasurer but lacked the political nous of Curtin as we saw in Bank Nationalisation.
If still leading Australia may have gotten the reconstruction it needed,

Hence the newly founded Liberal party won in 1949 when clearly they had no idea of what to do. Indeed from 1949-51 they were clearly much worse that Whitlam given the world economy.