(1835–99).

Prime Minister.

A new biography of Vogel, Julius appears in the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography on this site.

Julius Vogel was born in London on 24 February 1835, the son of Albert Leopold Vogel and Phoebe, née Isaac. He received his early education at home until the age of 13. After the death of his parents he worked in the office of his grandfather, a merchant with interests in the West Indies and South America. Just prior to emigrating to Australia where the Victorian gold discoveries had attracted his interest, Vogel entered on a course of studies in chemistry and metallurgy at the Royal School of Mines in Jermyn Street, London.

Vogel arrived in Melbourne in late 1852 and opened a business, but after losses through speculation he went to the goldfields where he started a drug store in the new town of Maryborough. An interest in journalism led to his becoming editor of the Inglewood Advertiser and the Talbot Leader. With journalism came an increasing interest in politics. Severe defeat in his candidature for the Avoca seat, combined with news of the Otago gold rush of 1861, drew his attention towards New Zealand. He arrived in the colony in the spring of 1861 and, shortly after, his interest in journalism led to the establishment with a partner, W. H. Cutten, of the Otago Daily Times which appeared on 15 November 1861. With Farjeon as manager, the paper was a brilliant success, but Vogel's continual advocacy of the separation of the North and South Islands, to relieve the latter of the burden of debt caused by the Maori Wars, led to his dismissal in 1868. In retaliation Vogel established The Sun as opposition, but shortly after discarded it to concentrate on national politics. His interest in journalism continued, however, for in 1870 he bought the Auckland newspaper Southern Cross.

Throughout the sixties Vogel's interest in journalism had been matched by his activity in local and national politics. After two vain attempts in early 1863 to enter the House of Representatives as a member for a Dunedin constituency, he had to be content with representing Waikouaiti in the Otago Provincial Council. Here he had greater opportunity to advocate publicly his views on separation, as well as to put forward his imaginative and often far-sighted ideas on subjects usually outside the scope of provincial politics. The period from 1863 to 1867 was a time of increasing political change and activity in Vogel's life. In September 1863 he was elected unopposed to Parliament for Dunedin Suburbs. Though his schemes were distrusted in the House of Representatives, he managed in 1866 to carry a resolution to reunite Otago and Southland. In the same year he was defeated in the contest for the Waikouaiti seat in the General Assembly. He resigned his seat in the Provincial Council and shortly afterwards contested and won the Taieri seat from a bitter opponent, A. J. Burns. Meanwhile he was again sent back to the House of Representatives for the goldfields. In February 1867 he further changed his seat to represent Dunedin in the Provincial Assembly, where he now became head of the Government. This position he held until he left Otago. A dispute between Macandrew the Superintendent of Otago, and the General Government over the administration of the goldfields gave Vogel his opportunity to continue his demand for provincial autonomy. Despite his vehemence he failed.

Meanwhile, in Parliament the absence of William Fox from politics gave Vogel the opportunity to become the leading light of the Opposition in its attacks on the native policy of Stafford. He also defended provincial rights against Stafford's centralism – a fact later used against himself when he, Vogel, began the fight to abolish the provinces. After the defeat of Stafford in June 1869 Vogel was appointed Colonial Treasurer, Postmaster-General, and Commissioner of Customs in Fox's Ministry. His concern with provincial matters now gradually lessened as he turned completely to national politics.

Fox was the titular head of the Ministry but Vogel soon became the real exponent of Government policy. He was now in a position to put into practice the large and imaginative schemes which provincial politics could not encompass, and which the national politicians had distrusted in earlier years. But by the end of the sixties the colony, in a state of economic stagnation, was ready to accept Vogel's dramatic Financial Statement of 28 June 1870 in which he proposed that development would be financed by £10 million, to be borrowed on overseas markets. The essence of the scheme he outlined in one sentence: “We recognize that the great wants of the Colony are – public works, in the shape of roads and railways; and immigration … the two are, or ought to be, inseparably united.…”. Provision for the repayment of the 5 ½ per cent interest charges was to be made from receipts above working expenses, from railway revenue, and from stamp duty. As security, and to ensure that the provinces would be able to meet repayments, Vogel intended that the land should bear a considerable portion of the financial burden.

