Joh Bjelke-Petersen

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Died” 23 APR 2005 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

Died: 23 April 2005(2005-04-23) (aged 94) Kingaroy, Queensland, Australia

Supports refining the DEAT event from the bare year 2005 to the exact date and to Kingaroy. Retrieved 2026-08-28.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Occupation (Peanut farmer and land-clearing contractor)” FROM 1933 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"In 1933, Bjelke-Petersen began work land-clearing and peanut farming on the family's newly acquired second property. His efforts eventually allowed him to begin work as a contract land-clearer and to acquire further capital which he invested in farm equipment and natural resource exploration. He developed a technique for quickly clearing scrub by connecting a heavy anchor chain between two bulldozers. By the time he was 30, he was a prosperous farmer and businessman." ... "Bjelke-Petersen left formal schooling at age 14 to work with his mother on the farm"

The family property 'Bethany' was near Kingaroy; placeId 509 (Kingaroy) is the nearest existing place row.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Councillor, Kingaroy Shire Council” 1946 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"Bjelke-Petersen was elected to the Kingaroy Shire Council in 1946 and to the Queensland Legislative Assembly at the 1947 state election."

Local-government office preceding his state parliamentary career.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Member for Nanango, Queensland Legislative Assembly” FROM 1947 TO 1950 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"He would serve in state parliament for over 40 years, holding the seats of Nanango (1947–1950) and Barambah (1950–1987)." ... "was elected a year later at age 36, going on to give regular radio talks and becoming secretary of the local Nationals branch. He would hold this seat, renamed Barambah in 1950, for the next 40 years. The Labor Party had held power in Queensland since 1932 and Bjelke-Petersen spent eleven years as an opposition member."

Nanango and Barambah are the same seat, renamed in 1950; recorded as two entries to match the parliamentary register convention.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Member for Barambah, Queensland Legislative Assembly” FROM 1950 TO 1987 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"He would serve in state parliament for over 40 years, holding the seats of Nanango (1947–1950) and Barambah (1950–1987)." ... "He would hold this seat, renamed Barambah in 1950, for the next 40 years."

Barambah is the successor name of the Nanango electorate he first won in 1947.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Minister for Works and Housing, Queensland” FROM 1963 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"In 1963 Nicklin appointed Bjelke-Petersen as minister for works and housing, a portfolio that gave him the opportunity to bestow favours and earn the loyalty of backbenchers by approving construction of schools, police stations and public housing in their electorates. At various times, he also served as acting minister for education, police, Aboriginal and Island Affairs, local government and conservation and labour and industry. He would serve in cabinet without interruption until his retirement in 1987."

His first ministerial office; the acting portfolios are listed without dates in the source, so none are asserted here.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Premier of Queensland” FROM 8 AUG 1968 TO 1 DEC 1987 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"On 31 July 1968, after just seven months in office, Pizzey suffered a heart attack and died." ... "Matters were brought to a head when Bjelke-Petersen—elected Country Party leader within days of Pizzey's death—threatened to pull the Country Party out of the Coalition unless he became Premier. After seven days Chalk accepted the inevitable, and Bjelke-Petersen was sworn in as Premier on 8 August 1968. He remained Police Minister." ... "He would lead the party to seven consecutive election victories, governing in coalition with the Liberal Party until 1983." ... "over the course of his 19 years as premier he tripled the number of Country/National voters and doubled the party's percentage vote." ... "He was renowned for his political longevity and the institutional corruption that pervaded his government."

Start date, manner of accession, retention of the police portfolio, and length and electoral record of his tenure.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Premier of Queensland” FROM 8 AUG 1968 TO 1 DEC 1987 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"His first three electoral victories saw his party benefit from a system of rural malapportionment later nicknamed the \"Bjelkemander\", which allowed him to remain premier despite frequently receiving a smaller number of votes than the state's two other major parties." ... "In 1972, Bjelke-Petersen strengthened the system to favour his own party. To the three existing electoral zones—metropolitan Brisbane, provincial and rural—was added a fourth zone, the remote zone. ... On average, it took only 7,000 votes to win a Country/National seat, versus 12,000 for a Labor seat. This gross distortion led to his opponents referring to it as the \"Bjelkemander\", a play on the term \"gerrymander\". ... The lack of a state upper house (which Queensland had abolished in 1922) allowed legislation to be passed without the need to negotiate with other political parties."

Supports the malapportionment sentences. The source is explicit that the zonal system was introduced by Labor in 1949 and reworked under Nicklin before Bjelke-Petersen strengthened it in 1972; the summary therefore attributes only the 1972 strengthening and the resulting vote ratio to him.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Title (KCMG)” 23 JUN 1984 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"In 1984 Bjelke-Petersen was created a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) for \"services to parliamentary democracy\". Author Evan Whitton suggests the premier had made the nomination himself. In 1986 Labor Prime Minister Bob Hawke discontinued knighthoods in Australia and it was largely in response to Bjelke-Petersen's knighthood."

