Once in a while I check Google Analytics to see whats been happening on the site.
So this last month 760 vists from all over the country, including 422 from Auckland.
Interestingly in the 3 years we've been going we've had 14,690 visits averaging 2.5 minutes and 2 pages on each visit.
The 4 most popular pages in order are Gold Mining, Missionaries, Long Depression and Ocean Whaling
We've even had 5 visits by iPad!
If you do visit from another college leave a comment, it would be nice to know who's visiting.
Monday, 30 August 2010
Sunday, 22 August 2010
Explosive Migration
Belich has labeled the waves of migration that occurred in 1840's and 1870's as explosive.
In class, we mentioned the status of the different types of migrant. Planned settlers were those brought over in planned schemes... The NZ Company in the 1840's and the Vogel migrants in the 1870's immediately spring to mind. They were a deliberate attempt to create communities with working social systems, hence the desire for families and later single women to balance out the ratios.
Amongst these groups there were also those who paid for their passage (voyage) and were allocated cabins and better accommodation on board ship. They were also allowed to bring more luggage and were given better meals during the trip. The ships carried a lot of livestock usually sheep, pigs, poultry and sometimes cows which provided a steady stream of fresh meat, eggs and milk. Others, were Assisted passengers whose passage was paid for. They had limited allocation of luggage and existed in the Hold of the ship crammed in with little or no privacy. Their food was also limited being mainly preserved meats and biscuit (Ships bread).
The migrants who arrived sought land and the possibility of improving their station in life (their class). Initially economic growth was limited by a lack of available land especially around the NZ . Co. sites of Wellington, Nelson, Wanganui and New Plymouth. Auckland had fewer limitations while Christchurch and Dunedin established in 1848/50 had easier access to land.
Wellington and Nelson began to develop after the Hutt Valley war when the Ngati Toa stranglehold was broken. Wanganui had to wait for the end of the 1860's and the suppression of Titokowaru before they could buy land from Maori willing to sell or use the Land Court to acquire it from Maori who did not.
Economic expansion took place as the population grew. Farming initially was at a subsistence level until enough land could be broken in to create a surplus capable of being sold in local towns and cities. Technological advances would increase production and the development of the interior beyond the hinterland saw export industries develop beyond the timber, flax etc model.
Extensive sheep farming did not support large numbers of Yeomen farmers, but Dairying did. Sheep helped opened up the South Island and Milk Cows and farming Co-ops opened up the North Island.
Elsewhere Unplanned Immigration took place principally around Auckland where the presence of the Government meant a building boom in the 1840's. The discovery of Gold in 1860 saw a huge explosion (Belich) in immigration with tens of thousands of miners heading for the various gold fields, of Otago, the West Coast and later Thames.
Suprisingly it is Auckland an unplanned site which achieves the best growth in the first few decades of the settlement. This is primarily on the back of a boom in building due to the presence of the government and later its role as port (with two harbours) for the import and export of goods made it attactive to settlers looking for work. Readily available land also made it more attractive than the southern twonships which were facing Maori opposition to settler expansion. In the 1860's the steady build up of the military to fight the King also turned Auckland into a 'little Sydney'.
Some of the first unplanned migrants had in fact been Australian Squatters who fled the drought stricken Australian grasslands for the south island. Their numbers were rapidly overtaken by the Planned settlers in Christchurch and Dunedin who also saw the potential for Sheep farming on a grand scale. Through various rorts most of the South Islands best land had been taken over by 1890.
Economic development relied on a growing population to create the local markets, provide the initiative and funding for further development and the labour to work on the newly acquired land.
In class, we mentioned the status of the different types of migrant. Planned settlers were those brought over in planned schemes... The NZ Company in the 1840's and the Vogel migrants in the 1870's immediately spring to mind. They were a deliberate attempt to create communities with working social systems, hence the desire for families and later single women to balance out the ratios.
Amongst these groups there were also those who paid for their passage (voyage) and were allocated cabins and better accommodation on board ship. They were also allowed to bring more luggage and were given better meals during the trip. The ships carried a lot of livestock usually sheep, pigs, poultry and sometimes cows which provided a steady stream of fresh meat, eggs and milk. Others, were Assisted passengers whose passage was paid for. They had limited allocation of luggage and existed in the Hold of the ship crammed in with little or no privacy. Their food was also limited being mainly preserved meats and biscuit (Ships bread).
