Eighty-one years ago this week, in October 1944, a tall, thoughtful barrister from Victoria gathered representatives of non-Labor organisations in Canberra. Australia was weary from war, yet filled with resolve. Robert Gordon Menzies stood before them and spoke not of polling or political marketing, but of character. From that meeting, the Liberal Party of Australia was born.
Menzies’ vision was not merely to defeat Labor - it was to build Australia. He sought a political movement anchored in principle: in the dignity of work, the sanctity of family, and the belief that a free people could govern themselves best when guided by decency and duty.
He called them “the forgotten people” - the middle Australians who raised families, paid taxes, volunteered on committees, and asked little more than a fair go and honest leadership. They were not ideological warriors or professional activists; they were the quiet architects of the nation’s character.
Sir Robert Gordon Menzies was born on 20 December 1894 in the small rural town of Jeparit, in western Victoria. The son of a storekeeper and a schoolteacher, young Robert grew up in a household where hard work and self-reliance were not abstract virtues but daily practice. Life in Jeparit was modest but kind, and Menzies’ early experiences - helping in the family store, attending local schools, and observing the quiet resilience of ordinary Australians - instilled in him a deep respect for diligence, community, and the importance of character. These formative years, surrounded by wide skies and a close-knit community, shaped his lifelong belief that politics should serve the people, not the other way around.
Menzies’ academic talents soon became evident. He excelled at University High School in Melbourne and went on to the University of Melbourne, where he studied law. His brilliance in debate, combined with a keen analytical mind, earned him first-class honours and a reputation as a disciplined, thoughtful, and principled young man. Yet even as he rose through the ranks of the legal profession, he never lost sight of the values that had grounded his childhood: responsibility, thrift, and service to the wider community.
His entry into politics came naturally. In 1928, Menzies was elected to the Victorian Parliament, and by 1934 he had won a federal seat in Kooyong, Melbourne. His early years in parliament were marked by a mix of sharp legal insight and a quiet, persuasive oratory that drew attention from colleagues and the public alike. By 1939, he had risen to become Attorney-General and Minister for Industry, and when Joseph Lyons died unexpectedly, Menzies assumed the office of Prime Minister at the outbreak of World War II. Leading a nation at war was a monumental challenge, and while internal party tensions and the pressures of global conflict led to his resignation in 1941, the experience only deepened his understanding of leadership, unity, and the moral dimensions of governance.
After a brief hiatus from office, Menzies returned to national politics with renewed vision. In 1944, he convened the historic Canberra conference that would unite disparate non-Labor forces into the Liberal Party of Australia.
He envisioned a party rooted not just in policy but in principle - one that championed the “forgotten people” of the middle class, upheld civic responsibility, and combined liberty with moral purpose. His vision came to fruition in 1949, when he led the Liberals to victory and embarked on a second term as Prime Minister, which would last an unprecedented seventeen years.
The Hearth and the Compass
Menzies’ Liberalism was anchored in the home - in decency, thrift, education, and quiet patriotism.
He understood that politics is downstream of character.
It began in the schoolroom, the family table, the church pew, and the local hall. The Liberal Party of his era drew moral strength from these ordinary places because they were the heartbeat of the country.
Today, however, politics has become downstream of social media.
The “hearth” has been replaced by the “hashtag.”
When policy is driven by digital outrage rather than the dignity of ordinary Australians, the moral compass drifts fast.
From Conviction to Calculation
Menzies never asked for polling data before taking a stand. He led with conviction and trusted Australians to follow reason. He knew that a party which chases popularity soon loses respect - and that respect, once lost, cannot be bought back with slogans.
So we were told to give Sussan Ley a go before passing judgement.
— Jack The Aussie (@hammerofleft) June 27, 2025
So far we've seen:
Pissfarting around and obfuscation regarding nuclear and net zero.
Quotas on women in the party.
Welcome to country in her public speeches
Continual bullshiting on about representing "modern… pic.twitter.com/wiVlTiXAxf
Modern politics, by contrast, too often confuses movement with meaning. Pollsters whisper, strategists spin, and parties chase the day’s trending topic as though it were truth itself. The result is a politics of perpetual reaction - nervous, narrow, and forgetful of first principles.
The Rise of the Loud Few
In Menzies’ time, the Liberal Party was a voice for the many who worked quietly and built faithfully.
Today, it risks being held hostage by the loud few - activists, influencers, and consultants who see politics not as service but as sport.
The party once defended faith, family, and enterprise as the foundations of liberty. Now, it sometimes apologises for them. In trying to please everyone, it inspires almost no one.
Rekindling the Hearth
If the Liberal Party wishes to recover its soul, it must return to the places Menzies cherished - not the corridors of Canberra, but the kitchens, workshops, and classrooms of Australia.
It must once again stand for the quiet virtues that built the nation: duty, thrift, fairness, and self-respect.
For all his eloquence, Menzies’ political philosophy was simple: the strength of a nation lies in the strength of its homes.
If those homes are neglected - if the moral hearth grows cold - no number of think tanks, marketing plans, or social media campaigns will save a party that has forgotten why it exists.
The Forgotten People, Again
The “forgotten people” of 1944 have new faces now. They are the young families crushed by cost of living, the small business owners drowning in red tape, the retirees bewildered by a culture that mocks their values. They still form the backbone of Australia, and they still yearn for leadership that speaks their language .... not the language of algorithms or identity blocs, but of plain-spoken integrity.
“The government doesn’t care about your kids, the media doesn’t care about your kids. You care about your kids, you should be in charge of your kids…not some government bureaucrat!”
— katy 🌸 (@KatyKray73) October 15, 2025
Alex Antic CPAC 2025 👏🏽👏🏽 pic.twitter.com/ke2GHZnj3a
If Menzies could see his party today, he might not recognise its tone, but he would recognise its opportunity. The Liberal Party can still be the moral centre of the nation ..... if it once again remembers that freedom is not won in a focus group, but built at the family table.
Or is it too late?
“The real life of this nation is not to be found in the great luxury hotels or the easy offices of a prosperous few, but in the homes, the schools, and the workplaces of the people themselves. It is there that the character of the nation is formed.”
— Sir Robert Menzies, “The Forgotten People,” 1942
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