Spouse of the prime minister of New Zealand
| Partner of the prime minister of New Zealand | |
|---|---|
| Residence | Premier House |
| Inaugural holder | Elizabeth Sewell |
| Formation | 7 May 1856 |
The spouse of the prime minister of New Zealand, or partner of the prime minister of New Zealand (when unmarried), is a role that has several unofficial duties. An unpaid position that has no official responsibilities, the role has gained significance since the 1960s, with the prime minister's spouse acting as a key national figure on social issues and a prominent symbol of government.[citation needed] She or he is the hostess or host of Premier House, the official residence of the prime minister.
The 23rd prime minister, Michael Joseph Savage, was a bachelor during his term, but otherwise, until the tenure of the 36th prime minister, Jenny Shipley, the post had always been filled by a woman; Burton Shipley was Jenny Shipley's husband. The current prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, is unmarried; her partner (since May 2019, fiancé) is radio personality Clarke Gayford.[1]
Current[]
The current domestic partner of the prime minister of New Zealand is Clarke Gayford; his partner, Jacinda Ardern, became the prime minister on 26 October 2017.
There are currently eight living spouses of former prime ministers of New Zealand:
- Glen Rowling, Lady Rowling, QSO (wife of Sir Bill Rowling, KCMG)
- Margaret Palmer, Lady Palmer (wife of Sir Geoffrey Palmer, KCMG)
- Yvonne Moore (wife of Mike Moore, ONZ)
- Joan Bolger, CNZM (wife of Jim Bolger, ONZ)
- Burton Shipley, ONZM (husband of Dame Jenny Shipley, DNZM)
- Peter Davis (husband of Helen Clark, ONZ)
- Bronagh Key, Lady Key (wife of Sir John Key, GNZM)
- Mary English, Lady English (wife of Sir Bill English, KNZM)
The most recent spouse of a New Zealand prime minister to die was Dame Thea Muldoon, DBE QSO (widow of Sir Robert Muldoon, GCMG CH), on 24 February 2015.
Role[]
The prime minister's spouse has no official duties. Some earlier spouses stayed mainly at home and took little part in public life.
However, most recent prime ministers' spouses have been involved in charities or community organisations, working to raise public awareness, funds, and support for a range of causes. They generally assist their partners in political campaigns, and participate in official duties that come with the position, such as hosting foreign dignitaries, and, in particular, entertaining the spouses of dignitaries; accompanying the prime minister on national and international trips; and attending conferences and functions. They have attended the opening of Parliament; hosted visitors at Premier House; visited Buckingham Palace, the White House, or the Japanese Imperial Palace; and been present at royal coronations and conferences.
Official recognition[]
Some prime ministers' spouses have received official recognition for their services to the community with a damehood:
- Dame Christina Massey, GBE
- Dame Norma Holyoake, DCMG QSO
- Dame Ruth Kirk, DBE
- Dame Thea Muldoon, DBE QSO
Muldoon was the first spouse of a prime minister to be provided with an official secretary for dealing with her correspondence.[2]
List of spouses[]
| No. | Portrait | Spouse (Maiden name) |
Tenure | Length of tenure | Prime Minister |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 