The migrants who arrived sought land and the possibility of improving their station in life (their class). Initially economic growth was limited by a lack of available land especially around the NZ . Co. sites of Wellington, Nelson, Wanganui and New Plymouth. Auckland had fewer limitations while Christchurch and Dunedin established in 1848/50 had easier access to land.
Wellington and Nelson began to develop after the Hutt Valley war when the Ngati Toa stranglehold was broken. Wanganui had to wait for the end of the 1860's and the suppression of Titokowaru before they could buy land from Maori willing to sell or use the Land Court to acquire it from Maori who did not.
Economic expansion took place as the population grew. Farming initially was at a subsistence level until enough land could be broken in to create a surplus capable of being sold in local towns and cities. Technological advances would increase production and the development of the interior beyond the hinterland saw export industries develop beyond the timber, flax etc model.
Extensive sheep farming did not support large numbers of Yeomen farmers, but Dairying did. Sheep helped opened up the South Island and Milk Cows and farming Co-ops opened up the North Island.
Elsewhere Unplanned Immigration took place principally around Auckland where the presence of the Government meant a building boom in the 1840's. The discovery of Gold in 1860 saw a huge explosion (Belich) in immigration with tens of thousands of miners heading for the various gold fields, of Otago, the West Coast and later Thames.
Suprisingly it is Auckland an unplanned site which achieves the best growth in the first few decades of the settlement. This is primarily on the back of a boom in building due to the presence of the government and later its role as port (with two harbours) for the import and export of goods made it attactive to settlers looking for work. Readily available land also made it more attractive than the southern twonships which were facing Maori opposition to settler expansion. In the 1860's the steady build up of the military to fight the King also turned Auckland into a 'little Sydney'.
Some of the first unplanned migrants had in fact been Australian Squatters who fled the drought stricken Australian grasslands for the south island. Their numbers were rapidly overtaken by the Planned settlers in Christchurch and Dunedin who also saw the potential for Sheep farming on a grand scale. Through various rorts most of the South Islands best land had been taken over by 1890.
Economic development relied on a growing population to create the local markets, provide the initiative and funding for further development and the labour to work on the newly acquired land.
Thursday, 19 August 2010
The Vogel Scheme
Vogel is an important figure in our history and yet the bread is better known than he is. He arrived as a Gold miner, was editor of the ODT and became a local politician in Otago, championing the idea of secession when southerners became irate at the idea that their taxes were paying for the northern war. When he moved to central Government he would champion the rights of the Government over the Provinces, eventually having them abolished when they got in his way. His scheme which he proposed as Treasurer in 1869 was simple. Borrow some money, use some of it to pay for Migrants to come to New Zealand and the rest to build the infrastructure needed to support the larger population as well as opening up more of the country to settlement. The migrants would expand the economy and generate more income, paying for both the interest and the loans themselves. Initially the scheme was received well.
Last year Freya asked why would the conservatively minded 'Continuous Ministry' support such a change? The answer was that public opinion drove them and many were businessmen who saw a quick quid in it for themselves as well. (Given the recent events the 2009 MP is remarkably like the 1870's version). Once the public began to clamour, the MP's willingly went along. However see below...
Almost universally it was seen as a way of boosting the colony and making many people rich. Vogel wanted to borrow 10m pounds but ended up lending 20m, a liability that would weigh heavily on the Government for many years. The road and rail networks were built and a lot of land opened up to settlers.Areas like the Wairarapa (70 Mile Bush) were opened up, and the population was doubled. new towns like Dannevirke appeared and prospered. The economy expanded but the Depression pushed down commodity prices so that the economy stagnated with real incomes reducing despite wages increasing. (ie Inflation was higher that wages).
The population now included a more diverse ethnicities, including the more well known Scandanavians, but also Italians and French settlers arrived.The scheme was poorly run, money was squandered, road and rail networks were not always built where they were needed - often favouring well placed politicians and their favourites. Few of the 100,000+ people were suited to the type of work expected of them, and many preferred to stay closer to towns or cities, ignoring the opportunities in the rural areas.
This created a new (but old) phenomenon, slums. An evil many settlers thought they had left behind in Europe. Older colonists viewed them as 'scum' who were a liability and a hinderance to progress, they were angry when the expected benefits - improved wages, higher land values did not always eventuate. This was not helped as the (Long) depression hit in the latter part of the decade. Politicians who had supported Vogel abandoned him and he eventually left for London.
