Events In History
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6 February 1840The Treaty of Waitangi is signedMore than 40 Māori chiefs, led by Ngāpuhi's Hōne Heke Pokai, signed the Treaty of Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. Read more...
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28 October 1835Declaration of Independence signed by northern chiefsThirty-four northern chiefs signed a Declaration of Independence at a hui called by the British Resident, James Busby, at his home at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. This was one of several events that led eventually to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. Read more...
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The Treaty in brief
The Treaty of Waitangi is New Zealand’s founding document. It takes its name from the place in the Bay of Islands where it was first signed, on 6 February 1840. The Treaty is an agreement, in Māori and English, that was made between the British Crown and about 540 Māori rangatira (chiefs).
- Page 1 - The Treaty in briefThe Treaty of Waitangi is New Zealand’s founding document. It takes its name from the place in the Bay of Islands where it was first signed, on 6 February 1840. The Treaty is an
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Location 3 km north-west of Paihia. At its centre is one of the country’s most spectacular and historic places. James Busby, British Resident, took up residence on the north side of the entrance to the Waitangi River in 1833. In 1834 Māori chiefs gathered at Waitangi to select a national flag, and in 1835 to sign a declaration of the country’s independence. On 6 February 1840 Waitangi was the site for the signing of a treaty between Māori and William Hobson, representing the British Crown. The Waitangi Treaty House and grounds, together with an additional 1,000-acre land block, were gifted to the nation in 1932 by the governor general, Lord Bledisloe, and his wife. His intention was to create a national historic site to mark the country’s foundation document. Celebrations were held in 1934 to acknowledge the gift, and in 1940 to mark the treaty’s 100th anniversary. In the Treaty House grounds a whare rūnanga (meeting house) representing all tribes was built for the 1940 celebration. Since the 1970s Waitangi Day celebrations have been an occasion for protest by Māori and some Pākehā.
