I’ve always had an interest in Charles Joseph La Trobe. Now, at last, I have a more rounded view of him. La Trobe: Traveller, Writer, Governor will reward the discerning reader with the fullest understanding yet of Victoria’s much-misunderstood first Governor.

Dr Andrew Lemon, former President of the Royal Historical Society of Victoria, in praising John Barnes' fair-minded credibility says; ‘Charles Joseph La Trobe, from wherever he now watches, should be eternally grateful that John Barnes chose to be his biographer.’ One more quote from Lemon is a must; ‘The great strength of this book, in addition to its clear and elegant prose, is its fair-mindedness. Its great originality is its lucid literary analysis which helps us understand the man.

Barnes takes us on a journey with La Trobe exploring his life in the 38 years before he saw Melbourne and his ‘recovery’ and life after his last career highlight.

Barnes’ intention is ‘to tell the story of his life as a whole, making him known in a way that I do not think has been attempted previously, and to represent his beliefs and motivations more fully’. The book aims ‘to place his colonial experience in the context of his life, and show what that experience meant to him’. In all this, the book is a success.

Much can be learned about La Trobe’s actual ancestry and family, the influence of the Moravian faith in which he was raised and the role of England, Switzerland and America in his life. And, with this understanding, much is learned about the unwarranted hostility levelled against him in Victoria, notably by Edward Wilson of the Argus, and which skewed subsequent historical valuations.

Fundamental to La Trobe’s thoughts, words and actions were his spirituality and his evangelicalism. He shocked the colonists with his arrival speech and he may have clashed with the current President of the United States over what makes a country great. His approach did clash with some early Melbournians, though certainly not all (churches leaders were amongst his sympathetic supporters).

The book is lavishly illustrated and includes a number of watercolours by La Trobe himself.

La Trobe was focussed about his civilising mission in this outpost of Empire, while many colonists had just one major preoccupation – to improve their material lot in life.

I enjoyed the book and recommend it to anyone with an interest in Victoria’s history or biography. La Trobe's place in Victorian history has been restored.

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