Vogel stated three principles of Government policy regarding administration of public works and immigration. Both islands would share in the scheme; there would be no changes in political institutions; and although the need for colonisation was general, the Ministry realised that conditions throughout the colony varied widely. The scheme was intelligent and appropriate in its conception. Had its administration been careful and the safeguards heeded, it may have benefited the colony greatly. Vogel, however, was not the man to insist on maintaining the controls. His main object was to borrow the capital, regardless of the concessions he had to make to provincialism and local greed. Featherston and Bell were sent to England during the year to raise the money, but while they obtained a guarantee for £1 million, Vogel had authorised the spending of £4 million on the first stage of the policy. He himself left on a loan-raising visit to England and the United States at the end of 1870 and, after borrowing £1,200,000, granted railway and immigration contracts to John Brogden and Sons.

Vogel returned to the colony in 1871 and took his seat as member for Auckland City East constituency where his popularity was considerably higher than in Otago. Virtual leader of the Government and spokesman for its policy measures, Vogel was nevertheless not yet at the peak of his power. In 1872 sufficient caution still remained in the House for the prudent Stafford to defeat the Government in September and establish his own Ministry. Unfortunately for the cautious advocates, Stafford lasted only a month. Vogel returned to power with the support of the provincialist-minded politicians, and for the next three years his power was supreme. Although serving under two titular heads, he soon assumed the forms of power in addition to the substance. In April 1873 he became Prime Minister.

In the next two years, however, it became evident that the policy was running out of the control both of Vogel and of his Government, as insatiable provincialist members demanded capital in return for their votes. The principles which Vogel had enunciated were disregarded in the scramble and, gradually, he came to the conclusion that either the provinces or his scheme must be sacrificed. The pretext for action was the rejection of his New Zealand Forests Bill by the provincialists who objected to it as an encroachment by the Central Government on their land. But Vogel did not push through the unpopular Abolition Bill himself. He left in 1874 to raise another loan while H. A. Atkinson took over and passed the Act in 1875. In the following February Vogel returned to New Zealand as a K.C.M.G., but his long absence, charges of extravagance, the dislike of the provincialists, and the drop in export prices had reduced his popularity throughout the colony. In September 1876 he resigned the Premiership to become Agent-General in London.

For almost eight years Vogel dropped out of New Zealand politics and in 1880 severed his connection with the colony altogether. After disputes with the Government over his connection with the New Zealand Agricultural Co., as well as his coming forward as candidate for a Cornish constituency while still representing New Zealand, he resigned the post of Agent-General.

In December 1882 Vogel visited New Zealand as the representative of the Electric Lighting Co.; he repeated the visit in 1883, this time on behalf of the Australian Electric Light, Power and Storage Co. On the second occasion he spent some time surveying the political scene and estimating his chances of re-entering colonial politics. New Zealand was by now dissatisfied with Atkinson's policy of cautious borrowing to finance steady economic development. Seeing this, Vogel put himself forward for the 1884 elections. His lack of popularity in 1876 was forgotten, and he became again the epitome of an almost forgotten “boom” prosperity. With such an electoral appeal he was returned to Parliament for the Christchurch North seat and found himself leader of the largest party, with 33 members of the 91 in the Assembly. With Stout as the nominal head of the Ministry he assumed power on 16 August 1884. The Ministry was defeated by a vote in the House on 28 August. In turn, Atkinson was defeated on 3 September and, again with Stout, Vogel held office until October 1887.

Vogel's final fling in politics was a disaster both for himself and for the colony. After a mildly successful first year in which he resumed borrowing at a rather higher rate than Atkinson had maintained, Vogel found that his policy of keeping depression at a distance by expenditure on public works was not staving off recession. In the face of worsening depression, and the continual defeat of Government on its financial policy, he was forced to fall back on retrenchment before Stout decided to end the humiliation, and the Ministry resigned in 1887. In the ensuing election Vogel was again returned for Christchurch North, but Stout was defeated and the Ministry lost its majority. Atkinson took office in October.

After his Ministry's resignation Vogel returned to London to devote himself to literature and, less successfully, to business. In 1889 he finally severed his political connections with the colony by resigning his seat. Illness and business failure prompted him to apply for a pension from the New Zealand Government. Eventually he was granted £300 a year in 1896, three years before his death. He died at Hillersdon, East Molesey, England, on 12 March 1899, and his widow later received £1,500 as a grant from the New Zealand Government.

Vogel's journalistic and literary activities were as varied as his politics. He was known primarily for articles and speeches associated with politics, but he also prepared an excellent though rather sanguine Handbook of New Zealand in 1875. In 1889 he wrote his only novel, Anno Domini 2000: or Woman's Destiny, an imaginative and prophetic survey of the future.

