Te Tiriti o Waitangi me tōna huanga mai

The Treaty of Waitangi and how it happened

Te Tiriti o Waitangi — known in English as the Treaty of Waitangi — is a written agreement made between tangata whenua (the first peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand) and the British Crown.

The Treaty is not a single large sheet of paper but a group of 9 documents — 7 on paper and 2 on parchment. Together they are an agreement between representatives of the British Crown and representatives of Māori iwi and hapū (tribes).

Named after the place in the Bay of Islands where it was first signed on 6 February 1840, te Tiriti o Waitangi was also signed at many locations around the country over a 7-month period. As a result of the Treaty, Lieutenant-Governor William Hobson declared New Zealand a colony of Britain in May 1840.

There are 2 versions of te Tiriti o Waitangi, one in te reo Māori and one in English. Each holds different meanings. This resulted in Māori and Pākehā having different expectations of the Treaty’s terms. Since then, reconciling these differences has presented Aotearoa with challenges.

Tangata whenua — the first peoples of Aotearoa

Evidence suggests Polynesian people first arrived in New Zealand around 1250 to 1300 CE, coming from East Polynesia in canoes. By the time of Dutch explorer Abel Tasman’s brief encounter in 1642 and Captain James Cook’s several visits from 1769, Māori society and culture were well-established and complex. Independent and often competing iwi and hapū had been developing for around 600 years, and there were many different language dialects and traditions.

Interaction between Māori and Europeans was infrequent in the decades following Cook’s first visit. Contact became more common at the start of the 19th century. By then, many Māori travelled abroad and traded internationally — particularly those in more accessible coastal regions.

Seasonal food-gathering was significant to the communal Māori economies. Horticulture was also important in warmer areas. Extensive trade networks distributed many resources throughout New Zealand. A rising population and competition for resources led to communities organised for both warfare and peace.

From the British settlement of New South Wales in 1788, entrepreneurs looked for resources to exploit. They found rich possibilities in New Zealand. Many Māori — especially those on the coast — soon became familiar with Europeans who profited from whales, seals, timber, flax, and Māori labour and artefacts.

Māori adopted aspects of European culture they found useful.

• Metal, clothing, and new foods such as potatoes and pigs were quickly acquired.

• Guns led to more intense tribal warfare.

• Metal tools greatly influenced wood carving, fishing and other activities that had previously used stone tools.

Why the British government wanted a treaty

There was considerable pressure on the British government to intervene in New Zealand in the late 1830s, due to a variety of reasons. For example:

• ongoing issues with European lawlessness

• concerns from humanitarians about the impact of colonisation on indigenous people, including the illnesses overwhelming Māori

• land speculators tried to buy large areas from Māori who had no tradition of this form of permanent transfer of land ownership

• the French and Americans were taking a greater interest in New Zealand, including an attempt by France to colonise Akaroa

• in May 1839, the New Zealand Company — an independent organisation unauthorised by the British government — sent agents to New Zealand who ‘purchased’ the Port Nicholson block from Māori on 27 September. By then the company had sent colonists. The fear was that an independent colony would clash with Māori.

But the Declaration of Independence was clear. Authority in Aotearoa resided with the rangatira. This recognition of Māori independence meant the British needed a treaty to gain formal authority.

Captain William Hobson sets sail to New Zealand

In 1839, the British government decided to take action on New Zealand. By then the number of Europeans in Aotearoa had increased to 2,000 — among an estimated 100,000 Māori. It appointed William Hobson, a naval officer who had reported on New Zealand in 1837, to represent the British Crown and Government. He was instructed to negotiate sovereignty of New Zealand, in whole or in part, and to set up a British colony of which he would be Lieutenant-Governor.

Initial discussions between Māori and British at Waitangi

Busby sent invitations to northern rangatira to meet Hobson, “a rangatira of the Queen of England”, at his property at Waitangi on 5 February 1840 to discuss a formal arrangement. Hobson had no draft treaty. Neither he nor James Freeman, his secretary, had legal training or much understanding of Māori. After a first attempt with Freeman, Hobson fell ill. Busby added considerably to the draft, which Hobson finalised on 4 February.

Into the evening, the missionary Henry Williams and his son Edward translated the draft into te reo Māori. A clean copy of the proposed treaty in Māori was made on parchment by the Reverend Richard Taylor early on 5 February 1840 to present to the hui that day.

The proposed Treaty is presented to Māori

The proposed Treaty in te reo Māori was presented and explained to 500 Māori and 200 Pākehā at Waitangi on 5 February. Missionaries acted as the main translators from English to Māori. Explanation and discussion continued through the day.

