Henry Alexis Tardent (1 March 1853 – 5 September 1929) was a Swiss-Australian writer and agricultural scientist in Queensland. He was politically left-wing and wrote for the labour-aligned Daily Standard for many years.
Tardent was born on 1 March 1853 in Le Sépey, Vaud, Switzerland. He was the son of French speakers Marie Louise (née Perrod) and Louis Marc Samuel Tardent. After being educated in local schools, Tardent travelled through Eastern Europe and eventually matriculated from Odessa University. He spent time in Galicia, then part of Austria-Hungary and Bessarabia, then part of the Russian Empire and learned Polish, German, Russian and Latin. He worked as a language teacher and in 1876 married Hortense Tardent, a distant relative, at the Swiss wine-growing colony in Chabag, Russian Empire.[1]
Move to Australiaedit
Due to political instability and poor health, Tardent and his family immigrated to Australia in 1887. He established a farm and winery at Roma, Queensland, which he ran as a co-operative. He became a naturalised British subject in 1890. Following an economic downturn, in 1897 Tardent took up an appointment as manager of the Westbrook State Farm, an experimental farm near Toowoomba. He was transferred to the Biggenden State Farm in 1898, but resigned in 1901 when the state government objected to his political activities.[1]
Political activities and journalism careeredit
Tardent was an early member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He stood for the party at the 1902 state election in the seat of Burnett. From 1904 to 1908 he was the publisher of the Toowoomba Democrat and Downs Agriculturist, while he ran an insurance business in Toowoomba. He moved to Atherton and became managing editor of the Tableland Examiner from 1909 to 1910. He was most prominent as the agricultural editor of the ALP-affiliated Daily Standard from 1913 until his death in 1929.[1]
Tardent was a major influence on his grandson P. R. Stephensen, who achieved some literary fame but was better known for his involvement with left-wing and right-wing extremist groups.[2]
Referencesedit
^ abcd"Tardent, Henry Alexis (1853–1929)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. 1990.
^Munro, Craig (1992). Inky Stephensen: Wild Man of Letters(PDF) (2nd ed.). University of Queensland Press.
April 13, 2024
henry, tardent, henry, alexis, tardent, march, 1853, september, 1929, swiss, australian, writer, agricultural, scientist, queensland, politically, left, wing, wrote, labour, aligned, daily, standard, many, years, bornhenri, alexis, tardent, 1853, march, 1853le. Henry Alexis Tardent 1 March 1853 5 September 1929 was a Swiss Australian writer and agricultural scientist in Queensland He was politically left wing and wrote for the labour aligned Daily Standard for many years Henry TardentBornHenri Alexis Tardent 1853 03 01 1 March 1853Le Sepey Vaud SwitzerlandDied5 September 1929 1929 09 05 aged 76 Wynnum Queensland AustraliaEducationOdessa UniversityOccupation s Agricultural scientist journalistSpouseHortense Tardent m 1876 wbr RelativesP R Stephensen grandson Contents 1 Early life 2 Move to Australia 3 Political activities and journalism career 4 Other activities 5 ReferencesEarly life editTardent was born on 1 March 1853 in Le Sepey Vaud Switzerland He was the son of French speakers Marie Louise nee Perrod and Louis Marc Samuel Tardent After being educated in local schools Tardent travelled through Eastern Europe and eventually matriculated from Odessa University He spent time in Galicia then part of Austria Hungary and Bessarabia then part of the Russian Empire and learned Polish German Russian and Latin He worked as a language teacher and in 1876 married Hortense Tardent a distant relative at the Swiss wine growing colony in Chabag Russian Empire 1 Move to Australia editDue to political instability and poor health Tardent and his family immigrated to Australia in 1887 He established a farm and winery at Roma Queensland which he ran as a co operative He became a naturalised British subject in 1890 Following an economic downturn in 1897 Tardent took up an appointment as manager of the Westbrook State Farm an experimental farm near Toowoomba He was transferred to the Biggenden State Farm in 1898 but resigned in 1901 when the state government objected to his political activities 1 Political activities and journalism career editTardent was an early member of the Australian Labor Party ALP He stood for the party at the 1902 state election in the seat of Burnett From 1904 to 1908 he was the publisher of the Toowoomba Democrat and Downs Agriculturist while he ran an insurance business in Toowoomba He moved to Atherton and became managing editor of the Tableland Examiner from 1909 to 1910 He was most prominent as the agricultural editor of the ALP affiliated Daily Standard from 1913 until his death in 1929 1 Other activities editTardent published a number of books across varying subjects including biographies of George Essex Evans Richard John Randall and Ellis Rowan He was a founding member of the Brisbane branch of the Alliance francaise In March 1929 the French government awarded him the rank of Officier d Academie in the Ordre des Palmes academiques 1 Tardent was a major influence on his grandson P R Stephensen who achieved some literary fame but was better known for his involvement with left wing and right wing extremist groups 2 References edit a b c d Tardent Henry Alexis 1853 1929 Australian Dictionary of Biography 1990 Munro Craig 1992 Inky Stephensen Wild Man of Letters PDF 2nd ed University of Queensland Press Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Henry Tardent amp oldid 1179432439, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
