NEW ZEALAND IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
OVERVIEW NOTES
PART ONE 1800 - 1865
MAORI SOCIETY 1800
ECONOMIC LIFE
Living Areas. Fortifications were common from the 16th century. There was a base settlement for winter and food-gathering camps in other locations.
Food. It was often scarce, very fibrous and hard on the teeth. Staples were kumara or fernroot supplemented by shellfish, fish, roots, berries and birds. There was some horticulture.
Land. Ownership was complex, involving rights over food gathering, land use and resources. Hereditary rights were community rights.
Trade. News and trade goods travelled quickly. Trade was usually the exchange of reciprocal gifts such as obsidian, green- stone and mutton bird.
Warfare. Traditional causes were women and land. Status and prestige had to be protected and enhanced.
SOCIAL STRUCTURE
Kinship was the basis of Maori social organisation. The hapu (group of families) was the basic unit of society. The whanau (extended family) was the smallest unit. Each had a kaumatua (family elder). The iwi (tribe) was made up of a number of hapu linked by kinship. Within Maori society, tuakana (seniority) and teina (junior) reflected age, rank and gender.
CULTURAL ASPECTS
Art. This included carving, tattooing and weaving. The geometric, rectilinear and spiral motifs used revealed ideas, myths or religious values.
Values and Beliefs. It was a highly competitive society, pre- occupied with the search for mana. The major organising belief was tapu. It varied in its manifestations but certain norms were universal. Utu (revenge, payment) governed relationships where tapu failed to act as a sanction.
Cosmology. The earliest written account was in 1849 (Arawa tribe). Whakapapa provided a time-scale for Maori myth, tradition and history.
The Voyagers. The canoe traditions of origin are confused and contradictory .Their function was to unify whole groups of hapu.
SITUATION IN 1840
There were 42 tribal groups. Boundaries were marked by hills, rivers, or prominent trees. Mana provided the driving force of Maori society. The forces of mauri (life force) and death, tapu and noa, male and female, east and west gave balance. Maori society was ready for the dialogue with the Pakeha in goods and ideas.
EARLY MAORI -EUROPEAN CONTACT 18OO-1840
European interest in the Pacific: Cooks journals alerted Europeans to the rich resources of New Zealand. After the establishment of British penal colonies in Australia more traders arrived. From the 1790s the demand for oil brought whalers to New Zealand waters. In 1792 the first sealers arrived in the south. Kauri spars and flax were gathered from the north of New Zealand.
Maori Enthusiasm for trade
Maori culture was open to innovation and keen to trade, especially in food and metal products.
Misunderstandings
From 1810-20 race relations were characterised by increased violence. The reasons included:
1. European ignorance of Maori expectations.
2. Traders were less scrupulous when the seals were declining.
3. Interhapu rivalries.
The Boyd Massacre
The Boyd called at Whangaroa in 1809 wanting kauri spars. It was captured by a group of Maori. The crew and most of the passengers were killed. The Pakeha accounts of the incident are confused about responsibility for the massacre. The effect was to interrupt contact between New Zealand and Australia for some years. Marsden had to delay establishing his proposed mission.
lntermedaries
Bridging the gap between the cultures and making arrangements for trade were:
1. Maori travellers who had visited Sydney and Hobart on whaleboats or who had been kidnapped.
2. Europeans who lived with Maori tribes.
The Missionaries
1.Anglican: The Church Missionary Society (CMS) established a mission at Rangihoua in 1814 under the protection of Ruatara. Samuel Marsden -a fearless, dedicated New South Wales pastoralist and merchant - had persuaded the CMS to set up the mission. Marsden held the missionaries to their task. Henry and Marianne Williams established a CMS mission at Paihia.
2. Wesleyans: established a mission at Whangaroa in 1823. After it was sacked in 1827, they re-established it at Mangungu on the Hokianga under the protection of Waka Nene and Patuone.
3. Roman Catholic: Bishop Pompallier arrived in 1838. He established himself at Kororareka. Later Roman Catholic missions were established on the North Hokianga. The Catholic Church did not have the resources to follow up Pompallier's early successes.
Early problems of the missions
1. Maori were more interested in trade in muskets than the Christian message.
2. The Ngapuhi, in control in the North until the late 1820s, were confident in their own culture.
3: The missionaries could not speak the Maori language.
