Introduction

Michael Joseph Savage is considered in present day New Zealand as the greatest Prime Minister in New Zealand’s history. His time as Prime Minister had helped lay the framework for modern New Zealand politics and helped create the nation’s current social welfare system [Gustafson, 1968, p3-6]. However, Savage’s image as a Kiwi icon has faded overtime due to significant events in New Zealand history such as the Second World War and the economic boom under the National Party in the 1950’s and 1960’s [Gustafson, 1986, p37-57]. But Savage’s place as a Kiwi icon in New Zealand history is much more significant than it appears.

Savage’s policies and public image at the time helped change traditional depictions of Kiwi culture, yet years after his death, these changes became traditional depictions of Kiwi culture as well. Savage’s time as Prime Minister also gives us insight into how Kiwis expressed their identities during that time.        

Early Life and Early Political Career

Michael Joseph Savage was born on 23rd March 1872 in Australia [Gustafson, 1986, p7-19]. Michael Joseph Savage spent most of his early life working different jobs around Victoria before becoming a full time labourer [Gustafson, 1968, p6-11]. In 1907, Savage then emigrated to New Zealand to find work as a labourer, where he would eventually become part of the then growing socialist movement in New Zealand [Gustafson, 1986, p48-71] . By the early 1910’s, Savage would largely oversee the growth of the Labour Party. Three years after it was formed in 1919, it had already won eight seats in parliament including Savage winning a seat in government [Gustafson, 1986, p91-112]. 

One of the main factors of the growth of the Labour Party in New Zealand was its appeal to the ordinary kiwi [Gustafson, 1980, p140-53]. When the Labour Party was formed in 1916, it was a merger between different workers groups and trade unions [Brown, 1962, p18-28]. Most of New Zealand’s population at the time lived in either small towns or rural farmlands, where they felt left out and isolated by the growth of the New Zealand political sphere [Franks & McAloon, 2016, p51-75]. With the help of Savage’s early leadership in several workers unions around New Zealand, a strong sense of kinship with the working class helped create the Labour Party [Franks & McAloon, 2016, p75-96] .             

The Great Depression and the 1935 Election

By 1935, New Zealand was feeling the full effect of the Great Depression, the ruling government in New Zealand at the time was a coalition between the Reform Party under Gordon Coates and the United Party under George Forbes, who was Prime Minister [Bassett, 2017, p128-47]. This coalition would prove to be unstable as the Depression worsened, causing friction between the two parties [Brown, 1962, p128-56]. Savage became Leader of Labour in 1933 after the sudden death of Harry Holland [Gustafson, 1968, p18-20]. Labour quickly grew in popularity and in the 1935 election they would win the election. winning 53 seats with a total of 45.73% of the vote [Brown, 1962, p225-27].

Two significant factors that helped Labour win this election was its welcoming nature to the working class Pākehā and its appeal to Maori. With Savage’s successful background in trade unions, many working class Kiwis felt a sense of trust within the Labour Party as many members of the party had working class backgrounds. While in opposition, Labour formed an alliance with the Rātana Church under the leadership of T.W. Rātana. Labour had consulted the Rātana party when creating Maori policy during the election [1]. This relationship between the groups helped improve and create a stronger relationship between Maori and working class Pākehā.

Creating the Welfare State and the 1938 Election

When Michael Joseph Savage and his Labour Party entered into power in 1935, his government soon enacted many policies that not only helped New Zealand recover from the Great Depression, but had also helped create a strong social welfare system that is still active in New Zealand even to this day. One strength of the policies that were passed under Savage’s government was that the policies were effective in being appealing to all Kiwis. The introduction of State Housing helped many Kiwis find a stable, comfortable home, giving Kiwis a chance to start over with a chance of newfound stability [Coleman, 1972, p48-55].

Even the creation of the new Social Security Act, which provided general benefits to Kiwis around the nation meant that New Zealand was the first country in the western world to have the first social security system [Gustafson, 1986, p203-30]. With this success, it helped add to Savage’s persona of a down to earth, ordinary, working class Kiwi. An example of this was when the first State house was open, Savage was seen to roll up his sleeves and help carry furniture into the house [Franks & McAloon, 2017, p96-115]. Labour won the 1938 election in a landslide beating the newly founded National Party under Adam Hamilton [Gustafson, 1968, p21-7].     

ON the Road to War and Savage's Death

During the duration of the Savage government, there was an increasing possibility of another world war breaking out between the commonwealth countries and the axis powers of Nazi Germany, Japan and Italy. Savage had helped New Zealand become more politically independent on the world stage as the threat of another war began looming [Gustafson, 1986, p249-73]. This action taken by Savage, in many ways helped give New Zealand society a sense of newfound independence, as the nation at the time was moving further away from British influence and the new social welfare policies helped give New Zealand a sense of self-reliance.

Despite being a conscientious objector during the First World War, Savage pledged full support of Britain when war broke out on 3rd September 1939, thereby bringing New Zealand into another war fighting for the British Empire [Savage, 1940]. By then, he was becoming increasingly unwell, he was diagnosed with colon cancer during the 1938 election [Gustafson, 1986, p249-73]. Savage died on 27th March 1940 at the age of 68 [Gustafson, 1986, p249-73]. The news of Savage’s death brought great sadness within the nation and thousands attended his funeral procession. After his death, Minister of Health, Peter Fraser became Prime Minister for the rest of the Second World War [Bassett, 2017, p172-200].           

Conclusion

While Savage’s time as Prime Minister was relatively short by today’s standards, his impact on New Zealand politics and New Zealand society as a whole is no doubt massive. Much like that of US president Franklin D. Roosevelt, Savage’s government installations of the current social welfare system and the progressive economic policies to move New Zealand away from the Great Depression had helped make him into a popular and adored national leader. Savage’s working class background and involvement in a number of different trade unions is in many ways an archetypal example of managing to succeed the Kiwi dream.

During Savage’s time as Prime Minister, he helped create the Kiwi identity, especially in politics, with his down to earth, casual nature, which had never really been seen publicly with New Zealand politicians before. His influence over time has confirmed the Kiwi identity of being self-reliant and getting the job done.         

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Gustafson, Barry. Michael Joseph Savage. Wellington: Reed, 1968.

Gustafson, Barry. From the Cradle to the Grave: A Biography of Michael Joseph Savage. Auckland [N.Z.]: Reed Methuen, 1986.

Bassett, Michael. New Zealand's Prime Ministers: From Dick Seddon to John Key. Mangawhai, Northland, New Zealand: David Ling Publishing Limited, 2017.

Franks, Peter and Jim McAloon. Labour: The New Zealand Labour Party, 1916-2016. Wellington: Victoria University Press, 2016.

Brown, Bruce. The Rise of New Zealand Labour: A History of the New Zealand Labour Party from 1916 to 1940. Wellington: Price Milburn, 1962.

Gustafson, Barry. Labour's Path to Political Independence: The Origins and Establishment of the New Zealand Labour Party, 1900-19. Auckland, N.Z.: Auckland University Press, 1980.

Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 'Rātana and Labour seal alliance'. https://nzhistory.govt.nz/page/ratana-and-labour-seal-alliance. 2017 (accessed 11 March 2019)

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Savage, Michael Joseph and New Zealand. Prime Minister. A Clarion Call to New Zealand; the Prime Minister's Personal Message. we must Win the War. Wellington: Government Printer, 1940.

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