Personal details
Full Name:
- Richard John Seddon
Lifetime:
- 22 Jun 1845–10 Jun 1906
Premier:
1 May 1893–10 Jun 1906
Age on becoming Premier:
47
Electorate:
Westland
Political Party:
Liberal

Richard Seddon’s nickname, ‘King Dick’, says it all. Our longest-serving and most famous leader not only led the government, he was it, many argued. For 13 years he completely dominated politics.
Read more...Events In History
-
10 June 1906Death of Richard Seddon
Known as 'King Dick', Seddon had dominated New Zealand politics since the early 1890s. His Liberal government established the tradition of state-supported welfare in this country. Read more...
-
30 May 1901New Zealand turns down federation with Australia
A 10-man Royal Commission reported unanimously that New Zealand should not become a state of the new Commonwealth of Australia. Read more...
-
28 September 1899New Zealand answers the empire's call to arms
Premier Richard ‘King Dick’ Seddon asked Parliament to approve an offer to the British government of a contingent of mounted riflemen to serve in South Africa. Amid emotional scenes, the members overwhelmingly endorsed the motion – only five voted against it. Read more...
-
1 November 1898Old-age Pensions Act becomes law
A world first, the act gave a small means-tested pension to elderly men and women with few assets who were ‘of good moral character’ and were leading a ‘sober and reputable life’. It was one of the major achievements of Richard Seddon’s Liberal government. Read more...
-
31 August 1894Arbitration Act becomes law
The Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration (IC&A) Act made New Zealand the first country in the world to outlaw strikes and introduce compulsory arbitration. Read more...
-
28 July 1893Massive women’s suffrage petition presented to Parliament
The monster suffrage petition contained the signatures of more than 25,000 women. A dozen other, smaller petitions were also submitted around the same time. Read more...
-
1 May 1893'King Dick' Seddon becomes premier
Richard John Seddon became premier following the death of John Ballance. Immortalised as ‘King Dick’, Seddon was to dominate the New Zealand political landscape for the next 13 years. He remains this country’s longest-serving premier or prime minister. Read more...
Articles
Seddonville
The West Coast coalmining settlement of Seddonville, 50 kms north of Westport, was named in honour of the Liberal Premier Richard Seddon. It was also the site of an early experiment in state socialism – New Zealand's first state coal mine opened there in 1903.
-
Page 2 – Coal is discovered
After John Rochfort discovered fragments of bituminous coal in a river north of Westport in 1859, the search was on for accessible coal seams that could be mined.
Housing the Prime Minister
Almost 150 years after the government purchased the first official premier's residence on Tinakori Road, Wellington, the address of Premier House remains the same. But in the intervening years the building has been extended, renamed, abandoned and refurbished.
- Page 2 - The first premier houseOur first premiers had to find their own digs. That changed in 1865, when the government bought the premier a simple 22-year-old wooden cottage in Thorndon’s Tinakori
Flags of New Zealand
The New Zealand flag hasn't always been our official flag. It was adopted in 1902, replacing the Union Jack. Between 1834 and 1840, the flag of the United Tribes was recognised as our first 'national' flag. Waitangi Day 2010 saw the first official recognition of the national Māori flag.
- Page 4 - The NZ flagThe maritime origins of the New Zealand flag from 1865 to 1902
Related keywords
- wellington city
- prime ministers
- south african war
- tenth contingent
- boer war
- joseph ward
- premiers
- roadside stories
- seddon
- ward
- housing
- julius vogel
- frederick weld
- federation with australia
- australia
- parliament buildings
- statues
- panorama
- seddonville
- coal mining
- mokihinui
- funerals
- MPs
- south africa
- trade unions
- royalty
- parliament
- cook islands
- pacific peoples
- tourism
- glaciers
- liberal party
- james carroll
- william hall-jones
- mahuta tawhiao potatau te wherowhero
- nelson city
- artillery
- suffrage campaign
- women in politics
- suffrage 125
- cartoon
- racism
- famous firsts
- kumara
- law reform
- flags
- shipping
-
Main image: Seddon Memorial