There he wrote a fairly prophetic book called (I think) 2000AD about a New Zealand where the heads of Government were female...(Helen must have felt vindicated)
Early Migration
Between I840 and 1852 (the Crown Colony period) about 27,500 people arrived in New Zealand, of whom about two-thirds came direct from the United Kingdom. The numbers were not great, but they were significant in establishing future patterns. The major explanation for this migration is the recruiting efforts of the New Zealand Company and its offshoots, the Canterbury Association and the Otago Association. Though inspired by Edward Gibbon Wakefield's vision for an ordered community, the company was a business proposition. It purchased land from Maori for on-sale to investors who were expected to come out as 'colonists'. Many of them chose not to do so, especially those who bought land in Nelson, but a few did and became significant figures in the new communities.
Of the 27,500 people who came to New Zealand in these years, about 14,000 - over half - came as assisted immigrants, their passage paid for by the Company or its successors.
In the mid- 1840s the number of such immigrants fell to a trickle as the company faced legal and financial difficulties, the Northern War broke out and there was growing pessimism about the colony's future. Then came a second wave of assisted migrants. There was an organised group from Scotland led by Free Church Presbyterians, who arrived with boatloads of Scots in Otago in 1848. Two years later the Church of England Canterbury Association brought the first four ships of English settlers to Lyttelton.
Finally, the 1840S saw some free settlers arriving in the colony as individuals. There were some government officials, merchants and aspiring younger sons of the respectable class who came out to make a mark in the colony. Auckland attracted a number of independent immigrants from across the Tasman, including quite a few people with an Irish background.
Between 1853 and 1870 the Pakeha population rose from about 30,000 to over 250,000. Much of this increase was the result of immigration. During these years almost 250,000 people migrated to New Zealand and about 100,000 left, resulting in a net gain of almost 150,000 Probably two-thirds of the long-term migrants came direct from the United Kingdom (with the rest largely from Australia),
Publish Post
Phillips and Hearn - Settlers NZ Immigrants 1800-1945
Sunday, 15 August 2010
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
A Constitution for Wellington 1840
In April 1840 the New Zealand Company Settlers issued this Constitution. What does this tell us about their view of Hobson in the Bay of Islands? Of course Hobson could ignore this.
Below is a poster about the 1852 Constitution that Grey allowed.
And in the same edition a confirmation by "local Chiefs".
Below is a poster about the 1852 Constitution that Grey allowed.
And in the same edition a confirmation by "local Chiefs".
The Progress Industry
Belich has labelled the waves of migration that occurred in 1840's and 1870's as explosive.
In class, we mentioned the staus of the different types of migarant. Planned settlers were those brought over in planned schemes... The NZ Company in the 1840's and the Vogel migrants in the 1870's immediatley spring to mind. They were a deliberate attempt to create communities with working social systems, hence the desire for families and later single women to balance out the ratios.
Amongst these groups there were also those who paid for their passage (voyage) and were allocated cabins and better accomodation on board ship. They were also allowed to bring more luggage and were given better meals during the trip. The ships carried a lot of livestock usually sheep, pigs, poultry and sometimes cows which provided a steady stream of fresh meat, eggs and milk. Others, were Assisted passengers whose passage was paid for. They had limited allocation of luggage and existed in the Hold of the ship crammed in with little or no privacy. Their food was also limited being mainly preserved meats and biscuit (Ships bread).
The migrants who arrived sought land and the possibility of improving their station in life (their class). Initially economic growth was limited by a lack of available land especially around the NZ . Co. sites of Wellington, Nelson, Wanganui and New Plymouth. Auckland had fewer limitations while Christchurch and Dunedin established in 1848/50 had easier access to land.
Wellington and Nelson began to develop after the Hutt Valley war when the Ngati Toa stranglehold was broken. Wanganui had to wait for the end of the 1860's and the suppression of Titokowaru before they could buy land from Maori willing to sell or use the Land Court to acquire it from Maori who did not.
Economic expansion took place as the population grew. Farming initially was at a subsistence level until enough land could be broken in to create a surpus capable of being sold in local towns and cities. Tecnological advances wouldincrease production and the development of the interior beyond the hinterland saw export industries develop beyond the timber, flax etc model.
Extensive sheep farming did not support large numbers of Yoemen farmers, but Dairying did. Sheep helped opened up the South Island and Milk Cows and farming Co-ops opened up the North Island.
Elsewhere Unplanned Immigration took place principally around Auckland where the presence of the Government meant a building boom in the 1840's. The discovery of Gold in 1860 saw a huge explosion (Belich) in immigration with tens of thousands of miners heading for the various gold fields, of Otago, the West Coast and later Thames.
