Sir Ernest Hyam Davis (17 February 1872 – 16 September 1962) was a New Zealand businessman, and was
Mayor of Auckland City
The Mayor of Auckland City was the directly elected head of the Auckland City Council, the municipal government of Auckland City, New Zealand. The office existed from 1871 to 2010, when the Auckland City Council and mayoralty was abolished an ...
from 1935 to 1941. He was also on other Auckland local bodies (Fire Board, Hospital Board, Drainage Board) and on various philanthropic and sporting organisations. He was Mayor of
Newmarket (a small inner-Auckland borough) from 1909 to 1910.
Early life
Davis was born on 17 February 1872 in
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 ...
to brewer
Moss Davis and Leah Davis (). He attended
Bishop's School in Nelson, and
Auckland Grammar
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...
.
On 2 August 1899, he married
Marion Mitchell, who had made a career as an opera singer with her debut at age 14.
Career
Davis joined the brewing industry with W Macarthur & Co, and later became managing director of Hancock & Co. In 1923,
New Zealand Breweries was formed. He was a brewery baron for half a century, and a master tactician against the Prohibition movement. His brother,
Eliot Davis, was also in brewing.
During the 1912
Waihi miners' strike
The Waihi miners' strike was a major strike action in 1912 by gold miners in the New Zealand town of Waihi. It is widely regarded as the most significant industrial action in the history of New Zealand's labour movement. It resulted in one strike ...
, the strike leaders were imprisoned. They were released in November for securities of £1600, which was put up by Davis. He was a major source of funds for the
Labour Party, and was
Michael Joseph Savage
Michael Joseph Savage (23 March 1872 – 27 March 1940) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of New Zealand, heading the First Labour Government from 1935 until his death in 1940.
Savage was born in the Colony ...
's employer for most of the period 1908–1919. He also employed
John A. Lee
John Alfred Alexander Lee (31 October 1891 – 13 June 1982) was a New Zealand politician and writer. He is one of the more prominent avowed socialism in New Zealand, socialists in New Zealand's political history.
Lee was elected as a me ...
to manage the Palace Hotel in Rotorua from 1929 to 1931 after Lee lost his seat in Parliament.
The historian and polictial scientist
Barry Gustafson
Barry Selwyn Gustafson (born 1938) is a New Zealand political scientist and historian, and a leading political biographer. He served for nearly four decades as professor of political studies at the University of Auckland, and as Acting Directo ...
has described Davis as "a millionaire who from 1912 until his death was a very generous financial supporter of the Labour Party ... A ruthless businessman, benefactor of worthy causes, and with an eye for the opposite sex."
Davis told
Warren Freer
Warren Wilfred Freer (27 December 1920 – 29 March 2013) was a New Zealand politician and member of the Labour Party. He represented the Mount Albert electorate from 1947 to . He is internationally known as the first Western politician ever ...
, then the Labour candidate for in the
1947
It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Events
January
* January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country in ...
by-election, that he was "not opposed to state control of liquor outlets, but was opposed to state control of breweries" and supported Labour (sending a substantial cheque for party campaign funds) because "the Labour Party policy allows a worker to have a few shillings in his pocket and without that he cannot buy my beer. Conservatives tend to look after the more affluent in the country and do not care if the worker has sixpence for a beer or not."
In 1935, Davis was elected
Mayor of Auckland
The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amalga ...
with
Citizens' Committee endorsement, narrowly defeating Labour's candidate
Joe Sayegh
Joseph Callil Sayegh (7 March 1884 – 29 March 1946) was a New Zealand politician and businessman.
Early life and career
Sayegh was of Assyrian origin, born in Lebanon 11 kilometres from Bethlehem on 7 March 1884. Sayegh's father Callil emigra ...
by only 400 votes. He greatly increased his majority when re-elected in 1938.
Davis was the owner of the
Grand Hotel Auckland
The Grand Hotel, at 9 Princes Street, was the leading hotel of Auckland, New Zealand, from 1889 until 1966. With its vaulted ceilings, ornate mantelpieces, and red carpet, the Grand Hotel was a plush and social rendezvous from its opening. The Gra ...
from 1910, when his parents retired to London, until his death. He collected a large number of Victorian paintings, which hung in the hotel until its closure in 1966 when it was leased by Hancock & Co. Ltd from the Ara Masonic Lodge. Davis was also a racehorse owner and yachtsman.
Honours and awards
In the
1937 Coronation Honours
The 1937 Coronation Honours were awarded in honour of the coronation of George VI.
Royal Honours
Order of the Thistle
* The Queen
Royal Victorian Chain
* The Queen
* Queen Mary
* Clive, Baron Wigram
Royal Victorian Order (GCVO)
* The Queen ...
, Davis was knighted as a
Knight Bachelor
The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...
. He was appointed a Chevalier of the
Légion d’honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...
by the Republic of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
on 2 April 1938 for his services to the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
during their visits to
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 ...
. His award was announced by the French Foreign Minister and recognised the never-failing courtesy and entertainment of
French naval crews during visits to
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 ...
, most notably the cruiser ''
Jeanne d’Arc'', which had visited only two months previous. In 1953, he was awarded the
Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du couronnement de la Reine Élizabeth II) is a commemorative medal instituted to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953.
Award
This medal was awarded a ...
.
Notes
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Ernest
1872 births
1962 deaths
People educated at Auckland Grammar School
Mayors of Auckland
Jewish New Zealand politicians
Businesspeople from Auckland
People from Nelson, New Zealand
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
New Zealand recipients of the Légion d'honneur
New Zealand Knights Bachelor
Businesspeople awarded knighthoods