The 1972 New Year Honours in New Zealand were appointments by

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

on the advice of the New Zealand government to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders. The awards celebrated the passing of 1971 and the beginning of 1972, and were announced on 1 January 1972. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour.

Knight Bachelor

* Bernard Thomas O'Connell – of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. For outstanding services to manufacturing and commerce.

Order of Saint Michael and Saint George

Companion (CMG)

* Alfred Lawrence Friis – of

Tauranga Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...

. For very valuable services to the dairy industry. * Roy Granville McElroy – of

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

. For very valuable services to the community. File:Roy McElroy.jpg, Roy McElroy

Order of the British Empire

Knight Commander (KBE)

;Civil division * Thomas Harcourt Clarke Caughey – of Auckland. For outstanding services to health administration. File:Harcourt Caughey.jpg, Sir Harcourt Caughey

Commander (CBE)

;Civil division * Harold Iver Austad – of Wellington. For very valuable services to athletics. * Alan Fleming Gilkison – of

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

. For very valuable services to the community. * George Searle – of Wellington. For very valuable services as Director-General of the

New Zealand Post Office The New Zealand Post Office (NZPO) was a government department of New Zealand until 1987. It was previously (from 1881 to 1959) named the New Zealand Post and Telegraph Department (NZ P&T). As a government department, the New Zealand Post Office ...

. * Alan Stewart – of

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

. For very valuable services to education. ;Military division * Commodore Edward Courtney Thorne –

Royal New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; mi, Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, , Sea Warriors of New Zealand) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act ...

. * Major-General Leslie Arthur Pearce – Brigadiers' List (Regular Force). File:Alan Stewart 1962 (cropped).jpg, Alan Stewart

Officer (OBE)

;Civil division * Neil Colquhoun Begg – of

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

. For valuable services to the community. * George James Brocklehurst – of Wellington. For valuable services as chairman of the Social Security Commission. * Maurice Alister Brook – of Auckland. For valuable services, as a judge of the

Māori Land Court The Māori Land Court (Māori: Te Kōti Whenua Māori) is the specialist court of record in New Zealand that hears matters relating to Māori land. Māori Land Court history The Māori Land Court was established in 1865 as the Native Land Cou ...

and judge of the High Court of the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

. * Ian Donald Arthur Cameron – of

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service ...

. For valuable services to the community. * Arnold Edwin Clark – of

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...

. For valuable services as chairman of the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Council. * Duncan Sandford Cox – of Auckland. For valuable services to tourism and the accountancy profession. * Selwyn Osgood Field – of

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, Switzerland. For valuable services to youth. * Margaret Katherine Holt – of

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region is ...

. For valuable services to the community. * David Fiander Horlor – of

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

. For valuable services to education. * Wiremu Peka Kerekere – of Wellington. For valuable services to the

Māori people The Māori (, ) are the indigenous Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand (). Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350. Over several ce ...

. * Horace McGregor Kirk – of Auckland. For valuable services to the community. * Malcolm Arnold Rickard – of Wellington. For valuable services to broadcasting and music. * Margaret Grace Turnbull – of Wellington. For valuable services as chief commissioner,

Girl Guides Association Girlguiding is the operating name of The Guide Association, previously named The Girl Guides Association and is the national guiding organisation of the United Kingdom. It is the UK's largest girl-only youth organisation. Girlguiding is a char ...

. * William Leslie Francis Utley – of

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

. For valuable services to surgery. ;Military division * Surgeon Commander Malcolm Hames Watson –

Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve The Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNZNVR) is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). History Early history The first Naval Volunteer units were formed in Auckland and Nelson in 1858. Over the rest of th ...

. * Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Ian Launder –

Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment is the parent administrative regiment and corps of regular and reserve infantry battalions in the New Zealand Army. It was originally formed in 1947 with a singular Regular regiment and multiple reserve r ...

(Regular Force). * Wing Commander William Neil Alexander McKay –

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

Member (MBE)

;Civil division * George Albert Benson – of

Wanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whangan ...

. For services to athletics. * Hugh Morrish Besley – of

Taupō Taupō (), sometimes written Taupo, is a town on the north-eastern shore of Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake, in the central North Island. It is the largest urban area of the Taupō District, and the second-largest urban area in the Wai ...

