Kidman the Forgotten King

by Jill Bowen and Bowen Jill

Book Overview

As a barely literate yough of 13, Kidman ran away from home and worked as an odd-job boy in a grog shanty in outback Australia. He went on to become the greatest pastoral landholder in modern history.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0732286107
• ISBN13: 9780732286101
• Release Date: July 2017
• Publisher: 4th Estate
• Length: 544 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 5.1" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

A Remarkable Life

Those who want to have an understanding of the pastoral history of Australia must acquaint themselves with the life and exploits of Sidney Kidman. This book gives a comprehensive account of his life (1857-1935), with copious detail of his transition from leaving home at 13 with just a few shillings and little education, to becoming the greatest landowner in the British Empire, with outright ownership of or major interest in some 65 million acres, with over 500,000 cattle and substantial numbers of sheep and horses. The author's extensive research and many anecdotes provide a fascinating picture of Kidman's character, including his obsessive attention to detail, amazing memory, abhorrence of waste of money, and at the same time great generosity. The reader gets an intriguing insight into the challenges of running stock in country susceptible to prolonged drought, the ravages of dingos and rabbits, and devasting floods, all in the context of great distances with little infrastructure. Kidman's innovative schemes for dealing with some of these problems were remarkable. The book is not short on details of dates, distances, prices, banking and taxation, but I particularly enjoyed the author's use of the Australian vernacular -- for example, one of Kidman's senior amployees is described as "a top man, but also a wily, cunning bastard." Travelling in the present-day Australian Outback becomes more meaningful as one sees the signposts pointing to "Kidman properties" -- Merty Merty, Mt Poole, Macumba, Anna Creek, Mungerannie, Newcastle Waters -- the list could go on and on. A valuable resource for students of the development of Australia.