Treaty of Waitangi

In answer to a request I am happy to elaborate a little on the Treaty of Waitangi which is something all New Zealanders know at least a little about. Some of us know about it by remembering what we were taught about this at school. Others because of their interest in the Maori people. But I think it safe to say that most know about it because it is observed as a public holiday....Feb. 6th. This day is referred to as Waitangi Day.

This Treaty was a document signed by many Maori Chiefs and British Authorities making New Zealand officially a British Colony and the year was 1840.. The place this took place is in the upper regions of the North Island at a place now called Russell. On the site today there is the famous Meeting House, the Mission House and the most famous Flagpole. The flagpole is much mentioned whenever the Treaty of Waitangi is discussed because it contains its own interesting history.. Present at this signing was a famous Maori Chief, Hone Heke from the Nga Puhi tribe who was in favour of the terms of this Treaty. Unfortunately over the next 2 or 3 years Hone Heke became disillusioned with the treatment of his people so one night he crept in and cut the flagpole down. Over the next number of weeks he actually cut the flagpole down three times and the third cutting down resulted in war between the Northern Maori Tribes and the British.

Russell is visited by thousands of tourists each year not only because of the history of this event but also because of the beautiful location. Russell is located in the gorgeous Bay of Islands which offers absolutely everything that can be offered to a water loving visitor,.