Francis Marion Bates Fisher (22 December 1877 – 24 July 1960) was a New Zealand Member of Parliament from

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 ...

. He was known as Rainbow Fisher for his frequent changes of political allegiance. He was a veteran of the Boer War and an internationally successful

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

player becoming the champion, along with his mixed doubles partner, Irene Peacock, of the

World Covered Court Championships The World Covered Court Championships were part of a series of three major world championships sanctioned from 1913 to 1923 by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF). The tournament was played indoors on wood floors, and its venue change ...

in 1920.

Early life and family

Fisher was the son of George Fisher, a member of parliament and

Mayor of Wellington The mayor of Wellington is the head of the municipal government of Wellington, the city of Wellington. The mayor presides over the Wellington City Council. The mayor is directly elected using the Single Transferable Vote method of proportional ...

. David Fisher was his uncle. Frank Fisher was a captain in the 10th

New Zealand Contingent New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...

to the South African

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 ...

in 1902. His eldest daughter, Esther Fisher (1900–1999), became an international pianist.

Member of Parliament

Fisher represented two

electorates in the

New Zealand House of Representatives The House of Representatives () is the Unicameral, sole chamber of the New Zealand Parliament. The House passes Law of New Zealand, laws, provides Ministers in the New Zealand Government, ministers to form the Cabinet of New Zealand, Cabinet, ...

for nine years from a 1905 by-election to the 1914 general election. Initially from 6 April 1905 he represented the multi-member City of Wellington electorate, but from the 1905 general election, he represented . His initial intention in early 1905 was to stand in a Christchurch electorate at the 1905 general election. In mid February 1905, he held his first meeting with electors in Christchurch. This changed, however, when his father died in mid March, and a request was put to him to stand in the City of Wellington electorate to fill the vacancy. In his speeches to Wellington electors, he stressed the need for 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 ...

, of which he was a member, to reform itself from within. The by-election was contested by Fisher, Charles Hayward Izard and John Hutcheson, with Fisher being successful. After his election, he helped form the New Liberal Party. The party was formed at a meeting in the Christchurch suburb of Papanui in June 1905. The New Liberals suffered considerable damage from the so-called "voucher incident", in which Fisher alleged that

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 ...

's son had been received payment from a government department for work he had not done. The allegations were disproven, and the New Liberals suffered considerable public backlash. Fisher had not consulted his colleagues before making the accusation, and it also strained relations between party members. Fisher was the only

New Liberal New Liberal was a party description used by Alan Ernest Lomas (14 June 1918 – 25 January 2016) and his supporters, who were based in the London Borough of Islington in the 1960s. Despite the name, this was a racist and far right organisation. ...

MP (out of three) re-elected in

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia (Shostakovich's 11th Symphony i ...

. The New Liberal Party was defunct by 1908. In the 1908 general election he stood as an

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. By 1910, he had joined the Reform Party. The 1911 general election required a second ballot if no candidate could achieve an absolute majority in the first round. The election was contested by Fisher, Robert Fletcher (Liberal Party), W. S. Young ( Labour Party) and F. Freeman (

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), with Fisher having a majority of one vote over Fletcher. In the second ballot a week later, Fisher beat Fletcher with a majority of 150 votes. By the next general election in 1914, the incumbent Fisher as a government minister contested Wellington Central against Fletcher again, and he was decisively beaten by 2677 votes to 4910. This spelled an end to Fisher's political career in New Zealand. After the war, in 1919, he stood as the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

candidate in the Widnes by-election in Lancashire, England, where he was defeated by Labour's

Arthur Henderson Arthur Henderson (13 September 1863 – 20 October 1935) was a British iron moulder and Labour Party (UK), Labour politician. He was the first Labour Cabinet of the United Kingdom, cabinet minister, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1934 and, uniqu ...

. He was known as ''Rainbow'' Fisher because of his ''frequent changes of political colour''. Fisher was Minister of Customs and

Minister of Marine One of France's Secretaries of State under the Ancien Régime was entrusted with control of the French Navy ( Secretary of State of the Navy (France).) In 1791, this title was changed to Minister of the Navy. Before January 1893, this position als ...

from 10 July 1912 to 7 January 1915 in the Reform Government.

Tennis

A top New Zealand tennis player, both at home and abroad, Fisher reached the final of the Australasian Open in 1906 but was defeated by

Anthony Wilding Anthony Frederick Wilding (31 October 1883 – 9 May 1915), also known as Tony Wilding, was a New Zealand world number 1 ranked male tennis players, world No. 1 tennis player and soldier who was killed in action during World War I. Considered ...

. He won the New Zealand Men's Championship Doubles in 1901–02, 1902–03, 1909–10 and 1910–11, and the Mixed Doubles Championships in 1899–1900, 1900–01, 1901–02 and 1911–12. He reached the semi-finals in doubles with partner

Stanley Doust Stanley Norwood Doust (29 March 1878 – 13 December 1961) was an Australian-born tennis player who captained his nation's Davis Cup team and was winner of the Mixed Doubles Trophy at Wimbledon.The Times Obituaries Mr. Stanley N. Doust: Issue 5 ...

at the

1912 Australasian Championships The 1912 Australasian Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on outdoor grass courts at Hastings, New Zealand from 30 December 1912 until 1 January 1913. It was the 8th edition of the Australian Championships (now known as the A ...

. In doubles he partnered with

Major Ritchie Major Josiah George Ritchie (18 October 1870 – 28 February 1955) was a tennis player from Great Britain. Major was his first name, not a military title. He was born in Westminster, educated at Brighton College and died in Ashford, Middlesex. ...

to reach the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 1919 and with

Alfred Beamish Alfred Ernest Beamish (6 August 1879 – 28 February 1944) was a British tennis player born in Richmond, Surrey, England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the i ...

for runner-up at the 1920 World Covered Court Championships

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In mixed doubles he partnered Irene Peacock to the Championship of the 1920 WCCC and to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon in 1921.

Death

Fisher died on 24 July 1960 and was buried at Kauae Cemetery in

Ngongotahā Ngongotahā is a small settlement on the western shores of Lake Rotorua in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located northwest of the Rotorua central business district, and is considered as a suburb of Rotorua. It is part of the Rotorua ...

.Rotorua District Council cemetery search
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References

External links