Sir Arthur Robert Guinness (11 January 1846 – 10 June 1913) was a New Zealand politician, and Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Personal information

He was born in

Calcutta, India Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, commer ...

, son of

Frank Guinness Francis Hart Vicesimus Guinness (c.1820 – 18 September 1891) was a New Zealand police officer, magistrate and labour organiser. He was born in Dublin, Ireland on c.1820. A member of the Guinness family, he was the father of politician Arthur Guin ...

, who arrived at Lyttelton by the ship ''Tory'' in August 1852. He was educated at

Christ's College, Christchurch Christ's College, Canterbury is an independent Anglican secondary day and boarding school for boys, located in the city centre of Christchurch, New Zealand. Founded in 1850 by Reverend Henry Jacobs in Lyttelton as a school for early settlers, ...

1854–1859 (being no. 31 on the list). He received his legal education from Edward Harston and then from

Garrick Garrick may refer to: * Garrick (name), for the name's origin and people with either the surname or given name, the most famous being: ** David Garrick (1717–1779), English actor * Garrick Club, a London gentlemen's club named in honour of David ...

and Cowlishaw, before being admitted to the bar in 1867. He then practised as a barrister and solicitor in

Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coas ...

, where he served on the

Westland Provincial Council The Westland Province was a Provinces of New Zealand, province of New Zealand from 1873 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. The capital was Hokitika. Area and history The area was part of Canterbury Province when the provinces w ...

from 1874 to 1876, and was then a member of the

Grey County Council Grey County is a county of the Canadian province of Ontario. The county seat is in Owen Sound. It is located in the subregion of Southern Ontario named Southwestern Ontario. Grey County is also a part of the Georgian Triangle. At the time of th ...

from 1876 to 1890, including nine as its chair.

Member of Parliament

Guinness first stood for two-member Grey Valley in the 1876 election and out of the four candidates, he came last. In his second attempt in , he defeated the incumbent, Joseph Petrie, in the single-member electorate that was by now called

. He remained a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

for Greymouth until 1890, and then represented the Grey electorate until his death in 1913. He belonged to the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

. He was Chairman of Committees from 1893 to 1902, then the 7th Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1903 until his death in 1913. Upon the death of William Steward on 30 October 1912, he became

Father of the House Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously- ...

. When he died, his replacement from the Grey by-election was

Paddy Webb Patrick Charles Webb (30 November 1884 – 23 March 1950) was a New Zealand trade unionist and politician. Early life Webb was born in Rutherglen, a small town in the Australian state of Victoria. His father, George Webb, was a miner, and P ...

, who was elected on the second ballot with Liberal support.

Family

In 1875, Guinness married Elisabeth Westbrook, daughter of Mr James Westbrook of Launceston. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in 1911. Guinness died on 10 June 1913 and is buried at Greymouth Cemetery. He was a great-grandson of his namesake the

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

brewer

Arthur Guinness Arthur Guinness ( 172523 January 1803) was an Irish brewer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. The inventor of Guinness beer, he founded the Guinness Brewery at St. James's Gate in 1759. Born in Celbridge, County Kildare around 1725, Guinness ...

(1725–1803).

Notes

References

* * * * * , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Guinness, Arthur (New Zealand) 1846 births 1913 deaths Members of the Westland Provincial Council New Zealand Knights Bachelor 19th-century New Zealand lawyers New Zealand Liberal Party MPs Speakers of the New Zealand House of Representatives Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives People educated at Christ's College, Christchurch People from Christchurch New Zealand MPs for South Island electorates Mayors of Grey 19th-century New Zealand politicians New Zealand politicians awarded knighthoods

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...