Sir Harry Albert Atkinson KCMG (1 November 1831 – 28 June 1892) served as the tenth premier of New Zealand on four separate occasions in the late 19th century, and was Colonial Treasurer for a total of ten years.

He also participated in the formation of voluntary military units to fight in the New Zealand Wars, and was noted for his strong belief in the need for seizure of Māori land.

Atkinson, born in 1831 in the English village of Broxton, Cheshire, received his education in England, but chose at the age of 22 to follow his elder brother William to New Zealand.

[3] Atkinson's correspondence shows that he was highly satisfied with his decision to move to New Zealand, seeing it as an opportunity to prosper.

He named his small farmhouse Hurworth after a village in England where he had lived as a boy, although—as his father worked as an itinerant builder and architect—the family did not settle anywhere.

Atkinson was made a sergeant of the Taranaki Volunteer Rifle Company in February 1859[4] and then commissioned as a captain in March.

The death of William Cutfield King in February 1861 caused a by-election in the Grey and Bell electorate.

He returned to parliament from 1867 to 1869 for the Town of New Plymouth electorate, but in April 1869 he resigned to concentrate on maintaining his farm.

Once in parliament, Atkinson soon became involved in economic matters, opposing the policies of Julius Vogel (who also happened to be a supporter of Māori land rights).

Vogel, who supported extensive borrowing to finance public works, was attacked by Atkinson as reckless.

Atkinson eventually became part of Vogel's cabinet, but not with portfolios related to negotiations with Māori or to finance.

He attempted to reform the system by which money was handled, placing all responsibility for borrowing with the government while increasing control of spending at a district or municipal level.

Atkinson acceded to the wishes of his friends, and on 23 January 1891 he was appointed to the Legislative Council, along with six other men, to attempt to block any radical bills that Ballance might introduce in the Lower House.

After presiding over the first meeting of the Council on 28 June in the 1892 session, Atkinson returned to the Speaker's Room, where he died.