On 24 July 1844, He was a loyal supporter of the government until, unable to support the continuing nomination of members, he resigned in 1848. He was then elected to the Council, initially for the seat of
County of Bathurst and between 1851 and 1856 as the member for
County of Cumberland. Darvall styled himself as a "Patrician Liberal" and was a supporter of
John Dunmore Lang and
Charles Cowper. He opposed the 1853 Constitution Bill of
William Charles Wentworth because of its provision for an hereditary upper house. Following the granting of self-government, Darvall was elected to the first Legislative Assembly as one of the two members for the seat of
Cumberland (North Riding). He was surprisingly appointed as the Solicitor General in the conservative and short-lived government of
Stuart Donaldson. He was also Solicitor General 6 June to 25 August 1856 and 3 October 1856 to 23 May 1857 then Attorney-General 26 May to 7 September 1857 in the government of
Henry Parker. Darvall became concerned by the effects of manhood suffrage and the colony's liberal land distribution schemes and resigned from the Assembly in November 1857. He subsequently joined the conservative Constitutional Association and was elected in their interest for the seat of
Hawkesbury at the
1859 election. His opposition to the
Free Selection of Crown Lands led to significant dissension in the electorate and he did not contest the
1860 election. While opposed to parliamentary nominations, he nevertheless accepted a nomination to the Legislative Council in 1861. He used his period in the Council to press for its conversion into an elected house and for a limitation on its powers over money bills. However, at the same time, he also expressed concerns at the excesses of colonial democracy. He resigned from the Council in June 1863 to successfully contest a
by-election for the seat of
East Maitland and on re-entering the assembly he almost immediately accepted the position of Attorney-General in the liberal government of Charles Cowper. Cowper's government fell in October of that year and at the
subsequent election he was elected as one of the four members for
West Sydney. He was again made Attorney-General on 3 February 1865 by Cowper but resigned on 20 June 1865 to return to England. ==References==