1941 in New Zealand
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See also: |
The following lists events that happened during 1941 in New Zealand.
Population
- Estimated population as of 31 December: 1,631,200.[1]
- Increase since 31 December 1940: -2400 (-0.15%).[1]
- Males per 100 females: 96.1.[1]
- The scheduled New Zealand census was not held due to World War II.[citation needed]
Incumbents
Regal and viceregal
- George VI
Government
The 26th New Zealand Parliament continued with the Labour Party in government. 1941 should have been an election year, but because of World War II the election was deferred until 1942.[3]
- Speaker of the House - Bill Barnard (Democratic Labour Party)
- Prime Minister - Peter Fraser
- Minister of Finance - Walter Nash
- Minister of Foreign Affairs - Frank Langstone
- Attorney-General - Rex Mason
- Chief Justice — Sir Michael Myers
Parliamentary opposition
Main centre leaders
- Ernest Davis then John Allum
- Mayor of Hamilton - Harold Caro
- Mayor of Wellington - Thomas Hislop
- Robert M. Macfarlane then Ernest Andrews
- Mayor of Dunedin - Andrew Allen
Events
- 16 January: formation of the New Zealand Women's Auxiliary Air Force[5]
- March: Battle of Greece.
- 24–30 April: .
- 14 May: The minesweeper HMNZS Puriri was sunk by a mine while sweeping in the Hauraki Gulf, and sank with the death of five of her crew.
- 20 May - 1 June: Battle of Crete - New Zealand forces suffer heavy losses: 671 dead, 967 wounded, 2,180 captured. On the first day of the German invasion, Charles Upham wins the V.C
- 8 October: four police officers and three civilians are shot and killed at Kowhitirangi, near Hokitika, by Stanley Graham
- 7 December: Hawaii bombed in a surprise attack by Japanese carrier forces on the US Navy.
- 8 December: New Zealand declares war on Japan in response to Japanese attack on the United States.
- 10 December: British battlecruiser HMS Repulse and battleship HMS Prince of Wales sunk by Japanese torpedo planes, effectively taking Britain out of the sea war in the Pacific.
- 15 December: A RNZAF Lockheed Hudson bomber returning to Nelson from a coastal patrol hit the top of a limestone bluff near Collingwood in thick fog, killing all four crew.[6]
- 19 December: New Zealand suffers its worst naval loss when 150 New Zealanders on board HMS Neptune are killed after the ship strikes mines and sinks off the coast of Libya.[7]
- German surface raiders operated in New Zealand waters in 1940 and 1941, sinking four ships.
Arts and literature
See 1941 in art, 1941 in literature
Music
See: 1941 in music
Radio
See: Public broadcasting in New Zealand
Film
See:
List of New Zealand feature films, Cinema of New Zealand, Category:1941 films
Sport
Most sporting events were on hold due to the war.
Chess
- The 50th National Chess Championship was held in Timaru, and was won by P. Allerhand of Wellington.[8]
Horse racing
Harness racing
- New Zealand Trotting Cup – Josedale Grattan[9]
- Auckland Trotting Cup – Uenuku[10]
Lawn bowls
The national outdoor lawn bowls championships are held in Christchurch.[11]
- Men's singles champion – C. Spearman (Christchurch RSA Bowling Club)
- Men's pair champions – H.S. Maslin, M.J. Squire (skip) (Hawera Bowling Club)
- Men's fours champions – C.H. Elsom, D.H. Joseph, A. Williamson, P. Munn (skip) (Canterbury Bowling Club)
Rugby union
Category:Rugby union in New Zealand, Category:All Blacks
Rugby league
New Zealand national rugby league team
Soccer
- Chatham Cup competition not held
- Provincial league champions: [12]
Births
- 5 January: Bob Cunis, cricketer (died 2008).
- 3 February: Gary Bartlett, cricketer.
- 11 February: Alan "A. K." Grant, writer, humourist. (died 2000)
- 12 February: Ross Morgan, cricketer.
- 12 February: Bruno Lawrence, actor. (died 1995)
- 26 February: Keith Thomson, cricketer.
- 8 April: Roderick Deane, economist, public sector reformer, and businessman.
- 7 May: Grahame Bilby, cricketer.
- 17 June: Claire Stewart, politician. (died 2020)
- 5 July: Lynley Dodd, children's author.
- 20 July: Pita Sharples, academic and politician.
- 17 August: Owen Marshall, writer (Owen Marshall Jones).
- 12 September: Doug Kidd, politician.
- 17 September: Tilly Hirst, netball player (died 2021).
- 29 October: Bryan Yuile, cricketer.
- 7 November: Jim Sutton, politician.
- 12 November: Jenny McLeod, composer and musician.
- 24 November: Bob Harvey, mayor of Waitakere City.
- Chin Wing Ho (Peter Chin), mayor of Dunedin.
- Gary Day, actor.
- Malcolm Douglas, politician.
- Allan Hawkey, cartoonist.
- (in England): Bernard Holman, artist. (died 1988)
- Ian Mune, actor and director.
- Ian Peters, politician.
Deaths
- 2 May: Sir James Parr, politician.
- 26 May: 2NZEFon Crete.
- 27 April:Elizabeth Taylor, community leader.
- 27 July: Alfred Henry O'Keeffe, painter.
- 11 September: Albert Glover, politician.
- 4 October: George Troup, architect.
- 20 October: Stanley Graham, murderer (shot by police).
- 1 November: 2NZEFin North Africa.
- 28 November: 2NZEFin Libya.
- 29 November: 2NZEFin Libya.
- 30 November: Thomas David Burnett, National MP.
- James Alexander Pond, analytical chemist and homoeopathic pharmacist.[13]
See also
- List of years in New Zealand
- Timeline of New Zealand history
- History of New Zealand
- Military history of New Zealand
- Timeline of the New Zealand environment
- Timeline of New Zealand's links with Antarctica
References
- ^ a b c "Historical population estimates tables". Statistics New Zealand. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017.
- ^ Statistics New Zealand: New Zealand Official Yearbook, 1990. ISSN 0078-0170 page 52
- ^ "Prolongation of Parliament Act, 1941". New Zealand Law online.
- ^ "Elections NZ - Leaders of the Opposition". Archived from the original on 17 October 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
- ^ Today in History | NZHistory
- ^ "Farmer makes shocking find in wartime tragedy". Stuff (Fairfax). 29 July 2017.
- NZPA. 15 December 2009. Archived from the originalon 2 March 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
- ^ List of New Zealand Chess Champions Archived 14 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "List of NZ Trotting cup winners". Archived from the original on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
- ^ Auckland Trotting cup at hrnz.co.nz Archived 17 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ McLintock, A.H., ed. (1966). "Bowls, men's outdoor—tournament winners". An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
- ^ "New Zealand: List of champions". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 1999.
- ^ Davis, Brian R. "James Alexander Pond". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
External links
Media related to 1941 in New Zealand at Wikimedia Commons