William Fox (politician)

The Right Honourable Sir William Fox KCMG
Sir William Fox, ca 1890
2nd Premier of New Zealand
In office 20 May 1856 – 2 June 1856 12 July 1861 – 6 August 1862 28 June 1869 – 10 September 1872 3 March 1873 – 8 April 1873
Monarch	Victoria
Governor	Thomas Gore Browne George Grey George Bowen
Preceded by	Henry Sewell (1856) Edward Stafford (1861) Edward Stafford (1869) George Waterhouse(1873)
Succeeded by	Edward Stafford (1856) Alfred Domett (1862) Edward Stafford (1872) Julius Vogel (1873)
Constituency	Wanganui, Rangitikei
Personal details
Born	2 September 1812 South Shields, England
Died	23 June 1893(1893-06-23) (aged 80) Auckland, New Zealand
Political party	None
Spouse(s)	Sarah Halcomb (m. 1842)
Children	Ngataua Omahuru, renamed William Fox (jr.) (adopted)
Alma mater	Wadham College, Oxford
Religion	Anglican
Signature

Sir William Fox KCMG (2 September 1812 – 23 June 1893) was the second Premier of New Zealand on four occasions in the 19th century, while New Zealand was still a colony. He was known for his confiscation of Māori land rights, his contributions to the education system (such as establishing the University of New Zealand), and his work to increase New Zealand's autonomy from Britain. He has been described as determined and intelligent, but also as bitter and "too fond" of personal attacks. Different aspects of his personality are emphasised by different accounts, changing mainly due to the reviewers' political beliefs.

Fox was born on 2 September 1812 at 5 Westoe Village in South Shields, in north east England. His family was a relatively successful one. He was educated initially at Durham School and then at Wadham College, Oxford. His activities for several years after graduating are a mystery: some speculate that he was not in England. In 1838 he studied law in London.

Shortly after qualifying to practice as a lawyer, Fox married Sarah Halcomb. The couple decided that they would emigrate to New Zealand, joining an increasing number of other colonists. Upon his arrival in Wellington Fox's legal qualifications were recognised, but there was little work, and so he supplemented his income by writing for local periodicals. Fox lost the right to practice as a lawyer when, in 1843, he refused to swear an oath that he considered "degrading". This event forced him to focus almost entirely on writing and journalism.

Initially, Fox was opposed to government negotiations with Māori over land, stating that Māori had a right only to land that they used. He also condemned the colonial government's "weak" response to the killing of Arthur Wakefield, a New Zealand Company official who had attempted to expand the settlement at Nelson into Māori-held lands. Fox's criticism of Governor Robert FitzRoy eventually played a part in FitzRoy's removal from office. In 1843 Fox was chosen by the New Zealand Company as Wakefield's replacement in Nelson.