Vogel's politics were like his nature, imaginative – and occasionally brilliant – but reckless and speculative. He was an excellent policymaker but he needed a strong leader to restrain him. His sense of timing was excellent, but he lacked the ability to control his followers. Neither was he determined nor strong enough to withstand unpopularity in pursuance of his ideas. To ensure the continuance of his political career he moved from one electorate to another – Christchurch North was the only seat he contested twice – and when he became nationally unpopular he left the country.

Yet Vogel had vision. He saw New Zealand as a potential “Britain of the South Seas”, strong both in agriculture and in industry, and inhabited by a large and flourishing population. His beliefs are best illustrated in a passage from a letter he wrote to his friend, W. H. Reynolds, on 27 December 1879. “I have an absorbing affection for New Zealand,” he wrote, “and it is intolerable to me to see its prosperity marred and retarded. – The Statesmen of New Zealand should remember that their work is the heroic one of Colonization – Questions of Whigs and Tories liberals and conservatives are comparatively of little moment to them compared with the one main question of how they can settle in the colony a large happy and contented community.”

Vogel was essentially expansionist. From the early days in 1865, when he proposed a scheme to Stafford for the disposal and settlement of native lands by a gigantic lottery, to his final attempt to work an economic miracle with borrowed capital in 1884–87, he had been eager to force the development of the colony to the utmost. He had tried to build up the provinces, but eventually he came to realise their limitations, whereupon he transferred his activities to the national stage and farther. Beyond the level of national politics, expansionism meant extension of the British Empire. In 1876 he protested against Britain's lack of interest in the Pacific, and later warned of German intentions. Even in his last Ministry he had not lost his interest in colonial acquisitions, and in 1884 offered New Zealand capital to pay some of the costs of governing New Guinea.

Vogel was undoubtedly a talented man and a gifted politician. It was unfortunate both for himself and for New Zealand that his abilities could not have been directed along far more profitable lines for the benefit of the colony.

On 19 March 1867, at Dunedin, Vogel married Mary, eldest daughter of W. H. Clayton – a Dunedin architect. Of their family of three sons and one daughter, the eldest son, Henry Benjamin, practised for some years as a solicitor in Wellington. Later he lived in London as a journalist and novelist. Their youngest son, Julius Leonard Fox (1872–94), joined the British Constabulary in Matabeleland (Southern Rhodesia) and was a member of Major Wilson's party who lost their lives in the Shangani River action in 1894. Lady Vogel died on 12 August 1933 at 42 Philbeach Gardens, London S.W. 5.

by Warwick Robert Armstrong, M.A., M.SC.ECON.(LOND.), Lecturer, Geography Department, Victoria University of Wellington.

• Vogel Papers (MSS), General Assembly Library
• The Life and Times of Sir Julius Vogel, Burdon, R. M. (1948)
• Notable New Zealand Statesmen, Scholefield, G. H. (1946)
• History of Otago, McLintock, A. H. (1949).

Ensign John Thornton Down; 57th Regt. (1st Battalion, The Middlesex Regt.); 2 October 1863; Poutoko, N.Z., 22 September 1864. Died at Otahuhu Camp on 27 April 1866, aged 24 years.

Colour-Sergeant John Lucas; 40th Regt. (1st Battalion, The South Lancashire Regt.); 18 March 1861; Te Arei, N.Z.; 17 July 1861.

Colour-Sergeant Edward MacKenna; 65th Regt. (1st Battalion, The York and Lancaster Regt.); 7 September 1863; near Camerontown, Waikato Heads, N.Z.; 16 January 1864. On discharge from the Army in 1867 he joined the N.Z. Railways and at the time of his retirement was stationmaster at Palmerston North, where he died in 1908.

Lieutenant-Colonel John Carstairs McNeill; 107th Regt. (2nd Battalion, Royal Sussex Regt.); 30 March 1864; Ohaupo N.Z.; 16 August 1864. Later became a major-general, K.C.B., K.C.M.G.

Assistant-Surgeon William George Nicholas Manley; Royal Artillery; 29 April 1864; Gate Pa, Tauranga, N.Z.; 22 September 1864. Later became Surgeon-General and served with a British ambulance with the Prussian Army during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, being awarded the Iron Cross, 2nd class. He is the only man ever to be awarded both the Victoria Cross and the Iron Cross.

Captain of the Foretop Samuel Mitchell; Royal Navy, HMS Harrier; 29 April 1864; Gate Pa, Tauranga, N.Z.; 23 July 1864. Later took up farming in New Zealand and was drowned in the Mikonui River, South Westland, in 1894.

Sergeant John Murray; 68th Regt. (1st Battalion, Durham Light Infantry); 21 June 1864; Kaiopopo Pa, Te Ranga, N.Z., 4 November 1864.

