Hopetoun House

John Adrian Louis Hope, 1st Marquess of Linlithgow, 7th Earl of Hopetoun, was a British aristocrat and statesman who served as the first Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1901 to 1902. He was previously Governor of Victoria from 1889 to 1895. Hopetoun was born into the Scottish nobility, and succeeded his father as Earl of Hopetoun at the age of 12. He attended Eton College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, but opted not to pursue a full-time military career. Hopetoun sat with the Conservative Party in the House of Lords, and became a Lord-in-waiting in 1885 and Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1887. He was appointed Governor of Victoria at the age of 29, and had a successful tenure in a time of political and economic instability. After returning to England in 1895, Hopetoun served in Lord Salisbury's cabinet as Paymaster General and Lord Chamberlain. The announcement of his appointment to the new governor-generalship in July 1900 was met with praise. However, he arrived in Australia ill-informed about the political aspects of federation, and his decision to call on William Lyne to form a caretaker government became known as the Hopetoun Blunder. Lyne, who had campaigned against federation, had little support from the political establishment, and Hopetoun was forced to turn to Edmund Barton to serve as Australia's first prime minister. His relationship with Barton once in office was civil, although his interferences in political matters were not well-received. Hopetoun was popular with the general public, but developed a reputation for flamboyance and ostentation. His desire for a large expenses allowance was rebuffed by parliament, and he consequently relinquished office in July 1902. He was granted a marquessate upon his return to England, and thereafter withdrew from public life, except for a brief term as Secretary of State for Scotland in 1905. He died in France at the age of 47, after several years of ill health. Hopetoun's term as governor-general is generally regarded as a failure, and his successors generally avoided emulating his extravagance. Only Lord Denman held the position at a younger age.
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