Adam Hamilton | |
|---|---|
 Hamilton in the 1930s | |
| 14thLeader of the Opposition | |
| In office 2 November 1936 – 26 November 1940 | |
| Preceded by | George Forbes |
| Succeeded by | Sidney Holland |
| 1stLeader of the National Party | |
| In office 2 November 1936 – 26 November 1940 | |
| Preceded by | Office created |
| Succeeded by | Sidney Holland |
| 13thMinister of Labour | |
| In office 22 September 1931 – 6 December 1935 | |
| Prime Minister | George Forbes |
| Preceded by | James Donald |
| Succeeded by | Tim Armstrong |
| 30thPostmaster-General and Minister of Telegraphs | |
| In office 22 September 1931 – 6 December 1935 | |
| Prime Minister | George Forbes |
| Succeeded by | Fred Jones |
| 5thMinister of Statistics | |
| In office 22 September 1931 – 6 December 1935 | |
| Prime Minister | George Forbes |
| Preceded by | Philip De La Perrelle |
| Succeeded by | Walter Nash |
| 8thMinister of Tourism | |
| In office 22 September 1931 – 6 December 1935 | |
| Prime Minister | George Forbes |
| Preceded by | Philip De La Perrelle |
| Succeeded by | Frank Langstone |
| Member of theNew Zealand Parliament forWallace | |
| In office 4 November 1925 – 27 November 1946 | |
| Preceded by | John Charles Thomson |
| Succeeded by | Tom Macdonald |
| In office 17 December 1919 – 7 December 1922 | |
| Preceded by | John Charles Thomson |
| Succeeded by | John Charles Thomson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1880-08-20)20 August 1880 Forest Hill,Southland, New Zealand |
| Died | 29 April 1952(1952-04-29) (aged 71) Invercargill, Southland, New Zealand |
| Party | Reform (1919–36) National (1936–46) |
| Spouse | Mary Ann McDonald(m.1913) |
| Relations | John Ronald Hamilton (brother) |
| Profession | Retailer |
Adam Hamilton (20 August 1880 – 29 April 1952) was a New Zealand politician. He was the first non-interimLeader of theNational Party during its early years in Opposition.
Hamilton was born in Forest Hill, nearWinton,Southland. He originally trained to become aPresbyterianminister, but later decided not to pursue this course. He married Mary Ann McDonald in 1913, and in 1914, he and his brotherJohn Ronald Hamilton started a grain business inWinton. In World War I, he was rejected for service on medical grounds.[1]
| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1919–1922 | 20th | Wallace | Reform | ||
| 1925–1928 | 22nd | Wallace | Reform | ||
| 1928–1931 | 23rd | Wallace | Reform | ||
| 1931–1935 | 24th | Wallace | Reform | ||
| 1935–1936 | 25th | Wallace | Reform | ||
| 1936–1938 | Changed allegiance to: | National | |||
| 1938–1943 | 26th | Wallace | National | ||
| 1943–1946 | 27th | Wallace | National | ||
In the1919 election, Hamilton was elected toParliament in the Southland seat ofWallace, standing as aReform Party candidate. His brotherJohn Ronald Hamilton was also elected, winning the neighbouring seat ofAwarua fromJoseph Ward. The brothers then sold their business, although Adam Hamilton remained active in the Southland agricultural sector. In the1922 election, the brothers were both defeated, but they regained their seats in the1925 election. Adam Hamilton retained his seat until his retirement, although his brother was defeated again in1928.
When theReform Party formed a coalition with theUnited Party, Hamilton was madeMinister of Internal Affairs. He also served, at various times, as Minister of Telegraphs, Postmaster General, Minister of Labour, and Minister of Employment. He was not popular in these roles. TheGreat Depression had resulted in high levels of unemployment, and Hamilton was often criticised for the government's failure to improve the situation. He was also criticised when the Post and Telegraph Departmentjammed a broadcast that was expected to be pro-Labour by a private radio station byColin Scrimgeour just before the1935 general election. Hamilton denied knowledge of the jamming, but his reputation was nevertheless damaged.
In 1935, Hamilton was awarded theKing George V Silver Jubilee Medal.[2] Having served as a member of the Executive Council for more than three years, Hamilton was granted the retention of the title of "Honourable" following the 1935 election.[3]
In 1936, after losing power to theLabour Party,Reform andUnited agreed to merge, creating theNational Party. Despite his somewhat tarnished public image, Hamilton was selected to lead the new party and took over from interim leaderGeorge Forbes.
Hamilton was essentially a compromise candidate. Former United leader Forbes and his main opponent, former Reform leaderGordon Coates, refused to serve under each other. Forbes was himself believed to have preferredCharles Wilkinson, having invited Wilkinson to join the new National Party in 1936[4] with the thought that the leadership could be taken up in the future by an experienced parliamentarian whose record was untainted by the last government. But Coates was determined to have a fellow Reformist as leader. With the support of a Coates-led faction (including Hamilton) who threatened to split the National Party apart and re-start the Reform Party if Hamilton was not made leader,[5] Adam Hamilton was duly elected on 31 October 1936, although only by one vote.[6]
Given the narrowness of his victory, many did not see Hamilton as the National Party's real leader. He was frequently accused by being a puppet of Coates, with suggestions even being made that Hamilton was merely holding the position until Coates built up the strength to take it himself. Hamilton was not particularly charismatic and did not inspire great loyalty from his colleagues. He was also closely associated in the public mind with the Depression era.[7]
In the1938 election, Hamilton and National were harshly critical of the Labour government and accused it of promotingcommunism and undermining theBritish Empire. The campaign was seen by many as alarmist and negative, and Hamilton's own performance was widely censured. On election day, National was heavily defeated.
The defeat weakened Hamilton's grasp on the leadership somewhat, but any debate as to his future was cut short by the onset ofWorld War II.
In 1940, Hamilton suggested that Labour and National should form a wartime coalition, but that was rejected by the Labour leader,Peter Fraser, who, however, agreed to establish a six-person "War Cabinet". This cabinet would control New Zealand's military endeavours and leave domestic concerns to the regular cabinet. The War Cabinet would consist of four Labour MPs and two National MPs. Hamilton and Coates were National's two representatives. Participation in the War Cabinet was fatally damaging to Hamilton's leadership of the National Party, however, as many National MPs argued that he could not be party leader while he served on a Labour-led council. On 25 November, a vote of 13 to 8 replaced Hamilton withSidney Holland.[8]
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Hamilton remained a part of the War Cabinet and was eventually joined by Holland despite the original claims that a National Party leader could not be in it. In 1942, however, National withdrew from all co-operation with the Labour Party. Hamilton, along with Coates, protested that move and ceased attending Nationalcaucus meetings. Both Hamilton and Coates then rejoined the war administration despite condemnation from their party colleagues.[9]
Eventually, Hamilton managed to bring about a rapprochement with the National Party, unlike Coates, who became an independent. Hamilton contested the1943 election as a National candidate. He did not seek re-election in the1946 election and chose to retire from politics.
Hamilton died inInvercargill on 29 April 1952 and is buried at Winton Cemetery.[1]
| New Zealand Parliament | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Wallace 1919–1922 1925–1946 | Succeeded by |
| Succeeded by | ||
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Postmaster-General and Minister of Telegraphs 1931–1935 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Leader of the Opposition 1936–1940 | Succeeded by |