|
Elizabeth Sewell (née Kittoe) – 1880 (aged 61) |
7 May 1856 – 20 May 1856 |
13 days | Sewell m. 1850 |
| 2 |
|
Sarah Fox (Lady Fox) (née Halcomb) – 23 June 1892 (aged 76) |
20 May 1856 – 2 June 1856 |
13 days | Fox m. 1842 |
| 3 |
|
Emily Stafford (née Charlotte) February 1827 – 18 April 1857 (aged 29) |
2 June 1856 – 18 April 1857† |
10 months and 16 days | Stafford m. 1846 |
| Vacant | 18 April 1857 – 5 December 1859 |
2 years, 7 months and 17 days | Stafford Widower | ||
| 4 |
|
Mary Stafford (Lady Stafford) (née Bartley) 1835 – 1899 (aged 64) |
5 December 1859 – 12 July 1861 |
1 year, 7 months and 7 days | Stafford m. 1859 |
| (2) |
|
Sarah Fox (Lady Fox) (née Halcomb) 1816 – 23 June 1892 (aged 76) |
12 July 1861 – 6 August 1862 |
1 year and 25 days | Fox m. 1842 |
| 5 |
|
Mary Domett (née George) unknown – 1887 (aged unknown) |
6 August 1862 – 30 October 1863 |
1 year, 2 months and 24 days | Domett m. 1856 |
| 6 |
|
Jane Augusta Whitaker (Lady Whitaker) (née Griffith) 1822 – 3 September 1884 (aged 62) |
30 October 1863 – 24 November 1864 |
1 year and 25 days | Whitaker m. 1843 |
| 7 | 
|
Filumena Mary Anne Weld (Lady Weld) (née Lisle Phillipps) c. 1828[3] – 1903 (around aged 75) |
24 November 1864 – 16 October 1865 |
10 months and 22 days | Weld m. 1859 |
| (4) |
|
Mary Stafford (Lady Stafford) (née Bartley) 1835 – 1899 (aged 64) |
16 October 1865 – 28 June 1869 |
3 years, 8 months and 12 days | Stafford m. 1859 |
| (2) |
|
Sarah Fox (Lady Fox) (née Halcomb) 1816 – 23 June 1892 (aged 76) |
28 June 1869 – 10 September 1872 |
3 years, 2 months and 13 days | Fox m. 1842 |
| (4) |
|
Mary Stafford (Lady Stafford) (née Bartley) 1835 – 1899 (aged 64) |
10 September 1872 – 11 October 1872 |
1 month and 1 day | Stafford m. 1859 |
| 8 |
|
Lydia Waterhouse (née Giles) 1827 – 25 January 1910 (aged 83) |
11 October 1872 – 3 March 1873 |
4 months and 20 days | Waterhouse m. 1848 |
| (2) |
|
Sarah Fox (Lady Fox) (née Halcomb) 1816 – 23 June 1892 (aged 76) |
3 March 1873 – 8 April 1873 |
1 month and 5 days | Fox m. 1842 |
| 9 |
|
Mary Vogel (Lady Vogel) (née Clayton) 18 February 1849 – 12 August 1933 (aged 84) |
8 April 1873 – 6 July 1875 |
2 years, 2 months and 28 days | Vogel m. 1867 |
| 10 |
|
Jane Pollen (née Henderson) 1828[4][5] – 1903 (aged 74–75) |
6 July 1875 – 15 February 1876 |
7 months and 9 days | Pollen m. 1846 |
| (9) |
|
Mary Vogel (Lady Vogel) (née Clayton) 18 February 1849 – 12 August 1933 (aged 84) |
15 February 1876 – 1 September 1876 |
6 months and 17 days | Vogel m. 1867 |
| 11 | 
|
Ann Elizabeth Atkinson (Lady Atkinson) (née Smith) 1838 – 1919 (aged 80–81) |
1 September 1876 – 13 October 1877 |
1 year, 1 month and 12 days | Atkinson m. 1867 |
| 12 | 
|
Elizabeth Lucy "Eliza" Grey (Lady Grey) (née Spencer) 1823 – 4 September 1898 (aged 74–75) |
13 October 1877 – 8 October 1879 |
1 year, 11 months and 25 days | Grey m. 1839 |
| 13 |
|
Rose Anne Hall (Lady Hall) (née Dryden) 22 December 1828 – 12 May 1900 (aged 71) |
8 October 1879 – 21 April 1882 |
2 years, 6 months and 13 days | Hall m. 1861 |
| (6) |
|
Jane Augusta Whitaker (Lady Whitaker) (née Griffith) 1822 – 3 September 1884 (aged 62) |
21 April 1882 – 25 September 1883 |
1 year, 5 months and 4 days | Whitaker m. 1843 |
| (11) |
|
Ann Elizabeth Atkinson (Lady Atkinson) (née Smith) 1838 – 1919 (aged 80–81) |
