Pollen, Daniel (1813-1896), was a physician and politician who served as prime minister, or premier, of New Zealand in 1875 and 1876. At the time of his administration, New Zealand was a British colony. Pollen was an early supporter of the rights of New Zealand’s native Māori << MOW ree or MAH ree >> people.
Early life.
Pollen was born in Dublin, Ireland, on June 2, 1813. Little is known of his early life. Historians believe he spent his youth in Ireland and the United States, where his father worked as a builder on the U.S. Capitol. Daniel Pollen studied medicine and became a physician. In the late 1830’s, he sailed to the British colony of New South Wales, Australia. In 1839 or 1840, he sailed to northern New Zealand. Pollen was present at the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi on Feb. 6, 1840. The Treaty of Waitangi was an agreement between Māori and the British government that is considered to be New Zealand’s founding document. It gave Māori the rights of British subjects in return for control of the land. See Waitangi, Treaty of .
In 1841, Pollen bought a farm and established a medical practice in Auckland. Later, he bought additional land in the area, establishing a home in Avondale (now part of western Auckland). In the early 1860’s, Pollen founded a brickyard near the tip of the Rosebank Peninsula.
On May 18, 1846, Pollen married Jane Henderson, the daughter of a British naval officer. The Pollens had four sons and four daughters. The eldest son, Hugh (1851-1912), became an official in the colonial secretary’s office and later in the Department of Internal Affairs.
In 1847, Pollen became a medical officer for a mining company. Around this time, he became interested in New Zealand politics. He began writing articles for the New Zealander, an Auckland newspaper, supporting the idea of responsible government—that is, the idea that the head of government should be responsible to a legislative assembly elected by the people.
Political career.
In 1852, the British government granted the colony of New Zealand a constitution that included six provincial governments. When the Constitution came into effect, Daniel Pollen was appointed to Auckland’s provincial government. He lost the position in 1853. In 1856, he was elected to the provincial council for Auckland’s suburbs. Around this time, he wrote articles for the New Zealander supporting Māori rights. In 1858, he was appointed to represent British colonial interests as commissioner of Crown lands for Auckland, a position he held until 1862.
On July 20, 1861, Pollen was appointed to the Legislative Council, which at that time was one of the two houses of New Zealand’s Parliament. He also served in the government of Prime Minister William Fox from 1861 to 1862. Pollen resigned from the Legislative Council in 1867, but he returned the following year and served in the government of Edward William Stafford. He left the council once more in 1870, but he again returned in 1873. He also served as colonial secretary of New Zealand, the official in charge of the colony’s internal affairs, in the government of Julius Vogel from 1873 to 1875.
Pollen served as prime minister and colonial secretary from July 6, 1875, until Feb. 15, 1876, when Vogel replaced him as prime minister. Pollen remained in the government as colonial secretary under Vogel, then under Harry Albert Atkinson, who became prime minister in September 1876. Pollen lost the position when George Grey took office in 1877, though he kept his position on the Legislative Council until his death at his home in Avondale on May 18, 1896.
