Pages tagged with: treaty of waitangi

New Zealand's founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi, was prepared over just a few days in February 1840. Several versions of the Treaty were  taken around the country for signing. Find out how the Treaty came to be drafted and locate the signing places of the different copies.

Pivotal political and constitutional events with links to further information

A summary of the drafting and content of the Treaty of Waitangi.

Information about some of the key people who have featured in the story of the Treaty of Waitangi

See some of the key events between 1800 and 1849 relating to the Treaty of Waitangi.

Amalgamating Maori into colonial settler society was a key part of British policy in New Zealand after 1840. Economic and social change, along with land-purchase programmes, were central to this process.

Between 8 November 1939 and 4 May 1940 more than 2.6 million people visited the New Zealand Centennial Exhibition in Wellington; this represents an average daily attendance of about 17,000 people. The government spent £250,000 – more than $19 million in today's money – on the exhibition.

Every year on 6 February, New Zealand marks the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. For most people, Waitangi Day is a holiday; for many, and especially for Maori, it is a time for reflecting on the Treaty and its place in modern New Zealand.

See the key events between 1850 and 1899 relating to the Treaty of Waitangi.

By the end of 1840 about 540 Maori, including 13 women, had signed the Treaty of Waitangi; all but 39 signed the Maori text. Some had clear expectations about what their agreement would bring; others chose not to sign the Treaty at all.

The New South Wales government played an important role in New Zealand in the 1830s. An official British government presence in New Zealand was made in 1833 with the appointment of James Busby as British Resident.

Transcript of the English version of the original Treaty of Waitangi document.

Discover some of the key events between 1900 and 1949 relating to the Treaty of Waitangi.

Answers to some common questions about the Treaty of Waitangi.

The pressure to sell land was a key factor in the creation of the Kingitanga. Before European settlement Maori could not sell land and few chiefs had the mana or authority to gift land. But by the late 1840s secret deals with government officials were occurring.

Transcript of the Māori version of the original Treaty of Waitangi document.

New Zealand became a British colony in 1840, legitimised by the Treaty of Waitangi and Lieutenant-Governor William Hobson's declaration of 21 May declaring sovereignty over the islands.

From the 1940s the Treaty and Waitangi began to find a place in the national consciousness. For most New Zealanders, they were of historical interest only.

The Treaty of Waitangi has two texts. The Maori version is not an exact translation of the English, and there are important differences.