Sir Alexander Lawrence Herdman (17 July 1869 – 13 June 1953) was a New Zealand politician. He served as

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

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 ...

, and Minister of Police. He is known for his reforms of the civil service and for his hard line on law and order.

Early life

Herdman was born in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

. He studied at

Otago Boys' High School Otago Boys' High School (OBHS) is a secondary school in Dunedin, New Zealand. It is one of New Zealand's oldest boys' secondary schools. Originally known as Dunedin High School, it was founded on 3 August 1863 and moved to its present site in 18 ...

, and then gained a law degree while working part-time. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1894, and established a practice in

Naseby Naseby is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 Census was 687. The village is north of Northa ...

the following year. He also worked in Palmerston, where he joined the local

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

lodge. He would retain his connection with the Freemasons over his career, eventually grand master of the Grand Lodge of New Zealand.

Early political career

Herdman began a political career in

, being elected mayor in 1898. He eventually decided to abandon this by moving to

Wellington Wellington 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 third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

in 1902, but shortly after he arrived, he was invited to return and stand as a parliamentary candidate in

Mount Ida In Greek mythology, two sacred mountains are called Mount Ida, the "Mountain of the Goddess": Mount Ida in Crete, and Mount Ida in the ancient Troad region of western Anatolia (in modern-day Turkey), which was also known as the '' Phrygian Ida' ...

, the

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

electorate which encompassed Naseby. In the 1902 election, Herdman ran on a strongly anti-government platform, harshly criticising the governing

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. For example, while the political systems ...

. He was elected, and joined the unorganised group of independents who opposed the Liberals. He did not, however, move back to Naseby, instead representing his seat as an absentee. In the 1905 election, Herdman was defeated. In the 1908 election, he contested the seat of

Wellington North Wellington North was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1953. It was located in the province of Ontario. It was created by the British North America Act 1867 which divided the County of We ...

, and was elected. The following year,

William Massey William Ferguson Massey (26 March 1856 – 10 May 1925) was a politician who served as the 19th prime minister of New Zealand from May 1912 to May 1925. He was the founding leader of the Reform Party, New Zealand's second organised political ...

organised the opposition into the Reform Party, which Herdman became part of. One of Herdman's early concerns in

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

was the reform of the

public service A public service or service of general (economic) interest is any service intended to address the needs of aggregate members of a community, whether provided directly by a public sector agency, via public financing available to private busin ...

. Herdman believed that the service was poorly organised and subject to political patronage, particularly under the government of

Richard Seddon Richard John Seddon (22 June 1845 – 10 June 1906) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 15th premier (prime minister) of New Zealand from 1893 until his death. In office for thirteen years, he is to date New Zealand's longest-ser ...

. In the 1911 election, the Reform Party won office as the Reform Government, and Herdman was able to push through his reform proposals – the Public Service Act of 1912 established uniform conditions of appointment and promotion, and established a supervisory commissioner.

Ministerial career

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

, Herdman served as

(10 July 1912 – 4 February 1918),

(10 July 1912 – 12 August 1915), and Minister of Stamp Duties (13 July 1912 – 12 August 1915). In these roles, he gained a reputation as a hard-liner, being described by a contemporary as "ready to employ force ruthlessly for the purpose of upholding law and order". Herdman is believed to have had a major role in the suppression of the

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 strik ...

, and of the waterfront strike the following year. Both were criticised by many left-wing groups as heavy-handed and repressive, but were defended by the government as necessary steps to preserve order. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Herdman supported strong measures against anyone protesting New Zealand's participation. As Minister responsible for Police, Herdman also responded harshly to attempts by police officers to form a union, prohibiting the move and attempting to drive the instigators out of the force.

Judicial career

In addition to his political ambitions, Herdman was also interested in becoming a judge of the (original)

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. As Attorney-General, he had powers to appoint judges, and in 1918, when a position became vacant, he appointed himself. This move was criticised by many as self-interested, especially as Herdman's career as a lawyer had not been particularly distinguished. He served as a judge both in

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

and

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, and briefly acted as Chief Justice in 1929. In the

1929 King's Birthday Honours The King's Birthday Honours 1929 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 ...

, Herdman was appointed 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 Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

Attempted return to politics

In 1935, he resigned from his judicial position to seek re-election to Parliament, contesting the

seat of Parnell. He was officially an independent, although he had close links to the Democrat Party. He was unsuccessful, and subsequently retired to the

Lake Okataina A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

area. He died in

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. It is sited on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authorities of New Zea ...

on 13 June 1953.

Notes

References

* * , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Herdman, Alexander 1869 births 1953 deaths Attorneys-general of New Zealand Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand Mayors of places in Otago Reform Party (New Zealand) MPs Politicians from Dunedin New Zealand Freemasons Unsuccessful candidates in the 1905 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 1935 New Zealand general election Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for South Island electorates New Zealand MPs for Wellington electorates People educated at Otago Boys' High School New Zealand Knights Bachelor Ministers of justice of New Zealand