The Making of the Australian Constitution has long been a classic in the fields of constitutional law, Australian politics and history. Written in a wry and captivating style, it enlivens the characters and issues of a critical period in Australia’s formation, making it reading for pleasure as well as for learning.
First published in 1972, it provided a historical anchor-point beneath the waves of constitutional litigation that were to follow. Since the High Court permitted reference to the Convention Debates in 1988, it has become an essential reference work for barristers. It is regularly cited by the High Court and is the key to understanding the Commonwealth Constitution in its historical and political context.
The Constitution and Government of Australia, 1788 to 1919 provides a detailed perspective of how the Constitution operated in the first two decades after federation.
Between 1910 and 1919, William Pitt Cobbett, former Professor of Law and Dean of the Sydney Law School, wrote what would become his great opus on the Constitution and Government of Australia but the manuscript was never published. Its publication had been frustrated in the period following his death by the High Court’s judgment in the Engineers Case in 1920 and the new constitutional order it created. A century later, Professor Anne Twomey has edited Cobbett’s original manuscript, taking care to preserve the integrity of his work.
The Making of the Australian Constitution
1 The Federal Idea, 1847-1889
2 A Conference in Melbourne, 1890
3 A ‘Most August Assembly’, Sydney, 1891
4 Griffith’s First Draft
5 A Constitution for a Commonwealth
6 ‘Put By’, 1891-1897
7 Convention in Adelaide, 1897
8 Adelaide: the Secret Committees
9 Crisis and Compromise
10 From Adelaide to Sydney, 1897
11 Sydney in Spring, 1897
12 Blackmore’s Convention
13 Melbourne in Summer, 1898
14 The Convention Rises
15 Reid and the Premiers, 1899
16 Clause 74, London, 1900
17 The Framers and their Constitution
Appendices
1 Versions of the Commonwealth Bill, 1890-1900
2 Clark’s Draft, 1891: Federal Powers
3 Kingston’s Draft, 1891
4 Matters Submitted to Constitutional Committee, 1891
5 Decisions of Constitutional Committee, 1891
6 Some Versions of Clause 74, 1900
7 The Constitution Act, 1900
8 Federal Meetings: Members and Officers, 1890-1900
The Constitution and Government of Australia, 1788 to 1919
William Pitt Cobbett – Biographical Note
Pitt Cobbett – A Portrait of Australia’s Constitution at 1919
Part I: The Colonial History of Australia
1. The British Occupation and Subdivision of Australia
2. The Government of the Australian Colonies
3. The Foundations of the Commonwealth
4. The Constitution of the Commonwealth
5. The Commonwealth as a United Society
Part II: Imperial Factors in Australian Government
6. The Nature and Sources of Imperial Control
7. The Status and Powers of the Colonial Legislatures
8. Subjects of Imperial Control, and the Question of Imperial Consolidation
Part III: The Federal Government
9. The Office of the Governor-General
10. The Federal Parliament
11. The Federal Electoral System
12. The Powers of the Federal Parliament
13. Legislative Methods and Procedure
14. The Executive Government of the Commonwealth
15. The Federal Judicature
Part IV: The States and the Federal Territories
16. The Constitutional Position and Powers of the States
17. The Relation of the States and the Commonwealth
18. The Relations of the States Inter Se
19. The Federal Territories
