Henry Gyles Turner

Henry Gyles Turner
Born	Kensington, London, England
Died	30 November 1920(1920-11-30) (aged 88)
Occupation(s)	Banker, writer, historian
Known for	General manager of Commercial Bank of Australia; author of A History of the Colony of Victoria

Henry Gyles Turner (12 December 1831 – 30 November 1920) was a distinguished figure in Australian banking, literature, and historical scholarship. His professional journey commenced as a clerk in London, before relocating to Melbourne in 1855, where his career flourished. In 1870, Turner was appointed general manager of the Commercial Bank of Australia Ltd., a position he held until retiring in 1901.

During his tenure, the Commercial Bank grew into one of Australia's leading financial institutions. Amid Victoria's real estate surge in the 1880s, the bank provided substantial credit to land development firms and speculators. The property market collapse in the early 1890s led to widespread insolvencies and financial sector turmoil. By early 1893, confronted with large-scale withdrawals, the Commercial Bank faced imminent failure and halted payments on deposits. Turner orchestrated a comprehensive financial reorganisation that secured the bank’s future stability.

Turner was also deeply invested in cultural activities, especially literature. He established and edited literary periodicals and co-wrote a significant 1898 overview of Australian literary works. A prolific author on subjects spanning culture, history, and politics, he produced numerous essays and lectures. His two-volume work A History of the Colony of Victoria was published in 1904.

Early years

Born on 12 December 1831 in Kensington, London, Turner was the son of William Turner, a tailor, and his wife Caroline (née Gyles). He attended Poland Street Academy in Westminster for four years before beginning an apprenticeship at publisher William Pickering’s firm around age fifteen. In 1850, he presented a lecture on 'American Literature' to London’s St. George's Club and edited their brief publication Our Magazine in 1851.

In approximately 1851, Turner commenced work as a clerk at the London Joint-Stock Bank with an initial salary of £60 per year. Following disagreements over promotion policies in September 1854, he resigned and obtained employment with the Bank of Australasia in Melbourne through its London branch. He sailed from Southampton aboard the steamship Argo on 4 October 1854 and reached Melbourne by early December.

Melbourne

Upon arrival in Melbourne, Turner joined the Bank of Australasia, initially performing clerical duties. Prior to emigrating, he became engaged to Helen Ramsay, who later joined him; they married on 28 September 1855 at South Yarra. Residing in South Yarra, Turner engaged actively in cultural life by joining the Histrionic Society and appearing in theatrical productions throughout the city and surrounding areas. While working at the bank, he formed an acquaintance with colleague Marcus Clarke. In 1856, editor W. Sydney Gibbons invited Turner to contribute to The Journal of Australasia, where he published serialized fiction. He also wrote for various literary outlets such as the Australian Monthly Magazine and The Spectator.

Turner participated actively in sports and outdoor activities, undertaking lengthy excursions across Victoria and New South Wales.

Banking and the arts

Around 1865, Turner advanced to the position of chief accountant at the Bank of Australasia. The following year, he played a key role in establishing the Banks Rowing Club, a group consisting of Melbourne bank staff, and was elected its president in 1871.

Turner was instrumental in founding the Eclectic Association of Victoria in 1867 and served as its inaugural president. The association encouraged open dialogue on societal matters. In 1869, he delivered a presentation that critically examined and challenged spiritualism.

Though he turned down opportunities to manage branches of the Bank of Australasia in New Zealand, Turner accepted the general manager position at Melbourne's Commercial Bank of Australia Ltd. in July 1870. He took over from George Valentine during a period marked by fraudulent financial irregularities. Turner undertook a comprehensive investigation aimed at regaining the confidence of shareholders. Under his guidance, the bank expanded its operations by attracting both mercantile and agricultural clients while prudently managing profit distribution. By the mid-1880s, deposits had grown to £2.25 million with branches throughout Victoria, major Australian cities, and London.

An engaged member and lay preacher within Melbourne's Unitarian church, Turner held the secretary role by 1860 and became a preacher by 1870. His sister Martha Turner joined the congregation in 1870 and later became Australia's first ordained female minister in 1873.

Together with Arthur P. Martin, Turner co-established The Melbourne Review in January 1876 with an initial capital of £100. This quarterly publication concentrated on social, philosophical, and literary subjects. Turner contributed writings such as 'An Episode in California Banking' and later assumed editorial responsibilities alongside Alexander Sutherland.