25 September 1883 – 16 August 1884 |
10 months and 22 days | Atkinson m. 1867 |
| 14 | 
|
Anna Paterson Stout (Lady Stout) (née Logan) 29 September 1858 – 10 May 1931 (aged 72) |
16 August 1884 – 28 August 1884 |
12 days | Stout m. 1876 |
| (11) |
|
Ann Elizabeth Atkinson (Lady Atkinson) (née Smith) 1838 – 1919 (aged 80–81) |
28 August 1884 – 3 September 1884 |
6 days | Atkinson m. 1867 |
| (14) |
|
Anna Paterson Stout (Lady Stout) (née Logan) 29 September 1858 – 10 May 1931 (aged 72) |
3 September 1884 – 8 October 1887 |
3 years, 1 month and 5 days | Stout m. 1876 |
| (11) |
|
Ann Elizabeth Atkinson (Lady Atkinson) (née Smith) 1838 – 1919 (aged 80–81) |
8 October 1887 – 24 January 1891 |
3 years, 3 months and 16 days | Atkinson m. 1867 |
| 15 | 
|
Ellen Ballance (née Anderson) 1846 – 14 June 1935 (aged 88–89) |
24 January 1891 – 27 April 1893 |
2 years, 3 months and 3 days | Ballance m. 1870 |
| 16 | 
|
Louisa Jane Seddon (née Spotswood) 28 May 1851 – 9 July 1931 (aged 80) |
27 April 1893 – 10 June 1906 |
13 years, 1 month and 14 days | Seddon m. 1869 |
| 17 |
|
Rosalind Lucy Hall-Jones (Lady Hall-Jones) (née Purss) 30 May 1858 – 13 October 1942 (aged 84) |
10 June 1906 – 6 August 1906 |
1 month and 27 days | Hall-Jones m. 1877 |
| 18 | 
|
Theresa Dorothea Ward (Lady Ward) (née de Smidt) 1866 – 1927 (aged 60–61) |
6 August 1906 – 28 March 1912 |
5 years, 7 months and 22 days | Ward m. 1883 |
| 19 |
|
Ida Henrietta Mackenzie (Lady Mackenzie) (née Nantes) 23 December 1850 – 28 April 1926 (aged 75) |
28 March 1912 – 10 July 1912 |
3 months and 12 days | Mackenzie m. 1884 |
| 20 |
|
(Dame) Christina Allan Massey (née Paul) 11 January 1863 – 19 April 1932 (aged 69) |
10 July 1912 – 10 May 1925 |
12 years and 10 months | Massey m. 1882 |
| 21 |
|
Caroline Bell (Lady Bell) (née Robinson) 1853 – 8 September 1935 (aged 81–82) |
10 May 1925 – 30 May 1925 |
20 days | Bell m. 1878 |
| 22 |
|
Marguerite Grace "Marjorie" Coates (née Coles) 3 October 1892 – 1973 (aged 80–81) |
30 May 1925 – 10 December 1928 |
3 years, 6 months and 10 days | Coates m. 1914 |
| Vacant | 10 December 1928 – 28 May 1930 |
1 year, 5 months and 18 days | Ward Widower | ||
| 23 |
|
Emma Serena Forbes (née Gee) 20 August 1877 – 9 February 1961 (aged 83) |
28 May 1930 – 6 December 1935 |
5 years, 6 months and 8 days | Forbes m. 1898 |
| Vacant | 6 December 1935 – 27 March 1940 |
4 years, 3 months and 21 days | Savage Bachelor | ||
| 24 | 
|
Janet Fraser (née Munro, formerly Kemp) 31 January 1883 – 7 March 1945 (aged 62) |
27 March 1940 – 7 March 1945† |
4 years, 11 months and 8 days | Fraser m. 1919 |
| Vacant | 7 March 1945 – 13 December 1949 |
4 years, 9 months and 6 days | Fraser Widower | ||
| 25 | 
|
Florence Beatrice Holland (Lady Holland) (née Drayton) 26 October 1894 – 1976 (aged 81–82) |
13 December 1949 – 20 September 1957 |
7 years, 9 months and 7 days | Holland m. 1920 |
| 26 | 
|
(Dame) Norma Janet Holyoake (née Ingram) 7 March 1909 – 18 December 1984 (aged 75) |
20 September 1957 – 12 December 1957 |
2 months and 22 days | Holyoake m. 1934 |
| 27 | 
|
Lottie May "Lotty" Nash (Lady Nash) (née Eaton) 17 March 1880 – 12 December 1961 (aged 81) |
12 December 1957 – 12 December 1960 |
3 years | Nash m. 1906 |
| (26) |
|
(Dame) Norma Janet Holyoake (née Ingram) 7 March 1909 – 18 December 1984 (aged 75) |
