Sir Robert Lachlan Macalister (2 December 1890 – 23 May 1967) was the
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 ...
from 1950 to 1956, and had been the acting mayor for five months in 1948 during the absence overseas of
Will Appleton
Sir William Appleton (3 September 1889 – 22 October 1958) was a New Zealand local body politician, advertising agent and leading company director. He was Mayor of Wellington for two terms from 1944 to 1950 after serving as a city councillor f ...
.
Biography
Early life and career
Macalister was born in
Blenheim and moved to Wellington in his youth to study at
Victoria University Victoria University may refer to:
* Victoria University (Australia), a public research university in Melbourne, Australia
* Victoria University, Toronto, a constituent college of the federal University of Toronto in Canada
* Victoria University of ...
where he qualified as a
Lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
.
He then enlisted in the military and served 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 ...
and once returning he became a member of the War Relief Association.
He was a barrister and solicitor by trade and worked at the same legal firm as
Ossie Mazengarb and
Ernst Peterson Hay. The firm of Mazengarb, Hay and Macalister was founded in 1918 and quickly became one of the largest law practices in Wellington.
In 1919 he married Katherine Featherston Fitzgerald.
Political career
In
1933
Events
January
* January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand.
* January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...
he stood for council on a
Citizens' Association ticket and was narrowly elected on the first count. However, after special votes were counted he lost his seat to the
Labour Party's
Peter Butler.
He was elected a member of the
Wellington City Council
Wellington City Council is a Territorial authorities of New Zealand, territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the city of Wellington, the country's capital city and List of cities in New Zealand#City councils, third-largest city by popul ...
in
1938
Events
January
* January 1 – state-owned enterprise, State-owned railway networks are created by merger, in France (SNCF) and the Netherlands (Nederlandse Spoorwegen – NS).
* January 20 – King Farouk of Egypt marries Saf ...
.
During the 1940s Wellington's town planning was coming under increasing scrutiny. Macalister notably blamed early settlers rather than the current council for the planning problems and need for urban renewal. In 1947 he was appointed deputy mayor and was the acting mayor for five months in 1948 during the absence overseas of
Will Appleton
Sir William Appleton (3 September 1889 – 22 October 1958) was a New Zealand local body politician, advertising agent and leading company director. He was Mayor of Wellington for two terms from 1944 to 1950 after serving as a city councillor f ...
.
Macalister was elected Mayor in
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 ...
. He was also a member of the
Wellington Harbour Board
Wellington Harbour Board was the body which formerly managed the shipping and commercial affairs of the port of Wellington in New Zealand. It was constituted in 1880 and was disestablished in 1989.
During its 110-year tenure the Harbour Board ...
from 1942 to 1956. In the opinion of many officers and councillors, Macalister was conspicuous for his dynamic leadership in his co-ordination of the activities of committee chairmen and also in his ability to persuade councillors to accept his own policy preferences. He was also capable of reaching out across the floor and working with Labour councillors. As mayor he was noted for providing the city with modernised recreational facilities.
During the
1951 waterfront dispute
The 1951 New Zealand waterfront dispute was the largest and most widespread industrial dispute in New Zealand history. Over the period, up to 20,000 workers went on strike in support of waterfront workers protesting against financial hardships ...
was compelled by the central government to "hold the line" against what it termed as
communist
Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
subversion. Macalister's controversial powers during the dispute included helping to set up replacement
unions to run the port. In mid-1951 the council rejected an application from the waterfront workers and their families for their electricity not to be disconnected for non-payment. He also acted as chairman of an Emergency Supplies Committee which was set up to ensure the provision of supplies for Wellington and adjoining districts during the dispute. In 1954 he hosted Queen
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
when she visited Wellington during her
Royal Tour of New Zealand.
The
1956 mayoral election was conducted amidst a selection controversy by the Citizens' Association. Under the impression that incumbent Macalister was not intending to seek a third term as Mayor,
Ernest Toop applied to gain nomination as the official Citizens' candidacy. As Toop was the only applicant he was successful. However, Macalister had intended to run for mayor again and assumed he, as incumbent, would gain automatic nomination. Undeterred, Macalister ran for mayor again as an Independent which split the Citizens' vote enabling Labour's
Frank Kitts
Sir Francis Joseph Kitts (1 May 1912 – 16 March 1979) was a New Zealand politician. Originally from the South Island, he served in the military and later was a civil servant before entering politics with the Labour Party. He was the Member o ...
to win the mayoralty.
Later life and death
After a period of illness he died at his home in
Wadestown on 23 May 1967, aged 76.
[
]
Honours
In the 1956 Queen's Birthday Honours, Macalister 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 ...
, in recognition of his service as mayor of Wellington. Macalister Park in Wellington and Macalister Cove in Tahuahua/Blackwood Bay are named after him. The cove is where Macalister had a holiday home.
Notes
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Macalister, Robert
1890 births
1967 deaths
20th-century New Zealand politicians
Deputy mayors of Wellington
Mayors of Wellington
20th-century New Zealand lawyers
Wellington City Councillors
Wellington Harbour Board members
New Zealand Knights Bachelor
New Zealand military personnel of World War I