Alfred Domett
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| Hon. Alfred Domett | |
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4th Premier of New Zealand
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| In office 6 August 1862 – 30 October 1863 |
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| Preceded by | William Fox |
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| Succeeded by | Frederick Whitaker |
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| Born | 20 May 1811 Camberwell Grove, Surrey, England |
| Died | 2 November 1887 |
| Political party | None |
Alfred Domett, CMG (20 May 1811 – 2 November 1887) was an English colonial statesman and poet. He was born at Camberwell Grove, Surrey; his father was a ship-owner. He entered St John's College, Cambridge, but left the university in 1833.
[edit] Poetry
Domett published one or two volumes of poetry from 1833, and contributed several poems to Blackwood's Magazine, one of which, A Christmas Hymn, attracted attention. He was called to the bar, but for ten years he lived a life of ease in London, where he became the intimate friend of Robert Browning, of whose poem Waring he was the subject. An account of the friendship between the two men appeared in The Contemporary Review for January 1905, by W. H. Griffin[1].
Among his books of poetry, Ranolf and Amohia, a South Sea Day Dream, about Māori life, is the best known (1872), and Flotsam and Jetsam (1877) is dedicated to Browning.
[edit] New Zealand politics
In 1842 Domett emigrated to New Zealand where he filled many important administrative posts, being colonial secretary for New Munster in 1848, secretary for the colony in 1851, and Premier between 1862 - 1863. The most noteworthy change Domett brought about during his tenure in office was the shift of New Zealand's capital from Auckland to Wellington in 1865. In November 1863 he moved a resolution before Parliament (in Auckland) that "it has become necessary that the seat of government... should be transferred to some suitable locality in Cook Strait."[2] He returned to England in 1871, was created CMG in 1880.
[edit] References
- ^ Robert Browning and Alfred Domett, edited by F. G. Kenyon, 1906)
- ^ Phillip Temple: Wellington Yesterday
| Prime Minister of New Zealand |  |
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| Preceded by: Edward Stafford | (1862-1863) | Succeeded by: Frederick Whitaker | ||
| Sewell | Fox | Stafford | Domett | Whitaker | Weld | Waterhouse | Vogel | Pollen | Atkinson | Grey | Hall | Stout | Ballance | Seddon | Hall-Jones | Ward | Mackenzie | Massey | Bell | Coates | Forbes | Savage | Fraser | Holland | Nash | Holyoake | Marshall | Kirk | Rowling | Muldoon | Lange | Palmer | Moore | Bolger | Shipley | Clark | ||||
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
Categories: Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica | Prime Ministers of New Zealand | English politicians | English poets | New Zealand writers | English barristers | Alumni of the University of Cambridge | People from Surrey | English New Zealanders | Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George | 1811 births | 1887 deaths
