James Hargest - Life and Career

Life and Career

Hargest was born in Gore, where his father was a farmer. He attended Gore and Mandeville Schools. He joined the Territorial Force in 1911, and when World War I broke out, he volunteered to serve in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, being commissioned as a second lieutenant. He fought and was wounded in the Gallipoli Campaign, and later fought in France. By the end of the war, he had risen to command a battalion, and had been awarded the Military Cross, the DSO, and the French Légion d'honneur.

Upon his return to New Zealand, Hargest returned to farming, buying land near Invercargill. He became active in local affairs, and in 1931 was elected to Parliament as the MP for Invercargill. He held the Invercargill electorate from 1931 to 1935, and then the Awarua electorate from 1935 to 1944.

Initially an Independent Reform MP, Hargest was a supporter of the coalition between the United Party and the Reform Party. The coalition coalesced to become the National Party, and Hargest formally joined the new party.

With the outbreak of World War II, Hargest sought to return to military service. Initially, he was turned down on medical grounds, but this was overridden by the Prime Minister, Michael Joseph Savage. Hargest left New Zealand in 1940, holding the rank of Brigadier. He and his forces took part in the Battle of Crete, where his inactivity during the first two days contributed to the loss of Maleme airfield, enabling the Germans to turn the battle. After the loss of Crete, his brigade took part in the defence of Tobruk, where he was captured in November 1941. Hargest was imprisoned in Castle Vincigliata, near Florence, along with a number of other Allied officers. A group of officers, including Hargest, managed to escape — Hargest and Brigadier Reginald Miles, another New Zealander were the only two to reach safety in neutral Switzerland. With the help of the French Resistance, Hargest travelled through France to Spain, from where he flew to England in November 1943. He became the highest-ranking British officer to escape in either war. Later, he was appointed New Zealand's observer in the D-Day landings in Normandy, being attached to a British division in the 21st Army Group. He was wounded twice, and on 12 August 1944 was killed by shell fire in Normandy.

James Hargest College in Invercargill is named after him.