Following his mother’s passing in 1876, Turner traveled to England and Europe before returning to Melbourne. In 1881, he was elected president of the Victorian Rowing Association.

In February 1882, Turner journeyed to England to establish the Commercial Bank’s London branch, which commenced operations that July. That same year, he represented Victoria as a commissioner at the Bordeaux Wine Exhibition. He returned to Melbourne in November after attending various events including a banquet honoring Australia's cricket triumph over England.

In April 1884, Turner was named trustee for the Public Library, Museums, and National Gallery of Victoria.

The banking crisis

During the 1880s, Victoria underwent a rapid surge in real estate prices and land speculation, driven by increased bank credit and the influx of British capital. Between 1883 and 1888, numerous building societies and property finance firms—often called 'land banks'—emerged, competing with commercial banks that were heavily lending to speculators. This speculative frenzy compromised the banks' sound lending practices.

Turner played a key role in establishing the Bankers' Institute in 1886 and was chosen as its inaugural president. The following year, he completed 'Bundalohn', an elaborate Italianate residence located in St. Kilda. In March 1888, Turner and his wife traveled to England, returning in February 1889.

As president of the Melbourne Chamber of Commerce in May 1889, Turner addressed the collapse of the land boom. He attributed the downturn to the easy availability of British capital and cautioned about widespread business entanglements. Despite this, he maintained a positive outlook on Victoria’s long-term economic prospects and asset values.

Throughout 1889, property values continued to decline. Initially, many companies survived by relying on British loans and support from colonial banks. However, by 1891, as British deposits diminished and local banks restricted credit, numerous building societies and land banks failed. This deterioration undermined public trust, extending the crisis to core financial institutions including commercial banks.

The Commercial Bank was a member of the Associated Banks of Victoria, an alliance formed in 1877 by principal banks managing government accounts. In March 1892, these banks issued a deliberately ambiguous statement aimed at quelling public panic; the media interpreted this as a mutual guarantee agreement, which temporarily eased concerns.

In January 1893, the Federal Bank of Australia halted withdrawals due to reputational harm linked to failed building societies. Despite public anticipation, the Associated Banks refused to provide assistance. This refusal eroded confidence further and triggered bank runs on other institutions, including the Commercial Bank of Australia.

Under Turner’s leadership, the Commercial Bank had been Victoria’s fastest expanding bank during the 1880s, controlling approximately 17% of total banking assets by September 1892. The bank aggressively extended credit to land speculators during the boom but exacerbated failures by withdrawing overdrafts from collapsing building societies. By early 1893, rumors about its exposure led to deposit withdrawals amounting to £1 million over three months and caused share prices to plummet from £12 in 1890 to £2.8s by March 1893.

In March 1893, the Victorian government proposed creating a fund through the Associated Banks to support struggling banks; however, when the Commercial Bank requested full deposit guarantees, it was declined. On April 5th, the bank suspended withdrawals on deposits.

Due to insufficient resources, the Associated Banks refused to rescue the Commercial Bank. On April 6th, Turner and director James Service presented a reconstruction proposal at an extraordinary shareholders meeting which involved calling up all unpaid capital—resulting in many shareholders facing bankruptcy—and converting fixed deposits into preference shares with restricted withdrawal rights for amounts exceeding £100. This plan received unanimous approval from shareholders. Turner admitted that this strategy contravened conventional English banking principles but considered it necessary under the circumstances.

The Commercial Bank endured difficulties for several years afterward. In July 1896, a meeting approved a restructuring plan that froze deposits to prevent another suspension. Service cited slow asset liquidation and declining profits as reasons for creditor concessions. By March 1897, capital was written down by £1.2 million due to depreciated securities and loan defaults. The bank established Special Assets Trust Co. Ltd., transferring unrealized land holdings for gradual liquidation aimed at repaying liabilities totaling £12 million.

In March 1898 Turner sustained serious injuries in a coach accident in New Zealand but had recovered by April.

Turner collaborated with Alexander Sutherland on The Development of Australian Literature (1898); however, critics pointed out its emphasis on biographies rather than literary analysis or coverage of emerging Australian writers.

In April 1899 Turner authored an article in Banker's Magazine advocating stringent penalties for criminals and expressing contentious opinions on paupers that provoked critical editorials from both mainstream and socialist press outlets.

Later years

After serving as general manager for thirty-one years, Turner stepped down from the Commercial Bank of Australia in June 1901, attributing his retirement to persistent health issues resulting from an earlier accident in New Zealand.