Leading Seaman William Odgers; Royal Navy, HMS Niger; 28 March 1860; Waireka, N.Z.; 3 August 1860. This was the first awarded in New Zealand.

Lieutenant Arthur Frederick Pickard; Royal Artillery; 20 November 1863; Rangiriri, N.Z.; 22 September 1864. Later became lieutenant-colonel and assistant private secretary to Queen Victoria. Died in 1880, aged 38 years.

Lance-Corporal John Ryan; 65th Regt. (1st Battalion, The York and Lancaster Regt.); 7 September 1863; near Camerontown, Waikato Heads, N.Z.; 16 January 1864. He was drowned in 1863 trying to rescue a drunken soldier who had fallen in the Waikato River.

Captain Hugh Shaw; 18th Regt. (Royal Irish Regt.); 24 January 1865; Nukumaru, N.Z.; 28 November 1865. He later became a major-general, C.B.

Captain Frederick Augustus Smith; 43rd Regt. (1st Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry); 21 June 1864; Kaiopopo Pa, Te Ranga, N.Z.; 4 November 1864.

Drummer Dudley Stagpoole; 57th Regt. (1st Battalion, The Middlesex Regt.); 2 October 1863; Poutoko, N.Z.; 22 September 1864.

Assistant-Surgeon William Temple; Royal Artillery; 20 November 1863; Rangiriri, N.Z.; 22 September 1864.

by Capt. Geoffrey Troughear Stagg, F.R.N.S.N.Z., R.N.Z.A. (retired), formerly President of the Royal Numismatic Society of New Zealand, Wellington.

• Royal Warrants, The Victoria Cross, 29 Jan 1856, 1 Jan 1867, 23 Apr 1881
• The London Gazette (Various dates as quoted in text)
• Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1865 (A. 1 and A. 5A), 1867 (A. 1)
• Official History of New Zealand's Effort in the Great War, Vol. I, Waite, F. (1919)
• Vol. II, Stewart, H. (1921);
• Official War History: New Zealanders with the Royal Air Force, Vols. I and II, Thompson, H. L. (1953 and 1956)
• List of the Recipients of the Victoria Cross, The War Office (1953)
• They Dared Mightily, Wigmore, L., and Harding, B. (1963).

Private Thomas Cooke; 8th Battalion, Australian Imperial Forces; 24–25 July 1916; Pozieres, France; 9 September 1916. (Posthumous award.)

Captain (temporary Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, D.S.O.; Royal West Surrey Regt., Commanding Hood Battalion, Royal Naval Division; 13 November 1916; north of Ancre, France; 15 December 1916. Later, as a lieutenant-general commanded the 2nd NZEF throughout the war, and was Governor-General of New Zealand, 1946–52. Created Baron Freyberg of Wellington, New Zealand, in 1951.

Second-Lieutenant William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse; Special Reserve, RFC; 26 April 1915; near Courtrai, France; 22 May 1915. (Posthumous award.)

Acting-Lieutenant William Edward Sanders; Royal Naval Reserve, HMS Prize; 30 April 1917; “Q” ship action at sea; 22 June 1917. Later awarded the D.S.O. and went down with his ship on 14 August 1917. A New Zealand yachting award, the Sanders Cup, is named after him.

Captain Alfred John Shout; 1st Battalion, Australian Imperial Forces; 9 August 1915; Lone Pine Trenches, Gallipoli; 15 October 1915. (Posthumous award.)

Lieutenant Percy Valentine Storkey; 19th Battalion, Australian Imperial Forces; 7 April 1918; Bois de Hangard, France; 7 June 1918.

Temporary Corporal Lawrence Carthage Weathers; 43rd Battalion, Australian Imperial Forces; 2 September 1918; north of Peronne, France; 26 December 1918. He was mortally wounded 29 September 1918 and died without learning of his Victoria Cross.

Corporal Leslie Wilton Andrew; 2nd Wellington Regt., 1st NZEF; 31 July 1917; Basseville, France; 6 September 1917. He later joined the N.Z. Staff Corps, rising to the rank of brigadier, and was awarded the D.S.O. during the Second World War.

Corporal Cyril Royston Guyton Bassett; N.Z. Divisional Signal Coy., 1st NZEF; 7 August 1915; Chunuk Bair Ridge, Gallipoli; 15 October 1915. This was the first New Zealand award during the First World War.

Sergeant Donald Forrester Brown; 2nd Battalion, N.Z. Infantry, 1st NZEF; 15 September 1916; south-east of High Wood, France; 14 June 1917. (Posthumous award.)

