National Poetry Day Poem: Jean Batten

Today is National Poetry Day. PANZA (Poetry Archive of NZ Aotearoa) would like to celebrate by posting a classic New Zealand poem on famous New Zealand aviator Jean Batten by H S (Henry Stansfield) Gipps (1865?-1944). 

In 1907 Gipps published his only collection called Outward Bound. He was a sailor with a love of the ocean. As such, a number of his poems concern sailing and journeys by ship.

His publications after Outward Bound were in pamphlet form, and by 1936 Gipps was firmly planted in New Zealand soil when writing his poem in praise of the ‘Greta Garbo of the skies’ Jean Batten, recently the subject of Dame Fiona Kidman’s novel, The Infinite Air. Gipps issued the poem as a stand alone pamphlet (copy held by the Turnbull Library in Wellington).

Gipps’ poem concerns Batten’s world absolute record flight from England to New Zealand 5-16 October 1936 in 11 days and 45 minutes, which included a 2 and a half day stop-over in Sydney. Also a world absolute record flight from Australia to New Zealand (Sydney to Auckland in 10 and a half hours) and broke the record flight from England to Australia (5 days and 21 hours). A remarkable achievement. 

Batten remains an alluring and enigmatic figure, the subject of children’s fiction, historical fiction and biography but little is known about her presence in New Zealand poetry. PANZA knows of one other poem from this period by Donald H Lea (1879?-1960), ‘New Zealand Lass with a Hielan’ Name’, included in a previous issue of our newsletter Poetry Notes, Spring 2013. Lea’s poem also concerns Batten’s 1936 flight.

Batten’s own aunt Marieda Batten (Mrs Ida Mary Cooke) (1875-1933) was a poet and Mark Pirie will profile her in the next issue of Poetry Notes.
For more information and to read the poem ‘Jean Batten’ by H S Gipps, please visit our website: http://poetryarchivenz.wordpress.com

Photo: Jean Gardner Batten. Ref: 1/4-003023-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22700855