hiː wʌzðə jˈʌŋɡɪst sˈʌn ɪn ɐ lˈɑːɹdʒ fˈæmɪli bˈɔːɹn tʊ ˈæŋɡloʊˈaɪɹɪʃ sˈɜːdʒən ɹˈɑːbɚt tʃˈɑːɹlz ˌælɪɡzˈændɚ ænd dʒˈeɪn ᵻlˈɪzəbəθ lˈɪnzi nˈeɪ wˈɪljəmz, ʌv kɹˈɛsɪk, vɪktˈoːɹiə, hˌuː hæd tˈɛn tʃˈɪldɹən.
He was the youngest son in a large family born to Anglo-Irish surgeon Robert Charles Alexander and Jane Elizabeth Lindsay (née Williams), of Creswick, Victoria, who had ten children.