. For services to local government. * Eileen Brown – of

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

. For services to the community. * Denver Harold Calder – of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

. For services to the community. * Ronald James Doherty – of Woodville. For services to the trade union movement. * Leslie Ernest Farr – of

Rangiora Rangiora is the largest town and seat of the Waimakariri District, in Canterbury, New Zealand. It is north of Christchurch, and is part of the Christchurch metropolitan area. With an estimated population of Rangiora is the 30th largest urba ...

. For services to local government. * Charles Edmund Forsyth – of

West Otago West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

. For services to the community. * Matthew Green – of

Feilding Feilding ( mi, Aorangi) is a town in the Manawatū District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 54, 20 kilometres north of Palmerston North. The town is the seat of the Manawatū District Council. Feilding has w ...

. For services to local government. * George Davidson Griffiths – of Christchurch. For services to the community. * Ethel Winifred Jessie Harwood – of

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

. For services to education. * Muir James McGlashen – of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. For services to local government. * John Alexander McNeish – of

Brunner Brunner may refer to: Places * Brunner, New Zealand * Lake Brunner, New Zealand * Brunner Mine, New Zealand * Brunner, Houston, United States * Brunner (crater), lunar crater Other uses * Brunner (surname) * Brunner the Bounty Hunter, a character ...

. For services to the community. * Moya Clare McTamney – of

Masterton Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...

. For services as a nurse in South Vietnam. * Henry Francis Miller – of

Russell Russell may refer to: People * Russell (given name) * Russell (surname) * Lady Russell (disambiguation) * Lord Russell (disambiguation) Places Australia *Russell, Australian Capital Territory *Russell Island, Queensland (disambiguation) **Ru ...

. For services to local government * Alfred Benjamin Muggeridge – of

South Taranaki South Taranaki is a territorial authority on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island that contains the towns of Hāwera (the seat of the district), Manaia, Ōpunake, Patea, Eltham, and Waverley. The District has a land area of 3,575.46&nbs ...

. For services to the community. * John Joseph Nimon – of

Havelock North Havelock North ( mi, Te Hemo-a-Te Atonga) is a town in the Hawke's Bay region of the North Island of New Zealand, situated less than 2 km south-east of the city of Hastings. It was a borough for many years until the 1989 reorganisation of local ...

. For services to the community. * Alfred Clarence Paine – of Invercargill. For services to the community. * Richard Charles Parker – of Gisborne. For services to local government. * Harry Leonard Riley – of

Golden Bay Golden Bay may refer to: * Golden Bay / Mohua, a bay at the northern end of New Zealand's South Island * Golden Bay (Malta), a bay and beach on the coastline of Malta * Golden Bay High School, a high school in Takaka, New Zealand * Golden Bay, Wes ...

. For services to local government. * Herbert Donald Robertson – of Wanganui. For services to the community. * The Reverend Ewing Campbell Stevens – of Dunedin. For services as a minister of religion. * Henry Charles-Tod – of

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

. For services to the community. * Ernest Cecil Wright – of

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

. For services to the community. ;Military division * Lieutenant Commander Francis Edward John Mason – Royal New Zealand Navy. * Stores Warrant Officer Noel Lindsay Walker – Royal New Zealand Navy. * Major Andrew Lawrence Fleming – Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (Territorial Force). * Major (Temporary Lieutenant-Colonel) Peter Gibson Hotop – Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (Regular Force). * Captain (Temporary Major) Eruini Taharua Te Moananui –

Royal New Zealand Armoured Corps The Royal New Zealand Armoured Corps (RNZAC) is the overall umbrella grouping of Regular Force and Territorial Force units equipped with armoured vehicles in the New Zealand Army. The corps was formed in 1942 as the New Zealand Armoured Corps, ...

(Territorial Force). * Squadron Officer Beverley Ethne Bowler –

Women's Royal New Zealand Air Force A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardle ...

. * Warrant Officer Thomas Methven – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Companion of the Imperial Service Order (ISO)

* Joseph Langmuir Hunter – of Wellington. For valuable services as Assistant Director-General of Education.