The discussion gave little hint of the many implications of signing the Treaty. Missionaries trusted by many Māori generally favoured it, while some traders were against it. Possible benefits were stressed, with little said about the restrictions Māori would face. The absolute nature of the transfer of authority to the British Crown — intended in the English word ‘sovereignty’ — was played down, but ideas of protection through a personal relationship with Queen Victoria and of union in covenant under one God were emphasised.

Read what the Treaty of Waitangi says: original te reo Māori version and 1975 English back-translation

Many rangatira spoke against a treaty. Some had concerns about the situation in the north and feared they could not control the influx of Europeans. In the evening after Hobson left, discussion continued. But it remained unclear whether Māori would sign.

The first signatures on te Tiriti o Waitangi

The hui was to resume on 7 February. But some Māori wished to leave a day earlier, so Hobson hastily agreed the Treaty could be signed. He did not allow any further discussion, though the Catholic Bishop Pompallier gained Hobson’s verbal agreement to religious tolerance for all — including Māori.

Hone Heke decided to sign first, and over 40 rangatira followed, adding their names or personal marks to the Māori version of the Treaty on 6 February 1840. Some chiefs signed because they wanted controls on sales of Māori land to Europeans. Some signed because they wanted to trade with Europeans and believed te Tiriti would stop fighting between tribes.

Gathering more signatures for te Tiriti o Waitangi

Hobson then travelled, gathering more signatures, first at Waimate and then at a large hui at Mangungu on the Hokianga. On 1 March 1840 at the Waitematā Harbour, Hobson suffered a stroke. He could not gather all the signatures he wanted.

The original sheet, the Waitangi Sheet, had run out of space and there was the risk of loss if it continued to travel. Copies were made using the Māori text. These were taken to various parts of New Zealand. Those gathering signatures also had copies of the English text for their understanding. Some took printed copies of the Māori text, made by William Colenso at the Church Missionary Society printery in the Bay of Islands on 17 February. Major Thomas Bunbury set off in the HMS Herald with one copy to gain signatures in a variety of places, including the South Island. The Colonial Secretary, Willoughby Shortland, organised for other sheets to be taken to specific areas.

The collecting of signatures lasted until early September 1840. By then, another 500 rangatira had signed. Some signed while still being uncertain, while others did not have the chance to sign it as it was not taken to all regions. Some refused to because they wanted to settle their own disputes. They worried they would lose their independence and power. Almost all the signatures were on the Māori version of te Tiriti.

View the sheets of te Tiriti o Waitangi online and find out more about each one

Britain declares sovereignty over Aotearoa New Zealand

Even as new signatures were still being added, Hobson proclaimed British sovereignty over New Zealand on 21 May 1840. He claimed the North Island by right of the Treaty, and further south by right of Captain Cook’s ‘discovery’. Unaware of Hobson’s action, Bunbury proclaimed British sovereignty over Stewart Island on 5 June and the South Island on 17 June — the latter based on the signatures he had obtained. The Colonial Office in England declared that the Treaty applied to Māori iwi and hapū whose chiefs had not signed. British authority was official, as far as the British were concerned.

The meaning of the te reo Māori version of te Tiriti o Waitangi was not exactly the same as the meaning of the English version.

In Article 1, the Treaty in Māori gave Queen Victoria governance over the land. In English, it gave Queen Victoria sovereignty over the land — a much stronger term.

In Article 2, the Treaty in Māori guaranteed rangatira ‘te tino rangatiratanga’ — chieftainship over their lands, villages and taonga (treasured things). It also gave the Crown the right to deal with Māori in purchasing land. In the English version of the Treaty, rangatira are given ‘exclusive and undisturbed possession’ of lands, forests, fisheries and other property. The Crown was also given an exclusive right to deal with Māori in purchasing land.

Read what the Treaty of Waitangi says: original te reo Māori version and 1975 English back-translation

In 1842 — only 2 years after the Treaty was drawn up and signed — the documents were saved from a fire at the government offices in Official Bay, Auckland. Poor storage between 1877 and 1908 led to water and rodent damage to the Treaty. But facsimiles of the Treaty were created in 1877 before the damage occurred, and images of all signatures have survived. After a series of different conservation treatments and different homes, the Treaty was finally brought to National Archives in 1989.

View a timeline of the Treaty of Waitangi

As part of our role as guardian of over 7 million records created by the government and public institutions of Aotearoa New Zealand, we work to preserve and protect the original Tiriti o Waitangi documents. Our goal is for all New Zealanders to easily access and use this taonga, connecting you to your rights and stories.

You can view the Treaty of Waitangi — as well as the Declaration of Independence of New Zealand and the Women’s Suffrage Petition — on our website and in person at He Tohu.