| National Liberal Union | |
| Colorcode: |
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| Foundation: | August 1901 |
| Dissolved: | 1909 |
| Ideology: | Protectionism Liberalism |
| Abbreviation: | NLU |
| Predecessor: | Queensland Political Association |
| Successor: | Liberal Party |
| National: | Protectionist Party |
The National Liberal Union of Queensland, also referred to simply as the Liberals, was an Australian protectionist organisation that was active in the early 1900s.[1] It endorsed candidates at elections and provided extra-parliamentary support for anti-Labour politics.
The NLU was formed in August 1901, as a successor to the Queensland Political Association.[2]
In 1902, Protectionist Party leader Alfred Deakin said in a letter to The Morning Post, a London newspaper, that "Ministerial forces were best under control" in southern Queensland through the NLU.[3]
As the Protectionists were not active in Queensland at the time, the NLU endorsed candidates in the House of Representatives and Senate for the 1903 federal election.[4] [5] Two NLU MPs were elected, but none of the organisation's three senate candidates were successful.[4]
The NLU remained active for a number of years, although they were largely replaced by the Anti-Socialist Party at the 1906 federal election.[1] The only Protectionist candidate in Queensland was Darling Downs MP Littleton Groom, however by that time he did not appear to be linked to the NLU anymore.[6]
Herbert Beaumont Marks served as the party's secretary for its Townsville branch in 1909.[7] The NLU faded away around that time, which is when the Liberal Party was formed out of a 'fusion' of the Protectionists and Anti-Socialists.[8]