The following lists events that happened during 1941 in New Zealand.

Population

* Estimated population as of 31 December: 1,631,200. * Increase since 31 December 1940: -2400 (-0.15%). * Males per 100 females: 96.1. * The scheduled New Zealand census was not held due to World War II.

Incumbents

Regal and viceregal

* Head of State - George VI *

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

- The Viscount Galway GCMG DSO

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

PC, succeeded same year by Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Cyril Newall GCB OM GCMG CBE AM

Government

The

26th New Zealand Parliament The 26th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the New Zealand Parliament. It was elected at the 1938 general election in October of that year. 1938 general election The 1938 general election was held on Friday, 14 October in the Māori electo ...

continued with the Labour Party in government. 1941 should have been an election year, but because of World War II the election was deferred until 1942. *

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hunger ...

- Bill Barnard ( Democratic Labour Party) * Prime Minister - Peter Fraser * Minister of Finance - Walter Nash * Minister of Foreign Affairs - Frank Langstone * Attorney-General - Rex Mason * Chief Justice — Sir Michael Myers

Parliamentary opposition

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Sidney Holland Sir Sidney George Holland (18 October 1893 – 5 August 1961) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 25th prime minister of New Zealand from 13 December 1949 to 20 September 1957. He was instrumental in the creation and consolidation o ...

( National Party).

Main centre leaders

* Mayor of Auckland -

Ernest Davis Ernest Davis may refer to: * Ernie Davis (1939–1963), American football running back * Sir Ernest Davis (brewer) (1872–1962), New Zealand brewer and mayor of Auckland * Ernest Davis (professor), Professor of Computer Science at New York Univer ...

then John Allum * Mayor of Hamilton - Harold Caro * Mayor of Wellington - Thomas Hislop * Mayor of Christchurch - Robert M. Macfarlane then Ernest Andrews * Mayor of Dunedin - Andrew Allen

Events

* 16 January: formation of the New Zealand Women's Auxiliary Air Force * March:

2NZEF The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

deployed to northern Greece and were soon involved in the

Battle of Greece The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...

. * 24–30 April: New Zealand forces evacuated from mainland Greece to Crete. * 14 May: The minesweeper was sunk by a mine while sweeping in the Hauraki Gulf, and sank with the death of five of her crew. * 20 May - 1 June: Battle of Crete - New Zealand forces suffer heavy losses: 671 dead, 967 wounded, 2,180 captured. On the first day of the German invasion, Charles Upham wins the V.C * 8 October: four police officers and three civilians are shot and killed at Kowhitirangi, near Hokitika, by

Stanley Graham Eric Stanley George Graham (12 November 1900 – 21 October 1941) was a New Zealander who killed seven people. Early life Graham was born and raised in Kokatahi, New Zealand and, as a child, worked at the Longford Hotel, built in 1902, ten ...

* 7 December: Hawaii bombed in a surprise attack by Japanese carrier forces on the US Navy. * 8 December: New Zealand declares war on Japan in response to Japanese attack on the United States. * 10 December: British battlecruiser and battleship sunk by Japanese torpedo planes, effectively taking Britain out of the sea war in the Pacific. * 15 December: A RNZAF Lockheed Hudson bomber returning to Nelson from a coastal patrol hit the top of a limestone bluff near Collingwood in thick fog, killing all four crew. * 19 December: New Zealand suffers its worst naval loss when 150 New Zealanders on board are killed after the ship strikes mines and sinks off the coast of Libya. * German surface raiders operated in New Zealand waters in 1940 and 1941, sinking four ships.

Arts and literature

See

1941 in art Events from the year 1941 in art. Events *March 17 – In Washington, D.C., the National Gallery of Art is officially opened by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. *July 14 – American art collector Peggy Guggenheim and German painter Max Ernst ar ...

, 1941 in literature

Music

See:

1941 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1941. Specific locations * 1941 in British music * 1941 in Norwegian music Specific genres * 1941 in country music *1941 in jazz Events *January 5 – Ernesto Bonino makes ...

Radio

See: Public broadcasting in New Zealand

Film

See: :1941 film awards,

1941 in film The year 1941 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, ''Citizen Kane''. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1941 released films by box office gross ...

List of New Zealand feature films This is a list of feature films and pre 1910 short films produced or filmed in New Zealand, ordered by year of release. Key * * = Funded in part by the New Zealand Film Commission. * † = Year given is date of principal photography rather th ...

, Cinema of New Zealand, :1941 films

Sport

Most sporting events were on hold due to the war.

Chess

* The 50th National Chess Championship was held in Timaru, and was won by P. Allerhand of Wellington.

Horse racing

Harness racing

* New Zealand Trotting Cup – Josedale Grattan * Auckland Trotting Cup – Uenuku

Lawn bowls

The national outdoor lawn bowls championships are held in Christchurch. * Men's singles champion – C. Spearman (Christchurch RSA Bowling Club) * Men's pair champions – H.S. Maslin, M.J. Squire (skip) (Hawera Bowling Club) * Men's fours champions – C.H. Elsom, D.H. Joseph, A. Williamson, P. Munn (skip) (Canterbury Bowling Club)

Rugby union

:Rugby union in New Zealand, :All Blacks * Ranfurly Shield

Rugby league

New Zealand national rugby league team

Soccer

* Chatham Cup competition not held * Provincial league champions: ** Auckland: Comrade ** Canterbury: Western ** Hawke's Bay: Napier HSOB ** Nelson: No competition ** Otago: Mosgiel ** South Canterbury: No competition ** Southland: No competition ** Waikato: No competition ** Wanganui: No competition ** Wellington: Seatoun

Births

* 5 January:

Bob Cunis Robert Smith Cunis (5 January 1941 – 9 August 2008) played 20 Test matches for New Zealand as a pace bowler between 1964 and 1972, and was later coach of the New Zealand national team from 1987 to 1990. His son Stephen played cricket for Can ...

