Robert Wynyard

Robert Henry Wynyard (24 December 1802 - 6 January 1864) was a New Zealand colonial administrator, Lieutenant Governor of New Ulster Province, Administrator of Government and Superintendent of Auckland Province.

Lieutenant Governor of New Ulster

From 26 April 1851 - 7 March 1853, Sir Robert Henry Wynyard was Lieutenant-Governor of New Ulster, a province of New Zealand, which encompassed the North Island.

uperintendent of Auckland Province

Wynyard was Superintendent of Auckland Province from 12 July 1853 - 5 January 1855.

Administrator of Government

For two terms (3 January 1854 - 6 September 1855 and 3 October 1861 - December 1861) Sir Robert Henry Wynyard was Administrator of the Government, in the absence of the Governor of New Zealand. As Administrator, Sir Robert Henry Wynyard opened the 1st New Zealand Parliament on 24 May 1854.cite |title=The Governors|author=Gavin McLean|page=50|publisher=Otago University Press|date=2006] Sir Robert Henry Wynyard was quickly confronted by the demands of the new parliament that responsible government be brought about immediately, and passed a resolution, sponsored by Edward Gibbon Wakefield to that effect on the 2 June. However Wynyard refused, stating that the Colonial Office made no mention of responsible government in its dispatches. The appointed Executive Council of New Zealand advised against implementing responsible government, and in the meantime Sir Robert Henry Wynyard sent a dispatch to London requesting clarification. Wynyard then offered to add some elected members of parliament to the Executive Council, and appointed James FitzGerald, Henry Sewell and Frederick Weld to the council. The compromise worked for a few weeks, but on 1 August 1854, Parliament demanded complete power to appoint ministers. Wynyard refused, and all three MPs resigned. In response, Sir Robert Henry Wynyard prorogued parliament for two weeks. On 31 August he appointed Thomas Forsaith, Edward Jerningham Wakefield and James Macandrew to the Executive Council, but when parliament met again it moved a motion of no confidence in the members'.

Parliament met on 8 August 1855, by which time Wynyard had had instructions from the Colonial Office to introduce responsible government. Fortunately for Wynyard the next Governor, Sir Thomas Gore Browne, arrived on 6 September 1855 and relieved Wynyard of his duties. Wynyards' second term as Administrator was much less eventful.

Acting Governor of Cape Colony

He also acted for Sir George Grey as Governor of Cape Colony twice, from 1859 - 1860 and 1861 - 1862.

He died in Bath, England, in 1864.

External links

* [http://www.teara.govt.nz/1966/W/WynyardRobertHenry/WynyardRobertHenry/en TeAra - 1966 Encyclopaedia]

References

succession box
before=Sir George Grey
title=Governor of the Cape Colony, "acting" | years=1861–1862
after=Sir Philip Wodehouse

Persondata
NAME=Wynyard, Robert Henry
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Lieutenant Governor of New Ulster, politician
DATE OF BIRTH=1802
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=1864
PLACE OF DEATH=