Robert Hart (1814 – 16 September 1894) was a 19th-century New Zealand politician.

Biography

Hart was also baptised on 4 April 1815. He and his brother George left London in April 1843 on board the ''Mary'', arriving in

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 metr ...

on 9 August 1843. He was a well-known solicitor and barrister in Wellington, first with the firm Messrs. Holroyd and Hart, then for many years as the principal member of the firm Messrs Hart and Buckley. He was elected in

1853 Events January–March * January 6 – Florida Governor Thomas Brown signs legislation that provides public support for the new East Florida Seminary, leading to the establishment of the University of Florida. * January 8 – Taiping R ...

to the

1st New Zealand Parliament The 1st New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. It opened on 24 May 1854, following New Zealand's first general election (held the previous year). It was dissolved on 15 September 1855 in preparation for that year's ...

, representing the City of Wellington electorate, but did not serve in any further Parliaments. In the 1855 general election, five people contested the City of Wellington electorate. Whilst the results were close, Hart came last and was not returned. He contested 27 December 1856 by-election against

Samuel Revans Samuel Revans (ca. 1807 – 14 July 1888) was a New Zealand newspaper owner, entrepreneur and politician. He was the ''Father of Journalism in New Zealand.'' Early life Samuel Revans is known to have been a native of London but, as was commo ...

in the Hutt electorate and gained 24 votes against 96 for Revans. In 1859, he was appointed Judge of the District Courts 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 i ...

and

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. Whang ...

. He was appointed to the Legislative Council on 9 July 1872, and remained a member until his death in 1894. He married Catherine McLean on 10 January 1867 at St. Andrew's Church, Wellington. Catherine was the sister of Donald McLean, the Superintendent of

Hawke's Bay Province The Hawke's Bay Province was a province of New Zealand. The province separated from the Wellington Province following a meeting in Napier in February 1858, and existed until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. At the time of its es ...

."Marriages", in ''Daily Southern Cross'', Volume XXIII, Issue 2962, 22 January 1867, Page 3. His brother was the politician George Hart.

References

;Notes ;Sources * 1814 births 1894 deaths Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Members of the New Zealand Legislative Council 20th-century New Zealand judges District Court of New Zealand judges New Zealand MPs for Wellington electorates Colony of New Zealand judges 19th-century New Zealand politicians {{NewZealand-law-bio-stub