12 December 1960 – 7 February 1972 |
11 years, 1 month and 26 days | Holyoake m. 1934 |
| 28 |
|
Jessie Margaret Marshall (Lady Marshall) (née Livingston) 17 January 1917[6] – 2004 (aged 86–87) |
7 February 1972 – 8 December 1972 |
10 months and 1 day | Marshall m. 1944 |
| 29 |
|
(Dame) Lucy Ruth Kirk (née Miller) 28 April 1922 – 20 March 2000 (aged 77) |
8 December 1972 – 31 August 1974 |
1 year, 8 months and 23 days | Kirk m. 1943 |
| — |
|
Irene Frances Watt (née unknown) 8 February 1918 – 30 April 2013[7] (aged unknown) |
31 August 1974 – 6 September 1974 |
6 days | Watt m. unknown Acting |
| 30 | 
|
Glen Elna Rowling (Lady Rowling) (née Reeves) bef. 1933 (aged around 87–88) |
6 September 1974 – 12 December 1975 |
1 year, 3 months and 6 days | Rowling m. 1951 |
| 31 | 
|
(Dame) Thea Dale Muldoon (née Flyger) 13 March 1927 – 24 February 2015 (aged 87) |
12 December 1975 – 26 July 1984 |
8 years, 7 months and 14 days | Muldoon m. 1951 |
| 32 |
|
Naomi Joy Lange (née Crampton) bef. 1950 (aged around 70–71) |
26 July 1984 – 8 August 1989 |
5 years and 13 days | Lange m. 1968 |
| 33 | 
|
Margaret Palmer (Lady Palmer) (née Hinchcliff) bef. 1947 (aged around 73–74) |
8 August 1989 – 4 September 1990 |
1 year and 27 days | Palmer m. 1963 |
| 34 |
|
Yvonne Moore (née Dereany) bef. 1957 (aged around 63–64) |
4 September 1990 – 2 November 1990 |
1 month and 29 days | Moore m. 1975 |
| 35 | 
|
Joan Maureen Bolger (née Riddell) bef. 1945 (aged around 75–76) |
2 November 1990 – 8 December 1997 |
7 years, 1 month and 6 days | Bolger m. 1963 |
| 36 | 
|
Burton Shipley bef. 1954 (aged around 66–67) |
8 December 1997 – 10 December 1999 |
2 years and 2 days | Shipley m. 1972 |
| 37 | 
|
Peter Byard Davis 25 April 1947 (aged 74) |
10 December 1999 – 19 November 2008 |
8 years, 11 months and 9 days | Clark m. 1981 |
| 38 | 
|
Bronagh Irene Key (Lady Key) (née Dougan) 14 November 1963 (aged 57) |
19 November 2008 – 12 December 2016 |
8 years and 23 days | Key m. 1984 |
| 39 |
|
Mary English (Lady English) (née Scanlon) c. 1962[8] (aged 58–59) |
12 December 2016 – 26 October 2017 |
10 months and 14 days | English m. unknown |
| 40 | 
|
Clarke Gayfordα 24 October 1976[9] (aged 44) |
26 October 2017 – Incumbent |
3 years, 10 months and 16 days* | Ardern domestic partner |
^α Domestic partner; engaged since May 2019.[1]
* Incumbent's length of tenure last updated: 11 September 2021.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Clarke Gayford engaged". The New Zealand Herald. 3 May 2019. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
- ^ "Dame Thea Muldoon dies". Radio New Zealand News. 25 February 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "Person – National Portrait Gallery".
- ^ Sale, Charles. "Daniel Pollen grave monument details".
- ^ Zealand, National Library of New. "Papers Past – DEATHS. (New Zealand Herald, 2 December 1903)".
- ^ "Marshall, Margaret, 1917–2004". National Library. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
- ^ admin (1 May 2013). "Irene WATT Obituary – Auckland, Auckland".
- ^ Chateau, Carroll du (7 December 2001). "The English Doctor". The New Zealand Herald.
- ^ "The spotlight on Jacinda Ardern's TV presenter partner Clarke Gayford". stuff. 2 August 2017.
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