Hongi Hika (1777/8-1828)
Hika was a warrior - leader of the Ngapuhi who quickly recognised the advantage of a European Mission. With a mixture of aggression and friendship, he set out to get what he could from the missionaries. On his visit to England in 1820, he met King George IV and acquired gifts which he sold to buy guns. With 3000 men he led campaigns against the Ngati Whatua of Auckland, the Ngati Maru of Thames, and the Waikato. He invaded Rotorua.
Conversion to Christianity
Communities converted as did individuals. Regional variations existed. There were few converts in the Waikato or Rotorua. Some historians see conversion as the result of a series of crises which destroyed Maori confidence. Others say the Maori selectively borrowed for their own reasons and to have access to Pakeha power. The Ngapuhi have been used as a model for what was probably happening to all tribes.
Reasons For Converting to Christianity
I. War Weariness. With casualties probably as high as 19%, this affected the Ngapuhi by the end of the 1820s.
2. Disease. European diseases -such as venereal disease, influenza, viral dysentery, measles and whooping-cough -had a devastating impact. Traditional Maori medicine and tohunga could not cope. That missionaries were immune and offered some pain relief was seen as the power of the Pakeha God.
3. Education and Literacy. The missions educated the slaves of the Ngapuhi. When these slaves returned home they spread the desire for literacy. William Colenso and his printing press printed one New Testament for every two Maori by 1845. In 1844 William Williams published the first dictionary and grammar of Maori language. The ability to read and write gave access to Jehovah's power.
4. Rivalry. Other tribes bitterly resented Hongi's monopoly of access to missionaries. They also wanted traders. Inter-hapu and inter-tribal rivalry led to different Christian denominations being accepted. As the Ngapuhi were Anglican their enemies were Wesleyan or Catholic.
A synthesis of religion
The mana of Papahurihia -a tohunga karakia (a man of prayer) -spread in the Northern tribes in the 1830s. He performed miracles. The growth of the Papahurihia sect is evidence of a complex system of borrowing taking place, accommodating traditional rivalries and enmities.
Te Rauparaha (1768-1849)
He was a Ngati Toa rangitira with important kinship links with leading Tainui hapu. In 1820, to escape from a Waikato invasion, he organised the evacuation of his people by sea. He consolidated his position on Kapiti Island, chasing the Mauapoko tribe off their lands. He had 2000 slaves on Kapiti preparing flax for trade. In 1828 with 300 warriors of Ngati Toa, he invaded the Kaikoura coast. In return for a cargo of flax, Captain Stewart of the brig Elizabeth helped him invade Akaroa and the Ngai Tahu.
The situation in 1839
1. There were 2000 Pakeha, 40 shore whaling stations (bi-racial), renowned for drunkenness and debauchery.
2. The many points of contact between Pakeha and Maori included intermarriage, Pakeha-Maori who were members of Maori tribes (Barnet Burns) and traders (Clendon, Mair, Tapsell).
3. Mixed race individuals and communities were increasing.
4. Some old customs were disappearing and new customs taking their place. Cannibalism had almost ended. European clothes were widely used. Iron tools were in common usage. Whaling boats were replacing canoes. Polygamy was in decline. Tobacco, potatoes, maize, and pork had become a regular part of Maori diet. Various forms of tapu were declining. Sunday observance was becoming commonplace.
TOWARDS BRITISH ANNEXATION 1840-1852
Attitude of the Colonial Office
The American Revolution had shown that colonies were a waste of money. In the current free trade ideology, colonies had no place. Existing colonies received little attention. But with the establishment of British convict settlements in Australia Britain accepted that she had some responsibility for New Zealand. Convicts took refuge there. The missionaries too needed protection.
Humanitarianism
There was an increasing concern for rights and welfare of non- European peoples. Missionary societies, especially the CMS and its secretary, Dandeson Coates, championed humanitarian views. No British government could afford to ignore them.
British Obligations
1. British subjects in New Zealand had an indisputable right to be protected by their sovereign.
2. The Maori must be protected from the worst consequences of white invasion, especially from convicts.
Legal Principles
1. Justices of the Peace were appointed by the Governor of New South Wales to exercise authority in New Zealand.
2. A bond was required of ships' captains, to be forfeited if they discharged convicts or removed any Maori.
3. All British subjects in the Pacific were bound to obey British law. This was to be enforced by ships' captains (the main offenders).
