Parkes ministry (1887–1889)
The fourth Parkes ministry was the 24th ministry of the Colony of New South Wales, and was led by the seventh Premier, Sir Henry Parkes. It was the fourth of five occasions that Parkes was Premier. Having served in the New South Wales Legislative Council between 1854 and 1856, Parkes was elected in the first free elections for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly held in 1856, however resigned from Parliament later that year. He served in the Assembly on several occasions, between 1858 and 1870, being forced to resign on at least one occasion due to  his personal insolvency. He came to power as Premier on the first occasion in 1872, serving as Premier for a period of three years. However, Parkes lost the confidence of the Assembly following Governor Robinson's decision to release of the bushranger Frank Gardiner led to the defeat of the ministry in 1875. John Robertson served as Premier between 1875 and 1877, before Robertson was defeated at the 1877 election. Parkes formed his second ministry in a challenging environment where both Parkes and Robertson shared equal representation in the Legislative Assembly and business was sometimes at a standstill. Parkes' second  term as Colonial Premier lasted just 147 days, with the Farnell ministry giving both Parkes and Robertson reprieve for 12 months, prior to Parkes and Robertson forming an alliance government in the third Parkes ministry. The retirement of Robertson pitted Parkes against George Dibbs and after the governments of both Dibbs and Sir Patrick Jennings faltered under public debt, Parkes formed this, his fourth ministry. The title of Premier was widely used to refer to the Leader of Government, but was not a formal position in the government until 1920. Instead the Premier was appointed to another portfolio, usually Colonial  Secretary. There was no party system in New South Wales politics prior to 1887. Under the constitution, ministers in the Legislative Assembly were required to resign to recontest their seats in a by-election when appointed. The initial ministers were not required to face a by-election as they had been appointed prior to the general election in February 1887. Of the subsequent appointments, Bernhard Wise (South Sydney) was narrowly re-elected, while James Brunker (East Maitland) was re-elected unopposed. This ministry covers the period from 20 January 1887 until 16 January 1889. Composition of ministry. Ministers were members  of the Legislative Assembly unless otherwise noted.