Rodney Mark Cavalier (born 11 October 1948) is a former Australian politician, statutory officer and author. Cavalier was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Fuller between 1978 and 1981 and then Gladesville between 1981 and 1988 for the Labor Party. During his term in parliament, Cavalier was Minister for Energy, Minister for Finance, and Minister for Education in the Wran and Unsworth governments. Biography Cavalier's father was of Italian extraction, originally surnamed Frank Cavallari, his mother of Scottish background, named Elizabeth. He grew up in the Sydney suburb of Putney, attending the local public school before moving to Fort Street Boys' High School and the University of Sydney, where he studied government and became increasingly involved in left-wing politics. His father, Frank Cavalier, was an architect and designed the family home in Lloyd Avenue, Hunter's Hill, in the Sydney School Modernist style in 1969. Cavalier worked for the Australia Council, for the Miscellaneous Workers' Union, as an aide to Whitlam minister Clyde Cameron, and was an alderman on Hunter's Hill Council. In 1978 he was elected member for the state seat of Fuller, representing the Australian Labor Party. He famously unseated Opposition Leader Peter Coleman in his own electorate amid that year's massive Labor landslide. Fuller was abolished in 1981, and Cavalier followed most of his constituents into Gladesville, which he held until his retirement. He served as Minister for Education from 1984 to 1988 in the Neville Wran and Barrie Unsworth governments. He was noted for his abrasive personality, reformist zeal and intolerance of sloppy work. One left-wing Teachers' Federation activist described him as "the rudest, most pugnacious individual to hold office". Though the President of the Federation, after he lost office, noted that Cavalier "had a genuine commitment to public education". He lost office, and his seat, in 1988, and subsequently declined an offer to return to State Parliament in the seat of Granville or by way of the Legislative Council. A Fellow of the University of Sydney, he was chairman of the Australian Language and Literacy Council (1991–1996). He was also deputy chairman of the National Council for the Centenary of Federation (1997–2001) and chairman of the Sesquicentenary of Responsible Government in NSW (2002–2006): two bodies which published over 60 books on various aspects of Australian history and culture. He was a member of the Council of the National Library of Australia (1989–1998)