Suprisingly it is Auckland an unplanned site which achieves the best growth in the first few decades of the settlement. This is primarily on the back of a boom in building due to the presence of the government and later its role as port (with two harbours) for the import and export of goods made it attactive to settlers looking for work. Readily available land also made it more attractive than the southern twonships which were facing Maori opposition to settler expansion. In the 1860's the steady build up of the military to fight the King also turned Auckland into a 'little Sydney'.
Some of the first unplanned migrants had in fact been Australian Squatters who fled the drought stricken Australian grasslands for the south island. Their numbers were rapidly overtaken by the Planned settlers in Christchurch and Dunedin who also saw the potential for Sheep farming on a grand scale. Through various rorts most of the South Islands best land had been taken over by 1890.
Economic development relied on a growing population to create the local markets, provide the initiative and funding for further development and the labour to work on the newly acquired land.
In class, we mentioned the staus of the different types of migarant. Planned settlers were those brought over in planned schemes... The NZ Company in the 1840's and the Vogel migrants in the 1870's immediatley spring to mind. They were a deliberate attempt to create communities with working social systems, hence the desire for families and later single women to balance out the ratios.
Amongst these groups there were also those who paid for their passage (voyage) and were allocated cabins and better accomodation on board ship. They were also allowed to bring more luggage and were given better meals during the trip. The ships carried a lot of livestock usually sheep, pigs, poultry and sometimes cows which provided a steady stream of fresh meat, eggs and milk. Others, were Assisted passengers whose passage was paid for. They had limited allocation of luggage and existed in the Hold of the ship crammed in with little or no privacy. Their food was also limited being mainly preserved meats and biscuit (Ships bread).
The migrants who arrived sought land and the possibility of improving their station in life (their class). Initially economic growth was limited by a lack of available land especially around the NZ . Co. sites of Wellington, Nelson, Wanganui and New Plymouth. Auckland had fewer limitations while Christchurch and Dunedin established in 1848/50 had easier access to land.
Wellington and Nelson began to develop after the Hutt Valley war when the Ngati Toa stranglehold was broken. Wanganui had to wait for the end of the 1860's and the suppression of Titokowaru before they could buy land from Maori willing to sell or use the Land Court to acquire it from Maori who did not.
Economic expansion took place as the population grew. Farming initially was at a subsistence level until enough land could be broken in to create a surpus capable of being sold in local towns and cities. Tecnological advances wouldincrease production and the development of the interior beyond the hinterland saw export industries develop beyond the timber, flax etc model.
Extensive sheep farming did not support large numbers of Yoemen farmers, but Dairying did. Sheep helped opened up the South Island and Milk Cows and farming Co-ops opened up the North Island.
Elsewhere Unplanned Immigration took place principally around Auckland where the presence of the Government meant a building boom in the 1840's. The discovery of Gold in 1860 saw a huge explosion (Belich) in immigration with tens of thousands of miners heading for the various gold fields, of Otago, the West Coast and later Thames.
Suprisingly it is Auckland an unplanned site which achieves the best growth in the first few decades of the settlement. This is primarily on the back of a boom in building due to the presence of the government and later its role as port (with two harbours) for the import and export of goods made it attactive to settlers looking for work. Readily available land also made it more attractive than the southern twonships which were facing Maori opposition to settler expansion. In the 1860's the steady build up of the military to fight the King also turned Auckland into a 'little Sydney'.
Some of the first unplanned migrants had in fact been Australian Squatters who fled the drought stricken Australian grasslands for the south island. Their numbers were rapidly overtaken by the Planned settlers in Christchurch and Dunedin who also saw the potential for Sheep farming on a grand scale. Through various rorts most of the South Islands best land had been taken over by 1890.
Economic development relied on a growing population to create the local markets, provide the initiative and funding for further development and the labour to work on the newly acquired land.
Maori Independence after 1872
We generally associate Maori separatism with The King Movement but there were many other groups who tried to create a separate form of Government, often running beside the Pakeha system.
It could be argued that Hongi and Te Rauparaha were evidence of this in the 1830's but the answer to this (although you could argue against this) is that they never wanted to establish a separate Maori state simply to establish their Rangatiratanga over their own Rohe.
In fact Hongi didn't want to drive Pakeha away he wanted MORE of them. While Te Rauparaha has been called the 'Napoleon' of the south he was keen to have Pakeha around him and doesn't seem to have been wholly enthusiastic about the Wairau and was only an observer of the Wellington/Hutt valley war.
So where do we begin?