Gives the year and the citation wording of the honour, and the 1986 discontinuation of Australian knighthoods.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “State of emergency, 1971 Springbok tour” 14 JUL 1971 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"Springboks matches in southern states had already been disrupted by anti-apartheid demonstrations and a match in Brisbane was scheduled for 24 July 1971, the date of two Queensland by-elections. On 14 July Bjelke-Petersen declared a month-long state of emergency covering the entire state, giving the government almost unlimited power to quell what the government said was expected to be \"a climax of violent demonstrations\". Six hundred police were transported to Brisbane from elsewhere in the state. In the week before the match, 40 trade unions staged a 24-hour strike, protesting against the proclamation. A crowd of demonstrators also mounted a peaceful protest outside the Springboks' Wickham Terrace motel and were chased on foot by police moments after being ordered to retreat, with many police attacking the crowd with batons, boots and fists."

Every clause of the summary is drawn from this passage.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “"Joh for Canberra" federal campaign” FROM JAN 1987 TO 3 JUN 1987 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"In January 1987 the premier handed control of the state to Deputy Premier Bill Gunn and announced he would seek election to the House of Representatives, formally embarking on his \"Joh for Canberra\" push. By early 1987 the campaign, with its promise of a 25 percent flat tax, was attracting the support of 20 per cent of voters in opinion polls." ... "On 27 May 1987, Prime Minister Hawke called a federal election for 11 July, catching Bjelke-Petersen unprepared. The premier had flown to the United States two days earlier and had not yet nominated for a federal seat; on 3 June he abandoned his ambitions to become prime minister and resumed his position in the Queensland government. The announcement came too late for the non-Labor forces, as Bjelke-Petersen had pressured the federal Nationals to pull out of the Coalition. Due to a number of three-cornered contests, Labor won a sweeping victory."

Start, platform, polling, and the 3 June abandonment. No placeId: the campaign was national and no suitable existing place row applies.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Fitzgerald Inquiry into police corruption” FROM 27 JUL 1987 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"Masters' explosive Four Corners investigative report on police corruption entitled The Moonlight State aired on 11 May 1987. Within a week, Acting Premier Gunn decided to initiate a wide-ranging Commission of Inquiry into police corruption, despite opposition from Bjelke-Petersen. Gunn selected former Federal Court judge Tony Fitzgerald as its head. By late June, the terms of inquiry of what became known as the Fitzgerald Inquiry had been widened from members of the force to include \"any other persons\" with whom police might have been engaged in misconduct since 1977." ... "Fitzgerald began his formal hearings on 27 July 1987" ... "on 21 September Police Minister Gunn ordered Lewis—knighted in 1986 at Bjelke-Petersen's behest and now accused of having taken $663,000 in bribes—to stand down." ... "in 1991 Bjelke-Petersen, too, was tried for perjury over his evidence to the royal commission; the jury failed to reach a verdict ... and Bjelke-Petersen was deemed too old to face a second trial."

The commission was an inquiry into the police force and its links to his government rather than into him personally; the summary states only what this passage supports.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Retired (Retirement from politics)” 1 DEC 1987 of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"Bjelke-Petersen was unable to recover from the series of damaging findings and after initially resisting a party vote that replaced him as leader, retired from politics on 1 December 1987." ... "On 7 October, Bjelke-Petersen announced he would retire from politics on 8 August 1988, the 20th anniversary of his swearing-in."

Both the retirement date he announced and the date he actually left.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For “Buried” of Johannes Bjelke-Petersen

"Bjelke-Petersen died in St Aubyn's Hospital in Kingaroy on 23 April 2005, aged 94, with his wife and family members by his side. He received a State Funeral, held in Kingaroy Town Hall, at which Prime Minister, John Howard, and Queensland Premier, Peter Beattie were speakers." ... "Bjelke-Petersen was buried \"beside his trees that he planted and he nurtured and they grew\" at the Kingaroy family property, called \"Bethany\"."

The burial place 'Bethany' has no place row in the tree; placeId 509 (Kingaroy) is used and the property is named in the prose. The source gives no funeral date, so none is asserted.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen · Wikipedia (en)

For Johannes Bjelke-Petersen (1911–2005)

"Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen (13 January 1911 – 23 April 2005) was an Australian politician and farmer who served as premier of Queensland from 1968 to 1987 as leader of the Queensland National Party (earlier known as the Country Party)." ... "Bjelke-Petersen was born on 13 January 1911 in Dannevirke, a town in the North Island of New Zealand. He was the second of three children born to Maren (née Poulsen) and Carl George Bjelke-Petersen." ... "On 31 May 1952, Bjelke-Petersen married typist Florence Gilmour, who would later become a significant political figure in her own right."

Establishes the identification of tree #50578. Four independent discriminators match the tree record exactly: birth date 13 JAN 1911, birth place Dannevirke NZ, the parents' names (Carl George Bjelke-Petersen and Maren Poulsen), and the marriage date 31 MAY 1952 to Florence Gilmour.