, cricketer (died 2008). * 3 February: Gary Bartlett, cricketer. * 11 February: Alan "A. K." Grant, writer, humourist. (died 2000) * 12 February: Ross Morgan, cricketer. * 12 February:

Bruno Lawrence David Charles Lawrence (12 February 194110 June 1995) known as Bruno Lawrence was an English-born musician and actor, who was active in the industry in New Zealand and Australia. Initially notable as a musician and founder of 1970s ensemble Bl ...

, actor. (died 1995) * 26 February: Keith Thomson, cricketer. * 8 April: Roderick Deane, economist, public sector reformer, and businessman. * 7 May:

Grahame Bilby Grahame Paul Bilby (born 7 May 1941) is a former New Zealand cricketer and association football player who represented both the New Zealand national cricket team and the New Zealand national football team. Cricket career An opening batsman, Bi ...

, cricketer. * 17 June:

Claire Stewart Claire Stewart is a Scottish broadcast journalist, best known as a former political correspondent for ''STV News''. Stewart joined STV North (formerly Grampian Television) in 2004 as an Aberdeen-based reporter and bulletin presenter. In February ...

, politician. (died 2020) * 5 July: Lynley Dodd, children's author. * 20 July: Pita Sharples, academic and politician. * 17 August:

Owen Marshall Owen Marshall Jones (born 17 August 1941, Te Kuiti, New Zealand), who writes under the pen name Owen Marshall, is a New Zealand short story writer and novelist. The third son of a Methodist minister younger brother of Allan Jones, and older br ...

, writer (Owen Marshall Jones). * 12 September: Doug Kidd, politician. * 17 September:

Tilly Hirst Tilly Titihuia Rangimatau Hirst (née Vercoe; 17 September 1941 – 4 June 2021) was a New Zealand netball player. She was a member of the New Zealand team that won the 1967 World Netball Championships. Early life Hirst was born Tilly Titihuia ...

, netball player (died 2021). * 29 October: Bryan Yuile, cricketer. * 7 November: Jim Sutton, politician. * 12 November: Jenny McLeod, composer and musician. * 24 November: Bob Harvey, mayor of Waitakere City. * Chin Wing Ho (Peter Chin), mayor of Dunedin. * Gary Day, actor. * Malcolm Douglas, politician. *

Allan Hawkey Allan Charles Hawkey (born 1941) is a cartoonist based in Hamilton, New Zealand Hamilton ( mi, Kirikiriroa) is an inland city in the North Island of New Zealand. Located on the banks of the Waikato River, it is the seat and most populous city ...

, cartoonist. * (in England):

Bernard Holman Bernard Holman was an English artist who later emigrated to New Zealand to paint and teach. He was born in Woking in Surrey, England in 1941 and died in Dunedin, New Zealand on 11 September 1988. Holman graduated from the Kingston upon Thame ...

, artist. (died 1988) * Ian Mune, actor and director. * Ian Peters, politician. :1941 births

Deaths

* 2 May: Sir

James Parr James Parr may refer to: * James Parr (baseball) (born 1986), American baseball player * James Parr (politician) (1869–1941), New Zealand lawyer and politician * Jim Parr James Gordon Parr (May 26, 1927 – April 5, 2000) was an English-Ca ...

, politician. * 26 May:

William John Lyon William John Lyon (15 February 1898 – 26 May 1941) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party. He was killed in World War II while serving with the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Early life and career Lyon was born in London, En ...

, Labour MP, killed serving with

on Crete. * 27 April:

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

, community leader. * 27 July:

Alfred Henry O'Keeffe Alfred Henry O'Keeffe (21 July 1858 - 27 July 1941), was a notable New Zealand artist and art teacher, who spent the majority of his life in Dunedin. During the first quarter of the twentieth century, he was one of the few New Zealand artists to e ...

, painter. * 11 September:

Albert Glover Albert Edward Glover (1849–11 September 1941) was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party. Biography Early life and career Glover was born in Nottingham, England, in 1849. At age 13 he sailed with his parents to New Zealand and arrived ...

, politician. * 4 October: George Troup, architect. * 20 October:

, murderer (shot by police). * 1 November: Gordon Hultquist, Labour MP, killed serving with

in North Africa. * 28 November:

John Manchester Allen John Manchester Allen (3 August 1901 – 28 November 1941) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party. He also served in the Second World War and commanded the 21st Battalion from May 1941 until he was killed in action in Libya. Biogr ...

, National MP, killed serving with

in Libya. * 29 November: Arthur Nattle Grigg, National MP, killed serving with

in Libya. * 30 November:

Thomas David Burnett Thomas David Burnett (25 November 1877 – 30 November 1941) was a New Zealand politician of the Reform Party, and joined the National Party after the 1935 election. Early life Burnett's parents were Andrew Burnett and Catherine Burnett from ...

, National MP. * James Alexander Pond, analytical chemist and homoeopathic pharmacist.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:1941 in New Zealand Years of the 20th century in New Zealand