John Campbell
The Mint’s first deputy master John Campbell came to the role as a military man, not a minting man.
Campbell arrived in Perth to head the Royal Mint’s outpost in 1896.
His appointment was considered unusual given his lack of experience in the minting industry.
One piece of gossip that might explain it was that Campbell was reputed to have had a liaison with the mistress of one of the most powerful British politicians of the day, Arthur Balfour who, as Chancellor of the Exchequer, was in charge of the Royal Mint. Did Balfour send his love rival to the other side of the world to get him out of the way?
True or not, it is a fascinating piece of the history of the Mint. And, as it happened, Campbell’s military training and determination stood him in good stead for the challenge of building a mint from scratch in a far-flung colonial town.
Campbell retired after 29 years’ service in 1925.
John Campbell
The Mint’s first deputy master John Campbell came to the role as a military man, not a minting man.
Campbell arrived in Perth to head the Royal Mint’s outpost in 1896.
His appointment was considered unusual given his lack of experience in the minting industry.
One piece of gossip that might explain it was that Campbell was reputed to have had a liaison with the mistress of one of the most powerful British politicians of the day, Arthur Balfour who, as Chancellor of the Exchequer, was in charge of the Royal Mint. Did Balfour send his love rival to the other side of the world to get him out of the way?
True or not, it is a fascinating piece of the history of the Mint. And, as it happened, Campbell’s military training and determination stood him in good stead for the challenge of building a mint from scratch in a far-flung colonial town.
Campbell retired after 29 years’ service in 1925.