Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, mother of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has died peacefully at her home, Cruden Farm, near Melbourne, aged 103. She is survived by three children and 77 direct descendants, including five great-great-grandchildren. She would have turned 104 in January.
Born in 1909, Dame Elisabeth was renowned for her charitable work, notably helping to establish the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne and the Murdoch Children's Research Institute. She was made a dame by the Queen on the hospital's opening day. Rupert Murdoch, 81, has said he regards her longevity as evidence that he can continue leading News Corporation into old age.
Dame Elisabeth was known for her strong opinions, including disapproval of some of her son's business decisions. She described his purchase of the News of the World as something that 'nearly killed me' and criticised invasive journalism. She also opposed his divorce from his second wife, Anna, and subsequent marriage to Wendi Deng, saying, 'When you take a vow to be loyal to someone for all your life, you don't hurt other people for your own happiness.'
Her marriage to Keith Murdoch in 1928 lasted 24 years until his death when she was 43. Rupert, the second of their four children, has called her 'the disciplinarian'. She once said that children become 'defiantly disobedient if never checked' and believed that parental control fosters family closeness.
Before her marriage, she worked briefly and later became the first woman trustee of the National Gallery of Victoria. She said she aimed to show that 'women can be useful' but did not consider herself a feminist. Her husband first saw her photograph as a debutante in his magazine and declared he wanted to meet her; they married a year later, and he gave her Cruden Farm as a wedding present.
