Francis Fisher
Encyclopedia
Francis Marion Bates Fisher (1877–1960) was a New Zealand
Member of Parliament
from Wellington
. He was known as Rainbow Fisher for his frequent changes of political allegiance. Fisher was an internationally successful tennis player.
, a Member of Parliament
and Mayor of Wellington
. Fisher Jr had been a Captain in the 10th New Zealand Contingent to the South African Second Boer War
in 1902. His eldest daughter Esther Fisher (1900–1999) became an international pianist.
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 Wellington Central
.
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
, 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
'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
MP (out of three) re-elected in 1905
. The New Liberal Party was defunct by 1908.
In the 1908 general election
he stood as an Independent
. 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 (Socialist Party
), 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 candidate in the Widnes
by-election in Cheshire, England, where he was defeated by Labour's Arthur Henderson
.
He was known as Rainbow Fisher because of his frequent changes of political colour. Fisher was Minister of Customs and Minister of Marine from 10 July 1912 to 7 January 1915 in the Reform Government
.
in 1906 but was defeated by Tony Wilding
- Fisher was one of only four New Zealanders to play in the final of a 'Grand Slam' event. 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.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
from Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
. He was known as Rainbow Fisher for his frequent changes of political allegiance. Fisher was an internationally successful tennis player.
Early life
FMB Fisher was the son of George FisherGeorge Fisher (New Zealand)
George Fisher was a four-time Mayor of Wellington, New Zealand from 1882 to 1885, and in 1896. He represented various Wellington electorates in Parliament for a total of 18 years...
, a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
and Mayor of Wellington
Mayor of Wellington
The Mayor of Wellington is the head of the municipal government of Wellington, New Zealand, and presides over the Wellington City Council. The Mayor of Wellington administers only Wellington City itself — other municipalities in adjacent areas of the Wellington Region such as Lower Hutt, Upper...
. Fisher Jr had been a Captain in the 10th New Zealand Contingent to the South African Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
in 1902. His eldest daughter Esther Fisher (1900–1999) became an international pianist.
Member of Parliament
FMB Fisher represented two Wellington electorates in the New Zealand House of RepresentativesNew Zealand House of Representatives
The New Zealand House of Representatives is the sole chamber of the legislature of New Zealand. The House and the Queen of New Zealand form the New Zealand Parliament....
for nine years from a 1905 by-election to the 1914 general election
New Zealand general election, 1914
The New Zealand general election of 1914 was held on 10 December to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 19th session of the New Zealand Parliament. A total number of 616,043 voters were registered, of which 84.7% voters turned out to vote....
. Initially from 6 April 1905 he represented the multi-member City of Wellington
Wellington (New Zealand electorate)
Wellington , was a parliamentary electorate in Wellington, New Zealand. It existed from 1853 to 1905 with a break in the 1880s. It was a multi-member electorate. The electorate was represented by 24 Members of Parliament....
electorate, but from the 1905 general election
New Zealand general election, 1905
The New Zealand general election of 1905 was held on Wednesday, 6 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 20 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 16th session of the New Zealand Parliament...
, he represented Wellington Central
Wellington Central
rightWellington Central is a suburb of New Zealand's capital, Wellington, consisting of the flat, mostly reclaimed land, west of Lambton Harbour and the part of The Terrace immediately above it. It is bounded on the north by the suburb Pipitea and extends as far south as Civic Square...
.
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
Wellington (New Zealand electorate)
Wellington , was a parliamentary electorate in Wellington, New Zealand. It existed from 1853 to 1905 with a break in the 1880s. It was a multi-member electorate. The electorate was represented by 24 Members of Parliament....
to fill the vacancy. In his speeches to Wellington electors, he stressed the need for the Liberal Party
New Zealand Liberal Party
The New Zealand Liberal Party is generally regarded as having been the first real political party in New Zealand. It governed from 1891 until 1912. Out of office, the Liberals gradually found themselves pressed between the conservative Reform Party and the growing Labour Party...
, of which he was a member, to reform itself from within. The by-election was contested by Fisher, Charles Hayward Izard
Charles Hayward Izard
Charles Hayward Izard was a Liberal Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand, and a Wellington lawyer.He was elected to the Wellington North electorate in the 1905, but was defeated in 1908....
and John Hutcheson
John Hutcheson
John Hutcheson was a Member of Parliament in New Zealand, initially for the Liberal Party.John Hutcheson arrived in New Zealand in 1880, as second mate of the barque “Isle of Erin,” he spent four years as first and second mate of coastal vessels, including the Government steamers Stella and...
, with Fisher being successful.