4. Occasional British ships were sent to inspect the New Zealand coast.
5. In 1823 the courts of Tasmania and New South Wales were given jurisdiction over British subjects in New Zealand.
Events of 1830s
1. Missionary Concern. Missionaries campaigned actively in Australia and Britain for British government intervention. They were concerned about the evil effects of uncontrolled settlement on the Maori.
2. Stewart's Assistance to Te Rauparaha. This caused shock and dismay. Though Stewart was arrested, the witnesses disappeared and he had to be released.
3. The Appointment of James Busby. He was appointed by the Colonial Secretary as Resident in New Zealand. He was to impose law and order, assist the missions, protect the Maori, and stabilise them.
Busby As Resident (1833-1838)
1. No Status or Power: He had no power over British subjects. The support he had expected from the Governor of New South Wales was lacking. He had no troops and no status with the Maori. The Ngapuhi attacked his home.
2. The United Tribes of New Zealand. Thomas McDonnell, a trader in Hokianga, was appointed as additional Resident in 1835. McDonnell had more mana with the Maori. Busby set out to undermine McDonnell's authority by encouraging 34 chiefs to sign a declaration of independence. Busby's aim was also to protect New Zealand from Baron Charles de Thierry , a colorful, flamboyant adventurer. The declaration had little effect on British policy .
Towards a Decision
1. European Population Increases. By 1838 there were 30 shore whaling stations and a European population of 800.
2. Missionary Demands For Intervention. In 1837 a parliamentary committee investigating transportation to Australia confirmed missionary complaints that many settlers in New Zealand were escaped convicts and were jeopardising the work of the mission. In 1837 a Report of the Select Committee of House of Commons on the state of the Aborigines drew evidence from New Zealand and concluded that native welfare could not be left to colonists.
3. French Interest. In 1838 Pompallier established a French Catholic mission in Kororareka and D'Urville returned to explore the New Zealand coast. The French threat was never of serious concern to the Colonial Office, but New South Wales business- men were worried about their investments in New Zealand.
4. Inter-Hapu Fighting. In 1837 fighting in the Bay of Islands led Busby to request a ship of war or an armed force to protect British subjects. HMS Rattlesnake under Captain Hobson was dispatched and asked to report on- the situation.
Hobson Recommended:
Sovereignty over trading posts or factories to be established by cession from the chiefs and a system of indirect rule. Chiefs to be persuaded to protect British lives and property .
Busby's Recommendations:
He dismissed the factory-type plan. He wanted a Protectorate established. He emphasized the misery of the Maori, the European responsibility for this, and the Maori claim to protection of the British Government.
New Zealand Association
Formed in 1837 by Wakefield and associates, it had an ambitious scheme to colonise New Zealand. It sought support from the Colonial Office. The British Government required the Association to become a joint-stock company. They would only be granted part of New Zealand. The Association decided the conditions were unacceptable.
Hobson
When offered the job as consul he made it clear that the factory plan was only the minimum step; it would be best for Britain to assume full sovereignty.
Wakefield takes a chance
The New Zealand Colonisation Company (which replaced the earlier Association) now owned I million acres, and a ship, and had selected immigrants ready to leave. It now wanted the British Government to honour its earlier promise of support. But the Government rejected them. Wakefield persuaded directors of Colonisation Company that annexation was inevitable. Wakefield did not force annexation but reacted to its inevitability. The Tory sailed on 12 May 1839. The Company was warned that any land bought from the Maori would probably be re-purchased by the Crown.
Hobson's Instructions
The Colonial Office had still not finished drafting instructions for Hobson when the Tory departed. Its departure hurried the British Government to finalise policy. Chiefs would cede sovereignty over limited areas and would receive a guarantee of territorial and sovereign rights. The form of government for annexed areas had not been decided. Hobson would not have a military force. He was to encourage colonisation.
Arrival of Hobson
Hobson arrived in Sydney 24 Dec 1839 and was sworn in as Lieutenant-Governor. During the voyage he had decided to seek the cession of the whole country.
CROWN COLONY 1840-1852
The Treaty of Waitangi
Hobson's main objective was to establish civil government in order to protect rights of British and Maori subjects. First he had to persuade Maori chiefs to cede sovereignty to the Crown. He consulted local Europeans and missionaries and fashioned a Treaty from various drafts. In haste, Henry Williams translated it into Maori.