lecture 14: 1863-1881

Question 1

the purpose of the native land court

Answer 1

• set up the native land court to individualise title and make it easier for the European transferral
• by 1881 had overseen the alienation of many more millions of acres
• the court was aimed as much to undermine tikanga as to transfer Maori land into european hands
• created between 1862-1865
  first native lands act
• waiving the crowns right of pre emption and prevented anyone but the crown from purchasing Maori land
• following the waikato wars, the european parliament was able to introduce a reformed native land court stripped of Maori involvement in its decision making

Question 2

What were the key Māori religious movements prevalent at this time and who
were their leaders?

Answer 2

• in the turmoil of the war, many maori communities adopted variations of the new religious teachings of Pai Marire and modified them to sustain them through times of struggle
  –> Pai Marire
• a religious movement that abandoned missionaries and the government and provided a direct link between god and Maori without European mediators
• developed by Te Ua of Taranaki was adopted with enthusiasm by those remainging staunchly opposed to the colonial and Maori loyalist forces
• success due to flexibility

–> old order
- some remained loyal to this one in particularu Ngati Porou and Te Arawa

Question 3

When did the land wars begin and end?

Answer 3

1843-1872
- ended with threat to empire in new zealand being contained: the kingitanga had been pushed away from Auckland and over a million acres of land were available for settlement through confiscation

Question 4

When and how did Māori achieve representation in the House of
Representatives/Parliament?

Answer 4

• from the 1870s many iwi began an enduring campaign to use the courts, petitions and commissions of inquiry to reassert interests over land lost, either through sale or through decisions of the native land court that had gone against them
• parliament facilitated this engagement by providing 4 Maori seats in 1867 giving Maori a say in the house of representatives
• also began appointing Maori to the upper house, the legislative council, partly as a form of patronage but also under the belief that NZ should unite the races and be inclusive rather than exclusive

Question 5

The purpose of the Native Settlements Act 1863

Answer 5

• governor george grey was called back to NZ to reoccupy the disputed Taranaki by force
• this led to battles in taranaki and in 1863 they invaded the waikato and the eastern bay of plenty
• the settlements act was made to confiscate huge tracts of land because maori deemed ‘in rebellion’
• the legislation allowed the land where supposed rebellion had taken place to be taken by the crown
• and then compensation initially in money but later in land to be paid to those who could prove they had no part in the military action against the queens forces

Question 6

How did spirituality/religion impact on
politics and Christianity?

Answer 6

• many missionaries were very vocal in their support of the crown against Maori opposition
• interest in missionary Christianity was declining amongst kingitanga supports before 1863 but faith remained
• Pai Marire helped sustain a new level of military resistance helping reignite the war in Taranaki in 1864 and spreading a religious and military message across the north island that brought much of the east coast into the war
• difference in religion regimes led to a civil war among Maori who believed in different things

Question 7

How did Māori become part of the
government and what were their roles?

Answer 7

• 4 maori seats created
  –> males over age 21 years, no property qualificatins
• nothern maori
• western maori
• eastern maori
• southern maori
  1866 election (70 seats in parliament)
  1871 election (78 seats in parliament)

Question 8

Was participation in politics beneficial for
Māori or not? In what way/s?

Answer 8

• although they were criticised their role was important as they provided a voice in parliament and a record of resistance
• most significant role was in the native affairs committee, the select committee dealing with Maori issues
• the committee was often able to initiate commissions of enquiry and even royal commissions into some of the most significant of these petitions

Question 9

How did Māori challenge the Crown and for
what reasons? What needed to be
challenged?

Answer 9

–> Repudiation movement:
- 1870s maori begin to dispute the crown purchases of land in the wairarapa
- Ngati Kahunguna lead the movement
–> Parihaka
- Maori resistance to confiscation became centered on the village of Parihaka in Taranaki
- non violent resistance

Question 10

How did Pākehā attempt and succeed at
suppressing and oppressing Māori?

Answer 10

• by confiscating their land
• made suppression of the kingitanga by making a peace policy which attempted to detach waikato maori from the king and a war policy which prepared for a full scale invasion
• invaded waikato, justified it by making a rumour that Auckland was in danger of imminent invasion

Question 11

Te Kooti incident

Answer 11

• Maori who fought on on government side
• accused of spying for other Maori
• transported without trial to chathams islands