Private James Crichton; 2nd Battalion, Auckland Regt., 1st NZEF; 30 September 1918; Crevecoeur, France; 15 November 1918. Died at Auckland on 22 September 1961, aged 82 years.

Sergeant Keith Elliott; 22nd Battalion, 2nd NZEF; 15 July 1942, Ruweisat, Western Desert; 24 September 1942. Became a clerk in holy orders after the war.

Sergeant Samuel Forsyth; N.Z. Engineers attached 2nd Auckland Battalion, 1st NZEF; 24 August 1918; Grevillers, France; 22 October 1918. (Posthumous award.)

Lance-Corporal Samuel Frickleton; 3rd Battalion, N.Z. Rifle Brigade, 1st NZEF; 7 July 1917; Messines, Belgium; 2 August 1918.

Sergeant John Gilroy Grant; 1st Battalion, Wellington Regt., 1st NZEF; 1 September 1918; near Bancourt, France; 27 November 1918.

Farrier-Major William James Hardham; 4th Contingent, N.Z. Mounted Rifles; 28 January 1901; near Naauwpoort, South Africa; 4 October 1901. Later a major, he died on 13 April 1928.

Captain Charles Heaphy; Auckland Militia; 11 February 1864; Mangapiko River, New Zealand; 8 February 1867. Later a major, he died at Brisbane, Australia, on 3 August 1881, aged 59 years.

Sergeant John Daniel Hinton; 20th Battalion, 2nd NZEF; 28–29 April 1941; Kalamai, Greece; 17 October 1941.

Sergeant Alfred Clive Hulme; 23rd Battalion, 2nd NZEF; 20–28 May 1941; Maleme, Galatos, Suda Bay, and Stylos. Crete; 14 October 1941.

Sergeant Reginald Stanley Judson, D.C.M., M.M.; 1st Battalion, Auckland Regt., 1st NZEF; 26 August 1918; south of Bapaume, France; 30 October 1918.

Sergeant Harry John Laurent; 2nd Battalion, N.Z. Rifle Brigade, 1st NZEF; 12 September 1918; east of Gouzeaucourt Wood, France; 15 November 1918.

Second-Lieutenant Moananui-a-Kiwa Ngarimu; 28th (Maori) Battalion, 2nd NZEF; 26 March 1943; Tebaga Gap, Tunisia; 4 June 1943. (Posthumous award.)

Private Henry James Nicholas; 1st Battalion, Canterbury Regt., 1st NZEF; 3 December 1917; Polderhoek, Belgium; 11 January 1918.

Sergeant Richard Charles Travis, D.C.M., M.M.; 2nd Battalion Otago Regt., 1st NZEF; 24 July 1918; north of Hebuterne France; 27 September 1918. (Posthumous award.) His correct name was Dickson Cornelius Savage, but he enlisted and served under the family name of Travis.

Squadron Leader Leonard Henry Trent, D.F.C.; RNZAF (No. 487 (N.Z.) Sqn. RAF); 3 May 1943; over Amsterdam, Holland; 1 March 1946.

Flying Officer Lloyd Allan Trigg, D.F.C.; RNZAF (No. 200 Sqn. RAF); 11 August 1943; anti-submarine patrol, Atlantic Ocean; 2 November 1943. (Posthumous award.)

Second-Lieutenant Charles Hazlitt Upham; 20th Battalion, 2nd NZEF. V.C. –22–30 May 1941; Maleme, Galatos, and Sphakia, Crete; 14 October 1941. Bar – As a captain; 14 July 1942; Ruweisat Ridge, Western Desert; 26 September 1945.

Sergeant-Pilot James Allen Ward; RNZAF (No. 75 (N.Z.) Sqn. RAF); 7 July 1941; over the Zuider Zee, Holland; 5 August 1941. This was the first New Zealand award during the Second World War. He was killed on operations over Germany on 15 September 1941.

In the ensuing lists of recipients relative to New Zealand, which are arranged alphabetically, details are recorded in the following order: rank at time of award, name, unit, date of act of valour, place of the act, date of notification in the London Gazette, and award posthumous:

The Victoria Cross is the highest British decoration awarded to members of the armed forces for valour while on active service, and was bestowed upon New Zealand servicemen in all of the three major wars in which New Zealand forces were engaged overseas. It was also awarded to a New Zealand militiaman and to 14 Royal Navy and Imperial Army personnel during the Second Maori War of 1860–72.