After his election, he helped form the New Liberal Party
New Liberal Party (New Zealand)
The New Liberal Party of New Zealand was a splinter group of the original Liberal Party. It was formed at a meeting in the Christchurch suburb of Papanui in June 1905 by two Liberal-aligned independents who sought a more "progressive" policy than that followed by the Liberal leader, Richard Seddon,...
. 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 Seddon
Richard John Seddon , sometimes known as King Dick, is to date the longest serving Prime Minister of New Zealand. He is regarded by some, including historian Keith Sinclair, as one of New Zealand's greatest political leaders....
's son had been received payment from a government department for work he had not done. The allegations were disproven, and the New Liberals
New Liberal Party (New Zealand)
The New Liberal Party of New Zealand was a splinter group of the original Liberal Party. It was formed at a meeting in the Christchurch suburb of Papanui in June 1905 by two Liberal-aligned independents who sought a more "progressive" policy than that followed by the Liberal leader, Richard Seddon,...
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 Party (New Zealand)
The New Liberal Party of New Zealand was a splinter group of the original Liberal Party. It was formed at a meeting in the Christchurch suburb of Papanui in June 1905 by two Liberal-aligned independents who sought a more "progressive" policy than that followed by the Liberal leader, Richard Seddon,...
MP (out of three) re-elected in 1905
New Zealand general election, 1905
The New Zealand general election of 1905 was held on Wednesday, 6 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 20 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 16th session of the New Zealand Parliament...
. The New Liberal Party was defunct by 1908.
In the 1908 general election
New Zealand general election, 1908
The New Zealand general election of 1908 was held on Tuesday, 17 November, 24 November and 1 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 2 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 17th session of the New Zealand Parliament...
he stood as an Independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
. By 1910, he had joined the Reform Party
New Zealand Reform Party
The Reform Party, formally the New Zealand Political Reform League, was New Zealand's second major political party, having been founded as a conservative response to the original Liberal Party...
. The 1911 general election
New Zealand general election, 1911
The New Zealand general election of 1911 was held on Thursday, 7 and 14 December in the general electorates, and on Tuesday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 18th session of the New Zealand Parliament...
required a second ballot if no candidate could achieve an absolute majority in the first round. The election was contested by Fisher, Robert Fletcher
Robert Fletcher (New Zealand)
Robert Fletcher was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party.He ran unsuccessfully for the Wellington Central electorate in 1911, then in 1914 succeeded. He represented Wellington Central in Parliament from 1914 to 1918, when he died.-Further reading:...
(Liberal Party), W. S. Young (Labour Party) and F. Freeman (Socialist Party
New Zealand Socialist Party
The New Zealand Socialist Party was founded in 1901, promoting the works of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. The group, despite being relatively moderate when compared with many other socialists, met with little tangible success, but it nevertheless had considerable impact on the development of New...
), 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
New Zealand general election, 1914
The New Zealand general election of 1914 was held on 10 December to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 19th session of the New Zealand Parliament. A total number of 616,043 voters were registered, of which 84.7% voters turned out to vote....
, 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 candidate in the Widnes
Widnes
Widnes is an industrial town within the borough of Halton, in Cheshire, England, with an urban area population of 57,663 in 2004. It is located on the northern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form the Runcorn Gap. Directly to the south across the Mersey is the town of Runcorn...
by-election in Cheshire, England, where he was defeated by Labour's Arthur Henderson
Arthur Henderson
Arthur Henderson was a British iron moulder and Labour politician. He was the 1934 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and he served three short terms as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1908–1910, 1914–1917 and 1931-1932....
.
He was known as Rainbow Fisher because of his frequent changes of political colour. Fisher was Minister of Customs and Minister of Marine from 10 July 1912 to 7 January 1915 in the Reform Government
Reform Government of New Zealand
The Reform Government of New Zealand was the government of New Zealand from 1912 to 1928. It is perhaps best remembered for its anti-trade union stance in the Waihi miners' strike of 1912 and a dockworkers' strike the following year...
.
Tennis
A top New Zealand tennis player, both at home and abroad, FMB Fisher reached the final of the Australasian Open1906 Australasian Championships - Men's Singles
The 1906 Australasian Championships was a tennis tournament played on twelve grass courts in Hagley Park in Christchurch, New Zealand. The tournament, part of the Grand Slam, was held from 26 to 31 December. Tony Wilding defeated Francis Fisher, 6–0, 6–4, 6–4, in the final.-Draw:...
in 1906 but was defeated by Tony Wilding
Tony Wilding
Anthony "Tony" Frederick Wilding was a champion tennis player from Christchurch, New Zealand and a soldier killed in action during World War I near Neuve-Chapelle, Pas-de-Calais, France....
- Fisher was one of only four New Zealanders to play in the final of a 'Grand Slam' event. 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.