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A First World War hero and commander of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Bernard Freyberg proved to be a charismatic and popular military leader who would later serve a term as Governor-General
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The swearing in of Dame Silvia Cartwright as governor-general meant that all five of the country's most powerful political and legal positions were held by women.
Lord and Lady Cobham are carried ashore at Pukapuka Island in the Northern Cooks in 1959. Lord Cobham, the governor-general, turned down an invitation to become patron of the Wolfenden Association (later the New Zealand Homosexual Law Reform Society).
As the job evolved over time, so did the type of person needed to govern successfully. Between 1840 and 1853, when governors ruled personally, they were junior navy or army officers.
In June 2004 Dame Silvia Cartwright, the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, (centre) and Peter Cartright (right) walked through the Brandenburg Gate as part of Dame Slivia's official visit to Germany.
The symbolic highpoint of our first Empire Day came when Lord Ranfurly laid the foundation stone for the veterans' home that later came to bear his name. Ranfurly saw successive generations of war veterans such as these blind men seen enjoying their pipes on the veranda, as reinforcing imperial links.
