Sir Ethelbert Alfred Ransom (19 March 1868 – 22 May 1943) 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. For example, while the political systems ...

, then its successor the United Party, and from 1936, the

National Party National Party or Nationalist Party may refer to: Active parties * National Party of Australia, commonly known as ''The Nationals'' * Bangladesh: ** Bangladesh Nationalist Party ** Jatiya Party (Ershad) a.k.a. ''National Party (Ershad)'' * Californ ...

. He was a cabinet minister from 1928 to 1935 in the United Government, and was acting

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

in 1930 and in 1935.

Early life

Ransom was born in 1868 in

Lower Hutt Lower Hutt () is a list of cities in New Zealand, city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand. Administered by the Hutt City Council, it is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington#Wellington metropolitan area, Wellington metropoli ...

. He received his education at Lower Hutt Primary, where he was school mate with

Thomas Wilford Sir Thomas Mason Wilford (20 June 1870 – 22 June 1939) was a New Zealand politician. He held the seats of Wellington Suburbs then Hutt continuously for thirty years, from 1899 to 1929. Wilford was leader of the New Zealand Liberal Party, an ...

. He played rugby and tennis during his youth. During the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

, he was an officer in charge of the Ruahine Mounted Rifles. He was a sheep farmer until 1888, and then a saddler in

Dannevirke Dannevirke ( "Earthworks (archaeology), work of the Danes", a reference to Danevirke; or ''Tāmaki-nui-a-Rua'', the area where the town is) is a rural service town in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New Zealand. It is the ...

. From 1920 onwards, he was sheep farming in the

Ākitio Ākitio is a coastal community in the Tararua District of the lower east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The Ākitio River runs for approximately 35 kilometres in a southeast by northwest direction, leading to the town of Weber, ...

district. He held numerous public offices: he was chairman of the

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...

War Relief Association, chairman of the Dannevirke branch of the same organisation, chairman of the power board (until 1928), the first president of the local chamber of commerce, chairman of the fire board, member of the Dannevirke High School board, member of the executive of the Farmers' Union, and represented on the Dannevirke A&P Association. On 1 March 1893, Ransom married Antonette Katinka Sondergaard from

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; , colloquially known as Palmerston or Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatū Plains, the city is near the north bank of the Manaw ...

at her home town. They lost an infant daughter and a son in 1902 and 1905, respectively.

Political career

Ransom was elected onto the Dannevirke Borough Council in 1901. He stood for Mayor of Dannevirke in 1903, but was beaten by the

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

pastor Hans Madsen Ries in a closely fought contest. Ransom was Mayor of Dannevirke from 1910, when he succeeded Ries, to 1919. He represented the rural

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service t ...

electorate of

Pahiatua Pahiatua () is a rural service town in the south-eastern North Island of New Zealand with a population of . It is between Masterton and Woodville, New Zealand, Woodville on New Zealand State Highway 2, State Highway 2 and along the Wairarapa Lin ...

for the

from

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

, when he defeated

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

's Archibald McNicol. From 1926 to 1928 he was senior opposition

whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

. During the 1920s he was an advocate for fusion between the Liberal and Reform parties, to avoid

vote splitting In social choice theory and politics, a spoiler effect happens when a losing candidate affects the results of an election simply by participating. Voting rules that are not affected by spoilers are said to be spoilerproof. The frequency and se ...

and best combat the Labour Party. When the Liberal Party was relaunched as the United Party Ransom contested the leadership of the new party. However, he was narrowly beaten for the position by Sir

Joseph Ward Sir Joseph George Ward, 1st Baronet, (26 April 1856 – 8 July 1930) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 17th prime minister of New Zealand from 1906 to 1912 and from 1928 to 1930. He was a dominant figure in the New Zealand Liber ...

, a former Liberal

, who had been brought in by party organiser Albert Davy as a compromise candidate. He was then appointed deputy leader of the United Party for the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

. During the time of the United Government, he was

Minister of Public Works This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

(1928–1930) under Ward. When a terminally ill Ward resigned as Prime Minister in 1930, Ransom contested the leadership of the party again but lost the caucus ballot to George Forbes. Under Forbes he was

Minister of Lands The Minister of Lands in New Zealand was a cabinet position appointed by the Prime Minister to be in charge of the Department of Lands and Survey The Department of Lands and Survey was a government department in New Zealand that managed the ad ...

and Commissioner of State Forests (1930–1931). He retained his portfolios until 1935 in the

United–Reform Coalition The United–Reform Coalition, also known as the National Political Federation from May 1935, was a coalition between two of the three major parties of New Zealand, the United Party (New Zealand), United and New Zealand Reform Party, Reform parti ...

. He was twice acting

; for five months between 25 August 1930 and 21 January 1931, when Forbes attended the

Imperial Conference Imperial Conferences (Colonial Conferences before 1907) were periodic gatherings of government leaders from the self-governing colonies and dominions of the British Empire between 1887 and 1937, before the establishment of regular Meetings of ...

in London, and again in 1935, when Forbes was overseas once more. In 1940, he announced that he would not stand again at the next general election due to poor health, but he died in 1943 before the end of the parliamentary term.

Later life

In 1935, Ransom was awarded the

King George V Silver Jubilee Medal The King George V Silver Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the accession of King George V. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir by King George V to commemorate his Silver Ju ...

, and he was appointed a

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

in the 1935 King's Birthday Honours. He died on 22 May 1943 in Dannevirke, where he is also buried. At the funeral, senior whip Walter Broadfoot represented the National Party, and Prime Minister

Peter Fraser Peter Fraser (; 28 August 1884 – 12 December 1950) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 24th prime minister of New Zealand from 27 March 1940 until 13 December 1949. Considered a major figure in the history of the New Zealand Lab ...

represented the First Labour Government. Ransom was survived by his wife, a son and a daughter. His wife died in 1952.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ransom, Ethelbert New Zealand National Party MPs Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand New Zealand Liberal Party MPs New Zealand Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George 1868 births 1943 deaths Mayors of places in Manawatū-Whanganui United Party (New Zealand) MPs 20th-century New Zealand farmers People from Lower Hutt New Zealand military personnel of the Second Boer War People from Dannevirke Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates