Thomas Thompson (1832 – 21 January 1919) was a New Zealand politician of 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 ...

Biography

Early life and career

Thompson was born in Ireland in 1832 where he was entered the grocery trade as a merchant. In 1853 he shifted to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

during the gold rush in Victoria. Then he moved to Auckland in the 1860s and carried on a grocery business there. During the

New Zealand Wars The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the M ...

Thompson saw service with the volunteers in 1863. He received a commission as a lieutenant in 1867. In local matters Thompson served as a member of the Road Board, Domain Board and School Committee of

Mount Eden Mount Eden is a suburb in Auckland, New Zealand whose name honours George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland. It is south of the Central Business District (CBD). Mt Eden Road winds its way around the side of Mount Eden Domain and continues to weave ba ...

. In 1878 he was elected a member of

Auckland City Council Auckland City Council was the local government authority for Auckland City, New Zealand, from 1871 to 1 November 2010, when it and Auckland's six other city and district councils were amalgamated to form the Auckland Council. It was an elected b ...

, retaining his seat until 1884, also representing the Council on the

Auckland Harbour Board The Auckland Harbour Board was a public body that operated the ports of both Auckland and Onehunga from 1871 to 1988 and was dissolved in 1989. Its successor organisation is Ports of Auckland, which assumed the possessions and responsibilities of ...

Member of Parliament

He represented the Auckland North electorate from to 1890, then the

City of Auckland Auckland City was a territorial authority with city status covering the central isthmus of the urban area of Auckland, New Zealand. It was governed by the Auckland City Council from 1989 to 2010, and as a territory within the wider Auckland R ...

electorate from 1890 to 1899, when he retired. He was

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

from 2 March 1896 to 23 January 1900 and

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from coun ...

from 22 June 1896 to 23 January 1900 in the

Liberal Government Liberal government may refer to: Australia In Australian politics, a Liberal government may refer to the following governments administered by the Liberal Party of Australia: * Menzies Government (1949–66), several Australian ministries under S ...

. He was appointed to the Legislative Council on 18 March 1903 and his appointment was renewed on 18 March 1910; his term ended on 17 March 1917.

Later life and death

Thompson died in

, Auckland, on 21 January 1919, and was buried at Purewa Cemetery.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Thomas 1832 births 1919 deaths Irish emigrants to New Zealand (before 1923) British military personnel of the New Zealand Wars Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand Members of the New Zealand Legislative Council New Zealand defence ministers New Zealand Liberal Party MPs New Zealand Liberal Party MLCs Burials at Purewa Cemetery Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates 19th-century New Zealand politicians Auckland Harbour Board members Justice ministers of New Zealand