Christchurch Country was a parliamentary electorate

New Zealand electorates

An electorate is a voting district for elections to the Parliament of New Zealand. In informal discussion, electorates are often called seats. The most formal description, electoral district, is rarely seen outside of electoral legislation. Before 1996, all Members of Parliament were directly...

 in the Canterbury

Canterbury, New Zealand

The New Zealand region of Canterbury is mainly composed of the Canterbury Plains and the surrounding mountains. Its main city, Christchurch, hosts the main office of the Christchurch City Council, the Canterbury Regional Council - called Environment Canterbury - and the University of Canterbury.-...

 region of New Zealand from 1853

New Zealand general election, 1853

The 1853 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 1st term. It was the first national election ever held in New Zealand, although Parliament did not yet have full authority to govern the colony, which was part of the British Empire at...

 to 1860. It was thus one of the original 24 electorates used for the 1st New Zealand Parliament

1st New Zealand Parliament

The 1st New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. It opened on 24 May 1854, following New Zealand's first general election . It was dissolved on 15 September 1855 in preparation for that year's election...

.

Location

The electorate covered the rural area outside of Christchurch; much of the Canterbury Region and the West Coast.

History

The electorate was created for the first Parliament as a two-member electorate.

The first election was held on 27 August 1853. James Stuart-Wortley and Edward Jerningham Wakefield

Edward Jerningham Wakefield

Edward Jerningham Wakefield was the only son of Edward Gibbon Wakefield. He was born in London, and educated in England and France....

 were the first two representatives. Wakefield served until the end of the parliamentary term. Stuart-Wortley resigned on 18 July 1855. As Parliament was dissolved on 15 September 1855, no by-election was held to fill the vacancy.

John Hall, one of the elected members, later became New Zealand's 12th Premier

Prime Minister of New Zealand

The Prime Minister of New Zealand is New Zealand's head of government consequent on being the leader of the party or coalition with majority support in the Parliament of New Zealand...

 (1879–82).

Members

The electorate was represented by seven Members of Parliament.

Election	Winners
1853 election New Zealand general election, 1853 The 1853 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 1st term. It was the first national election ever held in New Zealand, although Parliament did not yet have full authority to govern the colony, which was part of the British Empire at...		Edward Jerningham Wakefield Edward Jerningham Wakefield Edward Jerningham Wakefield was the only son of Edward Gibbon Wakefield. He was born in London, and educated in England and France....  (Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... )		James Stuart-Wortley (Independent)
1855 election New Zealand general election, 1855 The 1855 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 2nd term. It was the second national election ever held in New Zealand, and the first one which elected a Parliament that had full authority to govern the colony.-Background:The first...		Dingley Askham Brittin Dingley Askham Brittin Dingley Askham Brittin was born in Huntingdonshire, England in 1823. He came out to New Zealand on the Minerva in 1853. By profession, he was a solicitor, but he did not practice in the colony. He represented the Christchurch Country electorate in the 2nd New Zealand Parliament from 1855, but...  (Independent)		John Hall (Independent)
1856 by-election		John Ollivier John Ollivier John Ollivier was a 19th century Member of Parliament in Christchurch, New Zealand.He represented the Christchurch Country electorate from 1856 to 1860 when he resigned.-References:...  (Independent)
1860 first by-election		Isaac Thomas Cookson Isaac Thomas Cookson Isaac Thomas Cookson was a 19th century Member of Parliament in Canterbury, New Zealand.He represented the Christchurch Country electorate in 1860 and then the Kaiapoi electorate from 1861 to 1863, when he resigned.-References:...  (Independent)
1860 second by-election				Charles Hunter Brown Charles Hunter Brown Charles Hunter Brown was a New Zealand politician from Canterbury, New Zealand.He represented Christchurch Country in the 2nd Parliament in 1860 from 21 April to 5 November, but was defeated when he then stood for the seat of Cheviot in North Canterbury.-References:... (Independent)