Kohimaramara in 1860 is Gore-Browns attempt to undermine the Kingitanga and in its first meeting seems to show that Maori are divided and that a parliament is possible (and called for). The exclusion of the Kingitanga made this impossible to be truely representative. His replacement Grey topedoes that and uses the Runanga's (Local Councils) to try and gain Maori compliance. It fails.
We have spent some time talking about the Kingitanga, but a quick reprise.... 1850's Maori disquiet over continual land losses... a campaign to find a suitable candidate finds Te Wherowhero the Kingitanga emerges in 1858 as a 'Land League' denying the Government and the Settlers any more land... creaesa climate of fear and anger. War in the Waitara leads to War in the Waikato and Tauranga. The Settler Government creates Legislation to allow confiscation and Greys invasion makes all Maori "rebels". Maori thus lost 2m acres confiscated and millions more disappear under the machinations of the Land Court.
After the loss of Rangiowhaia the King retreats into his Rohe. By the time he emerges in 1882 his political power is diminished by the actions of his affiliated tries including his allies Maniapoto.
His trip to visit Queen Victoria (to talk about the Treaty) in 1884 is a failure when the British send him back to NZ because it is no longer 'their' problem.
It could be argued that the Pai Marire faith had an element of separatism in its view especially the belief by Te Ua Haumene that at the day of reckoning Pakeha would leave New Zealand and it would be returned to Maori - an idea that drove some of the Hau Hau into battle.
The Governmment continues to gnaw away at Maori land holdings, as more land is lost the ability for Maori to achieve Economic (and Political) independence disappeared with it. Greys idea of digging around the King has eventually worked.
The 1872 Repudiation Movement was relatively localised and made little impression. Whether it belongs here is debatable.
Is Parihaka an example of separatism? Te Whiti and Tohu seems to have rejected Pakeha culture but retained much of its technology. The Village was the first place to get electricity and Te Whiti lived in avery nice Colonial Villa. They refused to teach their children in English and used Te Reo in the school. Its invasion and destruction in 1882 after many of its menfolk were exiled to Otago meant its viability was unlikely. Pakeha viewed it as a separatist movement with dangerous overtones of Hau Hau - an idea supported by the presence of an older Titokowaru who had given up his fight and returned to his more peaceful faith. Bryce certainly fanned the flames to ensure the Village was destroyed.
In 1892 the Kotahitanga Movement emerges in the far North based around mainly Kupapa tribes and with Ngapua Hone Heke as its leader. Because it rejected the King it could never really be seen as 'National' Maori body and with no recognition from the Government never really stood a chance. So without total Iwi OR Government support it could never succeed.
The final real attempt lay in the 1894 Kauhanganui Movement which was last gasp effort from the King (Mahuta) to head a representative national body.... but in this lay the same issues. Non Kingitanga Iwi (and some Kingitanga tribes as well) failed to heed the call... and again the Government ignored it and it died with barely a whimper.
When the King soon after accepted a seat in the Legislative Council, any further pretense at an independent Maori government appears to have disappeared.
It could be argued that Hongi and Te Rauparaha were evidence of this in the 1830's but the answer to this (although you could argue against this) is that they never wanted to establish a separate Maori state simply to establish their Rangatiratanga over their own Rohe.
In fact Hongi didn't want to drive Pakeha away he wanted MORE of them. While Te Rauparaha has been called the 'Napoleon' of the south he was keen to have Pakeha around him and doesn't seem to have been wholly enthusiastic about the Wairau and was only an observer of the Wellington/Hutt valley war.
So where do we begin?
Kohimaramara in 1860 is Gore-Browns attempt to undermine the Kingitanga and in its first meeting seems to show that Maori are divided and that a parliament is possible (and called for). The exclusion of the Kingitanga made this impossible to be truely representative. His replacement Grey topedoes that and uses the Runanga's (Local Councils) to try and gain Maori compliance. It fails.
We have spent some time talking about the Kingitanga, but a quick reprise.... 1850's Maori disquiet over continual land losses... a campaign to find a suitable candidate finds Te Wherowhero the Kingitanga emerges in 1858 as a 'Land League' denying the Government and the Settlers any more land... creaesa climate of fear and anger. War in the Waitara leads to War in the Waikato and Tauranga. The Settler Government creates Legislation to allow confiscation and Greys invasion makes all Maori "rebels". Maori thus lost 2m acres confiscated and millions more disappear under the machinations of the Land Court.
After the loss of Rangiowhaia the King retreats into his Rohe. By the time he emerges in 1882 his political power is diminished by the actions of his affiliated tries including his allies Maniapoto.