The original Royal Warrant instituting the Victoria Cross, dated 29 January 1856, restricted the award to “Our Naval and Military Services”, and required submissions from “Our Commander-in-Chief of Our Army” before an award could be made. In 1864, when Captain Charles Heaphy of the Auckland Militia was recommended for the Victoria Cross by the General Officer Commanding the Forces in New Zealand, the award was not approved because it was held that locally raised forces did not constitute an authorised part of the Imperial Army and were, therefore, ineligible under a strict interpretation of the existing Royal Warrant. Further strong representations made on Heaphy's behalf pointed out that he had initially been recommended by Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Henry Havelock, himself a Victoria Cross winner during the Indian Mutiny, and by whom he had been placed in command of a detachment of Imperial troops.

Eventually, on 1 January 1867, the Royal Warrant was amended and in the preamble to the amendment, drew specific attention to the operations “undertaken against the Insurgent Native Tribes of Our Colony of New Zealand” and the then ineligibility of “persons serving in the Local Forces of Our said Colony” for the high distinction of the Victoria Cross. The Warrant went on to authorise the award to “persons aforesaid provided that it be established in any case that the person was serving with Our Troops, under command of a General or other Officer”. Heaphy's Victoria Cross was gazetted a few weeks later, being the first awarded to a member of a colonial force as well as the first to a non-regular serviceman.

Later, in 1867, when New Zealand assumed full responsibility for the suppression of the hostile Maoris, the General Officer Commanding returned to England after relinquishing his command, and the Imperial troops were progressively withdrawn. Although further acts of valour were performed by New Zealanders before the end of hostilities, the Government of New Zealand did not forward any recommendations for the Victoria Cross as the local forces were no longer either serving with the Imperial troops or under command of an Imperial Army officer. Thus they were again considered ineligible for the award.

In 1869 the Governor of the colony, Sir George Bowen, instituted on his own authority the New Zealand Cross as a substitute award in place of the Victoria Cross. Although Queen Victoria subsequently ratified the award of this decoration in New Zealand, there is no doubt that the Governor's action made clear the inflexible regulations governing the award of the Victoria Cross. In 1881 the Royal Warrant was again amended and clarified for all time the eligibility of the regular and auxiliary forces of all parts of the Empire for the award of the Victoria Cross.

Since its institution in 1856, 1,344 Victoria Crosses have been awarded and three bars or second awards, made. A New Zealander, Captain C. H. Upham, is the only combatant recipient of a bar to the Victoria Cross and this was also the only bar awarded during the Second World War. The other two awards of a bar were made to medical officers during the First World War. The first Victoria Cross to be won in the air was posthumously awarded to Second-Lieutenant W. B. Rhodes-Moorhouse, a New Zealander serving in the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. The first award of the Victoria Cross to an airman for sinking an enemy submarine was made posthumously to Flying Officer L. A. Trigg, RNZAF, whose blazing aircraft later crashed into the sea. Although there were no survivors, his award was made on the recommendations of the captain and crew of the U-boat he had sunk, a distinction without precedent in two world wars. The first and, to date, the only award of the Victoria Cross to a member of the Maori race, was that bestowed posthumously upon Second-Lieutenant Moananui-a-Kiwa Ngarimu.

A total of 21 Victoria Crosses and one bar have been awarded to New Zealand servicemen, one during the Maori War of 1860–72; one during the South African War of 1899–1902; 11 during the First World War; and eight and a bar during the Second World War. In addition, seven awards were made to New Zealanders serving in other forces during the First World War, but these are not credited to New Zealand in official records and statistics.

(1809–72).

Roman Catholic Bishop of Wellington.

A new biography of Viard, Philippe Joseph appears in the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography on this site.

Phillippe Joseph Viard was born in 1809 at Lyons, France, where he came from a very good family. He was educated at L'Argentierre diocesan seminary and at the theological seminary of St. Trenaeus, Lyons. In 1834 he was ordained, joining the Society of Mary in the following year. He arrived at Kororareka with Bishop Pompallier in December 1839 and in the following year was directed to the Maori Mission serving at Tauranga. In 1841 he was appointed Grand Vicar of the Mission and accompanied Pompallier on his southern journey. At Akaroa they learned of Father Chanel's death and Viard went to Futuna in the Allier to bring the martyr's remains to Kororareka. During 1842 he was stationed at Wallis Island where he had charge of all tropical missions; and in 1843 he went with Bishop Douarre to found a new diocese in New Caledonia. On 6 January 1846 Viard was consecrated by Archbishop Polding, of Sydney, and returned to New Zealand as Coadjutor to Pompallier. From 1846 to 1850 he remained at Russell where, after 1848, he acted as Apostolic Administrator to the newly formed See of Wellington. In 1850 he moved to Wellington where he busied himself arranging the affairs of the diocese, which included the whole of the South Island. By Papal Brief, dated 3 July 1860, Viard ceased to be Coadjutor and was constituted first Bishop of Wellington. During the Maori Wars he rendered signal public service by using his influence to prevent the spread of unrest among the West Coast tribes. He attended the Oecumenical Council in Rome (1869–70). On 26 November 1869 Otago, Southland, and Stewart Island were separated from Wellington Diocese and formed into the See of Dunedin, Bishop Moran, then Bishop of Dardania (South Africa), being translated to the new See. While he was in Rome, Viard's health failed. He returned to Wellington in 1871 where he died on 2 June 1872.

