The Life of Sir William Fitzherbert, with Particular Reference to His Political Career

Abstract

My reason for selecting Sir William Fitzherbert as the subject of this thesis is that few people in New Zealand, at the present time appear to have any knowledge of the pioneer apart from a few general facts, the chief of which is that he was the friend of the Maoris. This scanty knowledge of the pioneer has been obtained largely from early settlers, who are now very few in numbers. Many history enthusiasts know something of the "Three Fs" (Featherston, Fox, Fitzherbert) collectively, and of the first two individually, but very few living appear to know anything definite about the third member - Fitzherbert. The reason for this is undoubtedly due to the lack of written material upon the man, as very few books on New Zealand History, no matter what period they describe, even as much as mention his name, while those hooks which do mention it, dismiss it in but a line or two. There is also to be taken into consideration the fact that there is comparatively little material to be found upon this man who took an active part in the life of the Colony from 1842 to 1890. The material for this thesis has been obtained, chiefly from contemporary newspapers and Hansard, which contains the official record of all debates of the House of Representatives. In some instances the debates are recorded in Hansard in the first person, and in some instances in the third person. As a result some of the quotations will be found in the third person, while some will be in the first. A little information has been obtained, however, from old books published last century, some an early as 1850, and which can be found now only in the Turnbull Library. The subject of my thesis, therefore, is a man who, not having been a Premier or Governor during his lifetime, appears to have been forgotten by the present generation. Yet his influence in the Colony must have been tremendous, while the part which he played in its political life from its very birth through the long years to 1891, surely makes his name one worthy of remembrance.