Esme Irene Tombleson (née Lawson; 1 August 1917 – 30 July 2010) was a New Zealand politician of 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 ...

. An Australian child prodigy who recited Shakespeare, she had a career in theatre and ballet. During the war, her sharp mind and strong memory was recognised, and she became a civil servant. She came to New Zealand through marriage, and lived on rural land near Gisborne. She represented the electorate in Parliament for 12 years, and was prominent as a campaigner for

multiple sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

Early life

She was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in 1917 and educated there. She received her education at the Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School in

Darlinghurst Darlinghurst is an inner-city suburb in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the Ci ...

, the

Sydney Conservatorium of Music The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (SCM) — formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music, and known by the moniker "The Con" — is the music school of the University of Sydney. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious music ...

, and the Imperial School of Ballet in London. She was taken around Australia as a

child prodigy A child prodigy is, technically, a child under the age of 10 who produces meaningful work in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to describe young people who are extraordinarily talented in some f ...

by her mother, reciting

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

. She was involved in various ballet, opera and theatre companies. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

she served in the Women's Auxiliary Signalling Corps in Sydney, where her sharp memory was recognised. She became secretary of the Manpower Advisory Committee.

Rural life

She came to New Zealand in 1951 when she married Tom Tombleson, a Gisborne farmer. They had met at Franz Josef while on holiday. She was a headstrong person and as a public servant, she had been in a position of power. As she knew nothing about farming, this was an area where her husband was a clear superior to her, and she found the experience interesting. They lived on Burnage Station, some from Gisborne. She had to teach herself how to cook, created a massive flower garden without ever having been a gardener before, and taught rural children ballet. This was not fulfilling her, so she started to take an interest in politics.

Political career

Tombleson was selected as a National Party candidate shortly before the in the Gisborne electorate, when the previous candidate suffered a heart attack. She defeated the incumbent, Labour's

Reginald Keeling Reginald Alfred Keeling (15 January 1904 – 7 August 1991) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party. Biography Early life and career Keeling was born in 1904 in Fulham to Alfred J. Keeling. He was educated at Fulham Central Scho ...

, in the

marginal seat A marginal seat or swing seat is a constituency held with a small majority in a legislative election, generally one conducted under a single-winner voting system. In Canada, they may be known as target ridings. The opposite is a safe seat. T ...

. At the time, she was the only woman on the National

caucus A caucus is a group or meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to ...

. After

Mary Grigg Mary Victoria Cracroft Grigg, Lady Polson, (née Wilson; 18 August 1897 – 22 December 1971) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party. Early life She was born as Mary Victoria Cracroft Wilson at Culverden in 1897. Her parents were ...

and

Hilda Ross Dame Grace Hilda Cuthbertha Ross (née Nixon; 6 July 1883 – 6 March 1959), known as Hilda Ross, was a New Zealand politician for the National Party and an activist. Early years Nixon was born in Auckland to Adam (a fireman who later became ...

, she was the third female National MP. She was joined by another female in the National caucus at the next general election in , Rona Stevenson. Tombleson had a passion for fishing and when she was offered the role of Associate Minister of Social Welfare, she turned down the offer, as she wanted to be Minister of Fisheries. She led the 1965 delegation to the 54th conference of the

Inter-Parliamentary Union The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU; , UIP) is an international organization of national parliaments. Its primary purpose is to promote democratic governance, accountability, and cooperation among its members; other initiatives include advancing g ...

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, Canada; she was the first woman to lead a New Zealand delegation to the IPU. She was defeated by Trevor Davey in the .

Later life

Tombleson was a co-founder of the National

Multiple Sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

(MS) Society in 1961. She was president of the organisation (1975–1982) and founded the Gisborne–East Coast branch in 1988. For many years, she was on the executive of the International Federation of the Multiple Sclerosis Society. She was able to control meetings, as she had learned during her theatre training how to project her voice. When her hearing got worse later in life, her voice grew even louder. Tombleson was appointed a

Companion of the Queen's Service Order The King's Service Order () established by royal warrant (document), royal warrant of Queen regnant, Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, is used to recognise "valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to t ...

for public services in the 1977 Queen's Silver Jubilee and Birthday Honours. She was awarded the

New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal The New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal was a commemorative medal awarded in New Zealand in 1990 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and was awarded to 3,632 people. Background The New Zealand 1990 Com ...

in 1990, and made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in the

1993 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1993 were appointments by most of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other count ...

, for services to multiple sclerosis and the community. Also in 1993, she was awarded the

New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal The New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 was established by Royal Warrant on 1 July 1993. It was created to commemorate Women's suffrage in New Zealand and to recognize those New Zealand and Commonwealth citizens who had made a significant ...

. She received the "rarely awarded" gold medal for distinguished services to multiple sclerosis in 1987. She died on 30 July 2010 in Gisborne. The MS Society of New Zealand offers Esme Tombleson Awards at its annual general meetings.

Notes

References

* * *''Women in Parliamentary Life 1970-1990: Hocken Lecture 1993'' by Marilyn Waring, page 32 (Hocken Library, University of Otago, 1994) {{DEFAULTSORT:Tombleson, Esme 1917 births 2010 deaths New Zealand National Party MPs Australian emigrants to New Zealand People from Gisborne, New Zealand Women members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Australian military personnel of World War II Sydney Conservatorium of Music alumni New Zealand Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Queen's Service Order New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Unsuccessful candidates in the 1972 New Zealand general election Recipients of the New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal 1993 People educated at Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School