During his lifetime Bishop Viard was noted for his “singularly gentle and tolerant disposition”, and, on the occasion of his death, the Evening Post paid tribute to “his large hearted charity, urbanity and genuine kindness” which “have won the heart of all with whom he has been in contact”. He was succeeded in his diocese by Bishop Redwood.

by Bernard John Foster, M.A., Research Officer, Department of Internal Affairs, Wellington.

• Annales des Missions d'Océanie, tome I, Nouvelle Zélande, Ocanie Centrale, Sociét de Marie (1895)
• Yearbook, 1927, the Marist Fathers of New Zealand and Australia (1926)
• Evening Post, 3, 10 Jun 1872 (Obits).

The vegetation of these islands is that of ferns, liverworts and flowering plants. On Kermadec Islands (29 15' – 31 24' S) are some 117 species, 12 per cent of which are endemic and 76 per cent found in New Zealand. In lower altitude dry forest are Metrosideros kermadecensis, Cyathea milnei, Myrsine kermadecensis, Coprosma petiolata, with Corynocarpus laevigatus and Myoporum laetum. In wetter forest above are Ascarina lanceolata, Cyathea kermadecensis, Rhopalostylis cheesemanii together with Melicytus ramiflorus.

The Chatham Islands (43° 35' – 44 25' S) support 257 species of which 14 per cent are endemic and 86 per cent grow in New Zealand. Two endemic genera are Coxella and Myosotidium. There are no podocarps or large trees on these islands. The karaka and nikau palm (Rhopalostylis sapida) are prominent with endemic species of Myrsine, Hebe, Olearia, and Senecio.

On the sub-Antarctic Islands there are about 193 species of which about 31 per cent are endemic and 63 per cent occur in the North or South Islands. Pleurophyllum, a large-leaved herbaceous composite, is the one endemic genus and there are three species.

The Snares (48° S) have Olearia lyallii and Senecio stewartiae forest and grassland dominated by Poa litorosa and Poa foliosa. On the Auckland Islands (50° 32' S) a narrow belt of Metrosideros umbellata coastal forest in sheltered eastern inlets is replaced by a tangled scrub of Myrsine divaricata, Cassinia vauvilliersii, Coprosma spp., Neopanax simplex, Dracophyllum longifolium, and stunted M. umbellata to about 300 m. Above this is Chionochloa antarctica grassland. Campbell Island (52° 22' S) has a belt of Dracophyllum scrub to about 130 m in sheltered situations, above which is Poa litorosa grassland. C. antarctica grassland, now diminished in area, is found on the floors of certain valleys. On Antipodes Island (49° 41' S) Poa litorosa is the dominant tussock, and of the 57 species only the three species of Coprosma are woody. There are no woody plants on Macquarie Island (54° 30' S), which supports only 31 species of flowering plants, three ferns, and one Lycopodium. Poa foliosa grassland is common.

by Eric John Godley, M.SC.(N.Z.), PH.D.(CANTAB.), F.R.S.N.Z., Director, Botany Division, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Lincoln.

Manual of New Zealand Flora, Cheeseman, T. F. (1925); The Vegetation of New Zealand, Cockayne, L. (1928); D.S.I.R. Bulletin No. 107 (1954), “An Ecological Study of Tussock Grassland”, Barker, A. P.; New Zealand Journal of Science and Technology, Vol. 19 (1938), “Some Correlations Between Vegetation and Climate in New Zealand”, Zotov, V. D.; New Zealand Journal of Science, Vol. 4 (1961), “A Tall-tussock Grassland Community in New Zealand”, Connor, H. E.; Journal of Ecology, Vol. 18 (1930), “New Zealand Epiphytes”, Oliver, W. R. B.; Ibid., Vol. 25 (1937), “A Consideration of the Biological Spectra of New Zealand”, Allan, H. H.; New Zealand Journal of Botany, Vol. 1 (1963), “The Regeneration Gap of New Zealand Gymnosperms”, Wardle, P.; Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute, Vol. 42 (1910), “The Vegetation of the Kermadec Islands”, Oliver, W. R. B.; Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Vol. 82 (1954), “Forests and Climate in the South Island of New Zealand”, Holloway, J. T.; Descriptive Atlas of New Zealand, McLintock, A. H. (ed.) (1959), “Pre-European Vegetation of New Zealand”.

