Lady Bowen's Creeper
After her family and community work, Lady Bowen’s great love was gardening. In her honour, a brilliantly-hued creeper that she lovingly cultivated in the grounds of Government House during her husband’s term, is now commonly known as ‘Lady Bowen’s Creeper’.
Fittingly, the shrub’s Latin name bignonia venusta translates to mean charming, lovely and graceful. This dramatic and vigorous evergreen climber has South American origins and thrives in full sun with little water - perfect for the Queensland climate.
Many places and landmarks across Australia bear testament to Lady Diamantina Roma Bowen:
- Roma Parklands
- Roma Street
- Roma (town in Western QLD)
- Diamantina River in Northern QLD
- Diamantina Shire (QLD),
- Diamantina Falls (VIC)
- Diamantina Street (ACT)
- Diamantina Hospital
- Lady Bowen Park (Brisbane)
- HMAS Diamantina (Riverclass frigate)
- The Diamantina Trench (a deep ocean cleft off WA)
- Lady Bowen’s Wreck (off Mission Beach in far north Queensland)
The legacy of Lady Diamantina Roma Bowen
Lady Bowen, formerly Contessa Diamantina Roma, was the wife of Queensland’s inaugural Governor, Sir George Bowen. She was a compassionate and conscientious figure, whose elegance, serenity and charm endeared her to all Queenslanders.
Born in 1833 on Zakynthos in the Ionian Islands off Greece, Diamantina was the tenth of 11 children for Count Giorgio-Candiano Roma and his wife. Given the family’s privilege and influence, she enjoyed a happy and comfortable early life with access to education and high culture.
Diamantina married English scholar Sir George Bowen at Corfu in 1856, just two years before he was appointed as Queensland’s first Governor. After a long voyage from Greece, the Bowens arrived in Queensland in 1859 on a hot and dusty December day. Upon arrival, Sir George declared Queensland a separate State to the many joyous Queenslanders lining the banks of the Brisbane River, thus commencing his popular tenure as Governor.
Lady Bowen devoted herself to working tirelessly for those in the community. Despite her background of aristocracy and great wealth, she was a gracious and natural advocate for the underprivileged, the injured and the infirm.
“Ever since she has been in the colony, she has identified herself in the most hearty and zealous manner with every good and charitable work which has been set on foot and not a few have been originated and warmly promoted by her efforts” - Tribute to Lady Bowen published by Brisbane’s Courier on the day she left QLD in 1868.
Her extraordinary efforts and success in raising funds evoked widespread respect and affection. In a short period of just eight years, Lady Bowen’s contributions to Queensland were immense. She inspired the foundation of many benevolent and charitable organisations, and was instrumental in developing significant health care services in Brisbane. These included:
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The Lady Bowen Hospital, which was the first ‘lying-in’ hospital to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates. Lady Bowen founded this facility in 1863 after the difficult birth of her second child. The redeveloped Lady Bowen Complex in Spring Hill was the hospital’s original building.
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Diamantina Home for Incurables, to offer terminal patients care and comfort;
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Brisbane Servants’ Home, established in 1863, to train young women of good character to work as servants;
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Brisbane’s prestigious Princess Alexandra Hospital, which began as the Diamantina Orphanage, was established by Lady Bowen in 1864. Later this became the Diamantina Hospital for Chronic Diseases in 1901, and ultimately Princess Alexandra Hospital in 1956.
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In 2004, the Princess Alexandra Hospital opened the Diamantina Health Care Museum. This facility will track the genesis of modern health and nursing care by conserving evidence of past hospital practices and resides in the only remaining building from the original Diamantina Hospital.
Lady Bowen was the first Greek in the colony and eagerly shared her passion for Greek culture with Queenslanders. Together, the Bowens encouraged education in Greek philosophy and the liberal arts in their new homeland. A life-size bronze statue of Lady Bowen stands outside Brisbane’s Greek Club as a tribute to her Mediterranean heritage.
In 1868, the Bowens departed Queensland in an emotional and exuberant farewell to take up Sir George’s new appointment as Governor of New Zealand. According to newspaper reports at the time, Lady Bowen was so overcome with sadness to leave her much-loved new home and the community which had embraced her with such warmth, that she had to be carried on-board their vessel.
Over the next two decades, Lady Bowen accompanied Sir George on his many appointments as Governor of Victoria, Mauritius and Hong Kong before settling in London in 1890. She died in 1893 from acute bronchitis, aged 60. Lady Bowen was survived by her husband and five children.
Her legacy of advocacy and community contribution, created over 130 years ago, still lives on in Queensland today.