His trip to visit Queen Victoria (to talk about the Treaty) in 1884 is a failure when the British send him back to NZ because it is no longer 'their' problem.
It could be argued that the Pai Marire faith had an element of separatism in its view especially the belief by Te Ua Haumene that at the day of reckoning Pakeha would leave New Zealand and it would be returned to Maori - an idea that drove some of the Hau Hau into battle.
The Governmment continues to gnaw away at Maori land holdings, as more land is lost the ability for Maori to achieve Economic (and Political) independence disappeared with it. Greys idea of digging around the King has eventually worked.
The 1872 Repudiation Movement was relatively localised and made little impression. Whether it belongs here is debatable.
Is Parihaka an example of separatism? Te Whiti and Tohu seems to have rejected Pakeha culture but retained much of its technology. The Village was the first place to get electricity and Te Whiti lived in avery nice Colonial Villa. They refused to teach their children in English and used Te Reo in the school. Its invasion and destruction in 1882 after many of its menfolk were exiled to Otago meant its viability was unlikely. Pakeha viewed it as a separatist movement with dangerous overtones of Hau Hau - an idea supported by the presence of an older Titokowaru who had given up his fight and returned to his more peaceful faith. Bryce certainly fanned the flames to ensure the Village was destroyed.
In 1892 the Kotahitanga Movement emerges in the far North based around mainly Kupapa tribes and with Ngapua Hone Heke as its leader. Because it rejected the King it could never really be seen as 'National' Maori body and with no recognition from the Government never really stood a chance. So without total Iwi OR Government support it could never succeed.
The final real attempt lay in the 1894 Kauhanganui Movement which was last gasp effort from the King (Mahuta) to head a representative national body.... but in this lay the same issues. Non Kingitanga Iwi (and some Kingitanga tribes as well) failed to heed the call... and again the Government ignored it and it died with barely a whimper.
When the King soon after accepted a seat in the Legislative Council, any further pretense at an independent Maori government appears to have disappeared.
The Native Land Court
While hostilities continued in the Tauranga Taranaki and East Coast the Settler government began to legislate to ensure even more land could be made available. They did so by ignoring any obligation under Article 2 or 3 of the Treaty.
Judith Binney has called this an "Act of War' and she is probably right.
The Native Land Court was established under legislation in 1862 and then 1865. It had two main aims. The First was to identify and establish ownership of Maori land and convert the communal form of ownership to a European title. Once under title it could then be sold to Settlers. Henry Sewell said it was designed to undermine and destroy Maori culture (detribalise) by ridding them of the communist thread that ran through all of their institutions.
The Court could investigate ownership and establish title - both a long protracted and expensive process. The Owners could then present their decision to the governor to recieve a freehold title.
No matter how large the area under investigation it could be placed into the control of only 10 trustees. Later legislation would shift the ownership of the land to the trustee who were then free to do as they wished with it, without consulting the larger group of 'owners'.
No matter Settlers could now acquire land outside the confiscation areas.
By 1872 the Court had investigated 5m acres of land.
The 1873 Land Act went further making every member of the tribe an owner on a title. Land could be sold if a simple majority agreed to it.
In the Hawkes Bay, groups of claimants, surveyors and shopkeepers exploited the system to effectively steal Maori land by forcing them to defend often dubious claims and rorting them through the debts this incurred.
Judith Binney has called this an "Act of War' and she is probably right.
The Native Land Court was established under legislation in 1862 and then 1865. It had two main aims. The First was to identify and establish ownership of Maori land and convert the communal form of ownership to a European title. Once under title it could then be sold to Settlers. Henry Sewell said it was designed to undermine and destroy Maori culture (detribalise) by ridding them of the communist thread that ran through all of their institutions.
The Court could investigate ownership and establish title - both a long protracted and expensive process. The Owners could then present their decision to the governor to recieve a freehold title.
No matter how large the area under investigation it could be placed into the control of only 10 trustees. Later legislation would shift the ownership of the land to the trustee who were then free to do as they wished with it, without consulting the larger group of 'owners'.
No matter Settlers could now acquire land outside the confiscation areas.
By 1872 the Court had investigated 5m acres of land.
The 1873 Land Act went further making every member of the tribe an owner on a title. Land could be sold if a simple majority agreed to it.
In the Hawkes Bay, groups of claimants, surveyors and shopkeepers exploited the system to effectively steal Maori land by forcing them to defend often dubious claims and rorting them through the debts this incurred.
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