The New Zealand native grasslands are dominated by species with the tussock or “bunch grass” habit. These have much mechanical tissue and do not die back to the ground in winter. Tussock grasslands are found from sea level to the alpine zone and fall into two broad categories. Low-tussock grassland is dominated by species of Festuca and Poa, a half-metre or more in height and yellow-brown in general appearance, and belongs to lower, drier areas. Talltussock grassland is dominated by one or another of the snow grasses (Chionochloa spp.), which are usually a metre or more high and yellow, green-brown, or red-brown in appearance. They are generally found today at higher altitudes and in wetter conditions.

Low-tussock grassland: About a century ago this community covered considerable areas of eastern South Island from sea level to 800–900 m and in many places invaded areas where beech forest had been cleared. Large areas of induced low-tussock grassland occur also to the east of the central plateau of the North Island.

A detailed study by Barker (1953) on Hunters Hills, South Canterbury, listed the dominants in low-tussock areas as Festuca novae-zelandiae (hard tussock), Poa caespitosa (silver tussock), and Poa colensoi (blue tussock). Hard tussock is the most abundant, it is deep rooted, and dominant on steep, exposed slopes. Silver tussock is shallow rooted, grows in more mesophytic conditions, and, unlike the other two, does not occur in tall-tussock grassland. The blue tussock grows with the other species and may be dominant locally on shallow soils. The spiny shrub Discaria toumatou (wild Irishman) and the Aciphyllas (spear grasses) are also common on low-tussock areas.

Tall-tussock grassland: Tall tussock communities are found on Mount Egmont and from there southward throughout the high country of both Islands, sometimes above forest. At lower levels tall tussock may be found on coastal hills, as on Banks Peninsula, or on the Southland Plain.

Chionochloa rubra (red tussock) dominates large areas in central North Island devastated by volcanic eruptions. In the South Island it is common on poorly drained terraces and abundant particularly in Southland. C. pallens and C. flavescens are important in the North Island mountain chain, and with C. rigida dominate in the South Island. C. crassiuscula is common in South Island mountains, and with C. pungens forms the meagre high-altitude grassland found on Stewart Island. In northern South Island C. australis, a lax species with smooth leaves, forms a slippery “carpet” grassland. The dominant species in the Hunters Hills tall tussock are C. rigida and the cotton plant, Celmisia spectabilis, with Festuca novae-zelandiae and Poa colensoi. The cotton plant has tufts of stout linear-oblong leaves with dense tomentum beneath, and a well protected growing point enabling it to survive forest fires. In inland North Otago a snow-tussock community of Chionochloa rigida, with Festuca matthewsii common, was described by Connor (1961).

The original tussock grassland evolved in the absence of grazing animals, and has been modified in greater or lesser degree during a century of stocking. In drier areas, such as Central Otago and inland Marlborough, the results have been serious. Here burning and stocking opened up the grassland, making an ideal home for rabbits. Their depredations accelerated vegetation changes which included spectacular increase of scab weed (Raoulia australis), a composite mat plant. Legislation has been introduced to control both burning and rabbits.

In swamps are found plants which can survive in loose soil which is covered, more or less, by water; many of these plants grow also in drier conditions. Podocarpus dacrydioides may form swamp forest and Cordyline australis is also common under varying conditions. The New Zealand flax, Phormium tenax, raupo, Typha muelleri and Carex secta are most commonly found. Genera common to bogs include sedges, some ferns (Gleichenia), the rush (Hypolaena), Dracophyllum, Hebe, Dacrydium, and Leptospermum. In the bogs on the mountains and lowlands further south are plants of cushion bog type in which representatives of the genera Oreobolus, Phyllachne, Gaimardia, and Donatia are found. Most striking is the mangrove (Avicennia resinifera) a tree of twisted and gnarled stems, which grows in salty estuaries from North Cape to about 38° S. In ponds and slow-moving rivers are Potamogeton spp., water-milfoils (Myriophyllum), and water chickweed (Montia fontana). In addition there are many fresh-water algae, a very large group of plants, living in many different situations including scums on ponds or thread-like forms, one-celled plants, and those forms of blue-green algae which belong to the thermal regions.