Sir Thomas Lachlan Macdonald KCMG (14 December 1898 – 11 April 1980) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party. He served as Minister of Defence (1949–1957), Minister of External Affairs (1954–1957), and Minister of Island Territories (1955–1957), and was New Zealand High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (1961–1968).
Early life and war service
Macdonald was born in Invercargill on 14 December 1898,[1] to parents Thomas Forsaith Macdonald, a farmer, and Margaret Ann Matheson. One of his great-grandfathers, Thomas Forsaith, was a member of the 1st New Zealand Parliament. Macdonald was educated at South School and Southland Boys' High School. He served in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in Palestine in the First World War, and in the Second World War he served in Egypt, rising to the rank of captain until he was invalided home in 1943.[2]
Political career
| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938–1943 | 26th | Mataura | National | ||
| 1943–1946 | 27th | Mataura | National | ||
| 1946–1949 | 28th | Wallace | National | ||
| 1949–1951 | 29th | Wallace | National | ||
| 1951–1954 | 30th | Wallace | National | ||
| 1954–1957 | 31st | Wallace | National | ||
Macdonald was the Member of Parliament for Mataura 1938 to 1946, then Wallace 1946 to 1957, when he retired.[3] He was Minister of Defence (1949–1957), Minister of External Affairs (1954–1957), and Minister of Island Territories (1955–1957) in the First National Government.[4][5] From 1961 to 1968 he was the New Zealand High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.[1]
Later life and death
In the 1963 New Year Honours, Macdonald was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George.[6] He died in 1980.[1]
Mount Macdonald in Antarctica was named for him by the New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (1961–62).[7]
Notes
- ^ a b c Gustafson 1986, p. 329.
- ^ Templeton, Malcolm (1 September 2010). "Macdonald, Thomas Lachlan – Biography". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Retrieved 12 January 2011.
- ^ Wilson 1985, p. 214.
- ^ Wilson 1985, p. 87.
- ^ New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, Vols. 307–314 (1955–1956).
- ^ "No. 42872". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 1963. p. 39.
- ^ "Mount Macdonald". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
References
- Gustafson, Barry (1986). From the Cradle to the Grave: a biography of Michael Joseph Savage. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00138-5.
- Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
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