British Empire Medal (BEM)

;Civil division * Olive Mary Barker – of

Timaru Timaru (; mi, Te Tihi-o-Maru) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to ...

. For services to the community. * Edward Francis Bradley – of Auckland. For services to education. * Clifford Bruce Collins – of Nelson; mechanical overseer, Ministry of Works. * Gordon Harold Cowles – of Christchurch. For services to the community. * Florence Laurel Craig – of Auckland. For services to education. * Francis Patrick Mahony – of Napier. For services as a mail contractor. * Elsie Constance Odell – of Riverton. For services to the community. * Cyril Walter Partridge – of

Te Puke Te Puke is a town located 18 kilometres southeast of Tauranga in the Western Bay of Plenty of New Zealand. It is particularly well-known for the cultivation of Kiwifruit. Te Puke is close to Tauranga, Mount Maunganui, Papamoa, and Maketu, whi ...

. For services to the community. * Jessie May Quarrie – of

Helensville Helensville is a town in the North Island of New Zealand. It is sited northwest of Auckland, close to the southern extremity of the Kaipara Harbour. New Zealand State Highway 16, State Highway 16 passes through the town, connecting it to Waimauk ...

. For services as matron of Helensville Obstetric Hospital. * Peter Robson – of

Mana According to Melanesian and Polynesian mythology, ''mana'' is a supernatural force that permeates the universe. Anyone or anything can have ''mana''. They believed it to be a cultivation or possession of energy and power, rather than being a ...

. For services to the community. * Dorothy Jenner Wales – of Christchurch. for services to the community. * Leonard Ryan Williams – of

Alexandra Alexandra () is the feminine form of the given name Alexander (, ). Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; GEN , ; meaning 'man'). Thus it may be roughly translated as "defender of man" or "prot ...

. For services to the community. ;Military division * Chief Engineering Mechanic Noel Rapana Flesher – Royal New Zealand Navy. * Chief Radio Electrical Artificer Edward Arthur Postance – Royal New Zealand Navy. * Chief Radio Mechanic Albert Alexander Tiriana – Royal New Zealand Navy. * Sergeant Garry Belchamber –

Royal New Zealand Army Medical Corps The Royal New Zealand Army Medical Corps (RNZAMC) is a corps of the New Zealand Army, the land branch of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). The Medical Corps provides for the medical needs of soldiers, such as diagnosing and treating diseases ...

(Territorial Force). * Corporal (Temporary Sergeant) Michael Roger Arthur Carter –

Royal New Zealand Electrical and Mechanical Engineers The Royal New Zealand Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RNZEME) was a New Zealand Army Corps comprising Army trained tradesmen (craftsmen) who repaired Army equipment wherever New Zealand Forces served. Prior to 1946 NZEME functions were carr ...

(Regular Force). * Staff Sergeant Herbert Desmond Smith – Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (Territorial Force). * Staff Sergeant Thelma Audrey Wigley –

Royal New Zealand Nursing Corps The Royal New Zealand Nursing Corps (RNZNC) is a corps of the New Zealand Army. The corps was initially formed in 1915 from civilian nurses who volunteered for service during World War I, and who were granted honorary officer ranks. A Nursing ...

(Regular Force). * Sergeant Gerald William Gaston – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Air Force Cross (AFC)

* Squadron Leader Trevor Thomas Bland – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Queen's Police Medal (QPM)

* Burton Bernard Bevege – Detective Superintendent,

New Zealand Police Force The New Zealand Police ( mi, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa) is the national police service and principal law enforcement agency of New Zealand, responsible for preventing crime, enhancing public safety, bringing offenders to justice, and maintai ...

. * Joseph William Saunders – Chief Superintendent, New Zealand Police Force.

Queen's Fire Service Medal (QFSM)

* Robert Allan Davidson – chief fire officer, Timaru Fire Brigade. * Lumsden-Vickers Trass – chief fire officer, Levin Fire Brigade.

Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air

* Master Air Electronics Operator Barry James Hogg – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:New Year Honours 1972 (New Zealand) New Year Honours 1972 awards 1972 in New Zealand New Zealand awards