Waitangi Treaty Grounds

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Waitangi
Location 3 km north-west of Paihia. At its centre is one of the country’s most spectacular and historic places. James Busby, British Resident, took up residence on the north side of the entrance to the Waitangi River in 1833. In 1834 Māori chiefs gathered at Waitangi to select a national flag, and in 1835 to sign a declaration of the country’s independence. On 6 February 1840 Waitangi was the site for the signing of a treaty between Māori and William Hobson, representing the British Crown.

The Treaty House
The Waitangi Treaty House and grounds, together with an additional 1,000-acre land block, were gifted to the nation in 1932 by the governor general, Lord Bledisloe, and his wife. His intention was to create a national historic site to mark the country’s foundation document. A trust board was set up, the dilapidated house restored, and the grounds gradually developed. The Treaty House underwent extensive renovations in 1989–90.

Waitangi Day
Celebrations were held in 1934 to acknowledge the gift, and in 1940 to mark the treaty’s 100th anniversary. In the Treaty House grounds a whare rūnanga (meeting house) representing all tribes was built for the 1940 celebration. The celebrations led to a recognition of the historic significance of Te Tii marae at the Waitangi River mouth. Māori had erected a treaty monument there in 1880. Both commemorations brought thousands of visitors to the quiet Northland area, and established an annual tradition to mark the birth of the nation. The date of 6 February was first commemorated as a national holiday in 1974.

Protests
Since the 1970s Waitangi Day celebrations have been an occasion for protest by Māori and some Pākehā. In addition to concerns over land loss, protestors wanted acceptance of Māoritanga (Māori values), acknowledgement of Māori as tangata whenua (people of the land) and, latterly, Māori sovereignty and speedy settlement of land grievances. In the early 2000s it was clear that for many New Zealanders, the treaty had meaning far beyond its historical significance as the nation’s founding document.