Sir Henry Marks (5 February 1861 – 5 June 1938) was an Australian-born Fijian politician, serving as a member of the

Legislative Council of Fiji The Legislative Council of Fiji was the colonial precursor to the present-day Parliament, which came into existence when Fiji became independent on 10 October 1970. The first Legislative Council Immediately after Fiji was ceded to the United ...

for over twenty years. Alongside Robert Crompton,

John Maynard Hedstrom Sir John Maynard Hedstrom (22 February 1872 – 2 June 1951) was a Fijian businessman and politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Council for over 30 years. Alongside Robert Crompton, Henry Marks and Henry Milne Scott, he was one o ...

and

Henry Milne Scott Sir Henry Milne Scott (10 April 1876 – 20 May 1956) was a Fijian lawyer, businessman, politician and international cricketer. Alongside Robert Crompton, Henry Marks and John Maynard Hedstrom, he was one of the 'big four' that heavily influence ...

, he was one of the 'big four' that heavily influenced the Fijian economy and political sphere in the first half of the 20th century.

Biography

Marks was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

in 1861, the son of Jewish parents Henry Marks and his wife Mary (''née'' Aaron or Heron), who were from

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

in England.Notable Men of the Pacific
''

Pacific Islands Monthly ''Pacific Islands Monthly'', commonly referred to as "PIM", was a magazine founded in 1930 in Sydney by New Zealand born journalist R.W. Robson. Background ''Pacific Islands Monthly'' was started in Sydney in 1930. The first issue ran in August ...

'', February 1931, p6 He moved to Fiji at the age of 20, initially working as an import/export trader, before becoming a labour agent in

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

, the

New Hebrides New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (french: link=no, Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides, "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named after the Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the island group ...

and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

.Michael C. Howard (2014) ''Transnationalism and Society: An Introduction'', McFarland,p58 When he returned to Fiji he established Henry Marks & Co, a merchant and commercial agency firm. He was involved in several other businesses, serving as chair of the board at Pacific Insurance and Sturt Ogilvie and as a director at Brown & Joske, Morris Hedstrom and Fiji Oil Mills. He married Annie Abrahams in 1883; the couple had three daughters and two sons. He joined the Fiji Volunteer Force when it was formed in 1898, initially holding the rank of a captain, before becoming a Major in 1902. In 1937 he was made Honorary Colonel of the Fiji Defence Force. In 1905 Marks was elected to the Legislative Council for the

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...

constituency in the first elections since 1871. Although he lost his seat in the 1908 elections, he returned to the Council following the 1911 elections, and was subsequently re-elected in

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...

1917 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 9 – WWI – Battle of Rafa: The last substantial Ottoman Army garrison on the Sinai Peninsula is captured by the Egyptian Expeditionary Force's ...

1920 Events January * January 1 ** Polish–Soviet War in 1920: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20. ** Kauniainen, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its own ma ...

1923 Events January–February * January 9 – Lithuania begins the Klaipėda Revolt to annex the Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory). * January 11 – Despite strong British protests, troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area, t ...

and

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of V ...

. During his time in the Legislative Council he also served on the Executive Council. He was Commissioner of Currency from 1913 until 1929, and heavily involved in the introduction of the

Fijian pound The pound (sign: £) was the currency of Fiji between 1873 and 1969. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence. History From its earliest days as a British colony, sterling coinage circulated in Fiji, supplemented by locally produced ...

; as a result, his name was included on the banknotes for several years. Marks was also a longstanding member of Suva Municipal Council until retiring at the start of the 1930s and served as the town's mayor from 1926 until 1930. Following changes to the setup of the Legislative Council in 1929, Marks contested the Southern seat in the 1929 elections, but was defeated by

and

Alport Barker Sir Thomas William Alport Barker (died 14 June 1956) was a Fijian newspaper owner and politician. He owned the ''Fiji Times'' for several decades and was a member of the Legislative Council for over 20 years. Biography Barker was born in Akaro ...

. Marks was also involved in philanthropy and donated £5,000 (plus another £5,000 from his company) to found the

Colonial War Memorial Hospital The Colonial War Memorial Hospital is a hospital located in Suva, Fiji. It was built and completed at the end of 1923. It was built with the assistance of £319,500. It replaced the Colonial Hospital which was first built in Levuka (the former c ...

in Suva, later also donating an

x-ray machine An X-ray machine is any machine that involves X-rays. It may consist of an X-ray generator and an X-ray detector. Examples include: *Machines for medical projectional radiography *Machines for computed tomography *Backscatter X-ray machines, used ...

to it. In the

1918 New Year Honours The 1918 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were published in ''The London Gazette'' and ''The Times'' in Ja ...

he was made a

CBE 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 ...

; he was knighted in the

1933 Birthday Honours The King's Birthday Honours 1933 were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King. The ...

. Marks died in 1938. Brij V. Lal (2015) ''Historical Dictionary of Fiji'', Rowman & Littlefield, p142Sir Henry Marks dead
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', June 1938, p7

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marks, Henry 1938 deaths 1861 births Australian Jews Australian people of English-Jewish descent Fijian Jews Politicians from Melbourne 20th-century Fijian businesspeople Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Bachelor Members of the Legislative Council of Fiji Members of the Executive Council of Fiji People from the Colony of Victoria Colony of Fiji people