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John Robert Godley

John Robert Godley (May 29, 1814 - November 17, 1861) was Irish statesman and bureaucrat. Godley is considered to be the founder of Canterbury, New Zealand, although he lived there for only two years.

Godley was the eldest son of John Godley and Katherine Daly. His father was an Irish landlord. He attended the prestigious schools of Harrow School and Christ Church, Oxford in England. He was always very sickly. This prevented him from pursuing a career in law.

After graduating from college, Godley traveled over much of Ireland and North America. His traveling influenced and helped to form his ideas about the establishment and governing of colonies. Because of his extensive travel and ideas on the subject of colonies Godley was asked by Edward Gibbon Wakefield, the owner of the New Zealand Company, to found a colony in New Zealand that would follow the beliefs of the Church of England. Godley was persuaded to lead this new colony because of his political connections. Using these connections, Godley was able to help fund the colony. He married Charlotte Griffith Wynne in September of 1846.

Four years later he and his family arrived in Port Cooper (Lyttelton) in April of 1850. Upon arrival he was met by Captain Joseph Thomas and shown the construction plans for three separate towns and housing plans for the current settlement at Lyttelton. A fleet of four ships reached Lyttelton in December of 1850. The Randolph, the Cressy, the Sir George Seymour, and the Charlotte-Jane all carried pilgrims and supplies for the planned colony. For the next two years he served as leader of the settlement, which was called Christchurch. He negotiated with the Canterbury Association in order to get them to change their conditions for pastoral leases to ensure that the colony was able to make a good start with a strong farming base. Godley believed that the Canterbury Association's purpose was to found Canterbury not to rule it. He thought that the colony should be self-governing.

He later returned to England in December of 1852, where he worked as a columnist and essayist for several newspapers. He mainly wrote about colonial reform, a subject clearly dear to his heart. He also was employed at the War Office. There he continued his argument for the self-governing of the British colonies. Godley died on November 17, 1861 in London. A statue bearing his likeness was erected in Cathedral Square by the people of Christchurch in 1867.

• Christchurch article on Godley