William Joseph Jordan

William Joseph Jordan (1935)

Sir William Joseph Jordan , KCMG , PC (born May 19, 1879 in Ramsgate , Kent , England , † April 8, 1959 in Auckland , New Zealand ) known publicly as Bill Jordan , was a British-born New Zealander politician for the New Zealand Labor Party and from 1935 to 1951 High Commissioner for New Zealand in London .

Life

William Joseph Jordan was on May 19, 1879, the son of the fisherman William Jordan and his wife, Elizabeth Ann Catt in Ramsgate County Kent born. After the local fishing industry began to decline, the family moved to London . There he attended St Luke's Parochial School , which he later called St Luke's Poor School because parents sent their children there because they didn't have enough money. He completed an apprenticeship as a body painter in 1892 and, according to his own statements, served briefly with the Metropolitan Police in London before leaving for New Zealand .

In 1904, when Jordan was already 25 years old, he emigrated to New Zealand and earned his living there by doing a variety of different jobs, in which he did not last long. Interested in politics, he became secretary of the Wellington branch of the first Labor Party in New Zealand and later president of the party's branch in Waihi .

During the First World War , Jordan married his first wife, Winifred Amy Bycroft in Ngaruawahia on January 30, 1917 and enlisted in the New Zealand Army 17 days later . He did not follow other prominent Labor politicians who refused military service at the time for reasons of conscience. In March 1918 Jordan was then deployed to the front in France and two weeks later was so badly wounded that he was no longer deployed at the front after his recovery. Instead, he rose as an instructor to become sergeant-major officer of the second and third rank.

After the end of the First World War, Jordan returned to New Zealand and got back into politics, winning a constituency in Manukau for his party in 1922 and thus a mandate in the New Zealand parliament . In 1933 he took over the presidency of the Labor Party .

When the Labor Party won parliamentary elections in 1935 , Jordan expected a position in the cabinet . Instead, he was proposed for the office of High Commissioner for New Zealand in London . He took up this post, which at the time was New Zealand's only diplomatic mission, in the same year in the United Kingdom and held the position until 1951 when he retired in Auckland. Jordan is thus considered the longest-serving High Commissioner in New Zealand. Furthermore, Jordan represented New Zealand in the League of Nations (League of Nations), of which New Zealand was a founding member, and became its president in 1938. In 1946 he represented New Zealand at the Paris Peace Conference .

William Joseph Jordan died in Auckland on April 8, 1959, leaving behind his second wife and two children from his first marriage.

Awards

1937 - Freedom of Ramsgate
1946 - Member of the Privy Council
1952 - Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George - honored June 5th
???? - Freedom of the City of London
???? - Honorary doctorates from the University of Cambridge
???? - Honorary doctorates from the University of St Andrews

family

After his first wife, Winifred Amy Bycroft , died in 1950, he applied to longtime secretary EM Iggulden to live with him. After this indignantly refused, he separated from her. On July 1, 1952 married Jordan then Elizabeth Ross Reid , born Riddell , with whom he could live for nearly seven years together.

literature

Bernard John Foster : Jordan, Sir William Joseph, PC, KCMG . In: Alexander Hare McLintock (Ed.): An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand . Wellington 1966 ( online [accessed June 1, 2020]).
Malcolm Templeton : Jordan, William Joseph . In: Department of Internal Affairs (Ed.): Dictionary of New Zealand Biography . Volume IV . Bridget Williams Books , Wellington 1998 (English, online [accessed June 1, 2020]).

Web links

Commons : William Joseph Jordan - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Templeton : Jordan, William Joseph . In: Dictionary of New Zealand Biography . 1998.
^ ^A ^b Foster : Jordan, Sir William Joseph, PC, KCMG . In: An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand . 1966.
^ Honor for Mr Jordan . In: Evening Star . Issue 22602 , March 20, 1937, p. 16 (English, online [accessed June 1, 2020]).
^ Honor for Mr Jordan . In: Ashburton Guardian . Volume 66 , Issue 69 , January 2, 1946, pp. 3 (English, online [accessed June 1, 2020]).
^ Chancery of the Order of Saint Michael to Saint George . (PDF; 97 kB) In: The London Gazette . May 30, 1952, accessed June 1, 2020 .

personal data
SURNAME	Jordan, William Joseph
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Jordan, Bill
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	New Zealand politician, 11th President of the New Zealand Labor Party, 7th New Zealand High Commissioner in the United Kingdom
DATE OF BIRTH	May 19, 1879
PLACE OF BIRTH	Ramsgate , Kent , England
DATE OF DEATH	April 8, 1959
Place of death	Auckland , New Zealand

[DNZB_1998_Jordan-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Templeton : Jordan, William Joseph . In: Dictionary of New Zealand Biography . 1998.

[Encyclopedia_1966_Jordan-2] A ^b Foster : Jordan, Sir William Joseph, PC, KCMG . In: An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand . 1966.

[Evening_Star_1937_03_20-3] Honor for Mr Jordan . In: Evening Star . Issue 22602 , March 20, 1937, p. 16 (English, online [accessed June 1, 2020]).

[Ashburton_Guardian_1946_01_02-4] Honor for Mr Jordan . In: Ashburton Guardian . Volume 66 , Issue 69 , January 2, 1946, pp. 3 (English, online [accessed June 1, 2020]).

[London_Gazette-5] Chancery of the Order of Saint Michael to Saint George . (PDF; 97 kB) In: The London Gazette . May 30, 1952, accessed June 1, 2020 .