Bland, William (1789-1868), was a British-born surgeon who became one of the leading statesmen of New South Wales, Australia.
Bland received medical training in England and joined the Royal Navy as a surgeon. While in the navy, he killed a man in a duel and was tried for murder. In 1813, he was sentenced to seven years’ transportation (exile to a British colony) and sent to Australia. In 1815, after a year in Sydney, Bland was pardoned and became the city’s first private doctor. In 1818, however, he spent a year in prison for writing a satirical verse that poked fun at the New South Wales governor, Lachlan Macquarie.
In 1835, Bland became a founding member and secretary of William Wentworth’s Australian Patriotic Association (see Wentworth, William Charles ). He took part in the process of drawing up bills for a new constitution for New South Wales, which better reflected the make-up of the area’s population. In 1842, the new parliament came into being, and Bland won election to it with Wentworth. He held one of the seats representing Sydney until 1848 and then briefly again in 1849. From 1858 to 1861, he served on the legislative council of New South Wales. He was prevented from being elected to the senate of the University of Sydney because he was an ex-convict.
Bland resumed his work as a doctor and became famous for his contributions to good causes. He supported many literary and educational projects, including the establishment of a grammar school in Sydney. He made large donations to the building of a church, and he helped found the Sydney School of Arts and the Sydney Mechanics’ Institute.
Bland was born on Nov. 5, 1789, in London. He died on July 21,1868, in Sydney.