His two-volume historical account of Victoria, released in November 1904, was met with severe disapproval from Melbourne's Age, which criticized the work for exhibiting political partiality and took issue with Turner’s portrayal of the speculative boom during the 1880s—a period when he was actively managing the bank. The critique labeled the volumes as "unsophisticated in reasoning, intolerant in sentiment, vindictive towards certain individuals," and accused Turner of factual and interpretive bias.

In 1905, Turner assumed the presidency of the Melbourne Shakespeare Society. He continued his literary contributions with publications such as The First Decade of the Australian Commonwealth (1911) and Our Own Little Rebellion, the Story of the Eureka Stockade (1913).

A portrait painted by E. Phillips Fox was donated to the National Gallery of Victoria in 1914. That same year marked the passing of his wife Helen; they had no children together.

Throughout both his professional life and retirement, Turner held various prominent positions within Melbourne’s cultural and civic organizations. These included life membership at the Royal Colonial Institute; trusteeships at institutions such as the Public Library and National Gallery of Victoria, St. Kilda Cemetery, and Unitarian Church; as well as council memberships with bodies like the Royal Geographical Society of Australasia and Melbourne Chamber of Commerce.

In May 1917, Turner delivered a lecture titled 'The War and Literature' at the National Gallery of Victoria. By 1919, after being reappointed chairman of the gallery's board of trustees, he encountered criticism from Smith's Weekly for promoting conservative perspectives considered by some to hinder artistic progress.

Henry Gyles Turner passed away on 20 November 1920 at his residence 'Bundalohn' in St. Kilda and was laid to rest in St. Kilda cemetery.

Legacy

Turner’s estate was valued at £29,233 and included notable bequests such as a substantial collection of his books and manuscripts to the Melbourne Public Library. He also made direct donations of £250 each to support the Unitarian Christian Church's sustentation fund and Melbourne's Queen's Fund, along with £100 each allocated to four additional local charitable organizations.

The University of Melbourne was endowed with £1,000 to establish 'The Henry Gyles Turner Scholarship,' aimed at encouraging scientific research in agriculture beginning in 1923.

The remainder of his estate was dedicated to creating the 'Helen Gyles Turner Samaritan Fund,' which provides annual grants to various Melbourne charities and permits further contributions to public relief efforts during times of crisis in Victoria. This charitable trust remained operational as recently as 2022.

Publications

• Henry Gyles Turner & Alexander Sutherland (1898), The Development of Australian Literature, London: Longmans, Green and Co.

By Henry Gyles Turner:

• Spiritualism: A Paper read Before the Eclectic Association of Melbourne, on September 2nd, 1869 (1869), Melbourne: George Robertson.
• How I Went to Akaroa, and What Befel Me There (1898), Melbourne: Mason, Firth and McCutcheon.
• A History of the Colony of Victoria From its Discovery to its Absorption into the Commonwealth of Australia (two volumes) (1904), London: Longmans, Green and Co.
• A Plea for Shylock: A Lecture (1907), Fitzroy, Vic.: Wayside Press.
• The First Decade of the Australian Commonwealth: A Chronicle of Contemporary Politics, 1901-1910 (1911), Melbourne: Mason, Firth & McCutcheon.
• Our Own Little Rebellion: The Story of the Eureka Stockade (1913), Melbourne: Whitcombe & Tombs.
• The War, With Some Thoughts on its Aftermath in Australia (lecture, 7 June 1916), Melbourne: George Robertson.
• Dallas Sutherland, Killed in France, Saturday, 19th August, 1916, aged 26 Years: A Brief Memorial (1916), Melbourne: privately printed.
• Memorial of Keith J. Barrett, 4th Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment), Who was Mortally Wounded at Guemappe, in France (1917).

Notes

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References

Sources

• Bryan Fitz-Gibbon and Marianne Gizycki (2001), 'An Account of Last-resort Lending and Other Assistance for Distressed Financial Institutions in Australia', Research Discussion Paper, Reserve Bank of Australia.
• Charles R. Hickson and John D. Turner (2002), 'The Collapse of Free Banking: The Australian Banking Crisis of 1893', Financial History Review, Vol. 9 (No. 2), pp. 147-167.
• David T. Merrett (2013), 'Reexamining the Australian Bank Failures of the 1890s', Business History Review, Vol. 87 (No. 3), pp. 407-429.
• Henry Gyles Turner (1904), A Chronicle of the Colony of Victoria From Its Discovery to Its Incorporation into the Commonwealth of Australia, London: Longmans, Green and Co.