Peter Jessup - The Complete History of New Zealand (in less than two hours)

The Complete History of New Zealand

(in less than two hours)

By Peter Jessup

Published by Hurricane Press

PO Box 568, Cambridge, New Zealand 3450

www.hurricane-press.co.nz

ISBN 978-0-9876636-2-7

Cover image: Andy Heyward | Dreamstime.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers and copyright holders.

Foreword

THOUGH NEW ZEALAND is regarded as a relatively young country, it has a fascinating history. For a small nation it has quickly earned its place in the world, through its active involvement in international affairs, its reputation for innovation and friendliness and not least its willingness to influence global thinking.

It was the first country in the world to give women the right to vote. It established principles of social welfare envied and copied elsewhere. It created a nuclearfree zone around its shores. I have attempted to tell New Zealands story in a concise fashion, so it can be appreciated in no more than two hours.

I hope Ive done it justice.

Peter Jessup

Introduction

NEW ZEALAND is a multicultural society with a democratically elected government and an economy based on exports of dairy products, meat and wool, wood, seafood and horticulture. Tourism and providing education for overseas students also make significant contributions to the economy.

The countrys population of more than 4.4 million is concentrated in relatively few urban areas and hence vast areas are sparsely populated.

The land mass of New Zealands two main islands exceeds 270 million square kilometres, meaning it is 10% larger than the United Kingdom and about the same size as Colorado in the United States.

Much of the landscape resembles features of other countries the southern fiords are like those in Norway, the ski fields are reminiscent of Colorado, while the hot pools and geysers would be familiar to visitors from Iceland.

We have areas of neardesert like those in the middle states of North America, white sand like the beaches of Australia and subtropical rainforests similar to those in Fiji.

Nearly 15% of the land mass is invested in National Parks and other conservation areas where housing and industry are not allowed.

Activities that attract guests from around the world include whale and dolphinwatching and trips to the many offshore islands.

Skiing attracts visitors to Mt Ruapehu in the North Island and along the backbone of the Southern Alps in the South Island, where numerous skifields are within easy driving distance of each other.

Visitors can experience adventure sports including white and blackwater rafting, bungy jumping (which was invented in New Zealand), jet boating up narrow river gorges, paragliding and more.

The freshwater trout and offshore game fishing are worldclass, as are the diving and surfing.

Most Kiwis are sports enthusiasts. As well as the national game of rugby union, there is strong support for rugby league, football, basketball, netball, cricket and yachting. The nation has produced world champions in sports from athletics to motor racing.

Visitor surveys confirm New Zealanders are a friendly bunch.

A straight face and a quip that some might consider surly and intimidating is most likely the Kiwi cultural test of taking the Mickey, pulling your chain or just having a go at ya, mate.

But its taken hundreds of years to shape the New Zealand landscape and the character of its people.

Since the Maori arrived more than 600 years ago and European settlers followed in the 19th century, New Zealanders have worked hard to establish their own sense of identity, gradually moving away from the influence of Britain during the 20th century.

The Kiwi culture evolved as immigrants continued to influence everything from food to language.

The vast number of restaurants throughout the country bear testimony to the diversity of the flavours we claim as our own. Indian restaurants, for instance, offer hot or New Zealand hot curries.

A fifth of all current New Zealand residents were not born in the country; they chose this place as their home.

The country has a reputation for celebrating diversity, and for tolerance.

And while this book provides the story of how todays New Zealand came about, spare a thought for its future.

New Zealanders are among the worlds most enthusiastic travellers with more than half a million Kiwis either living or travelling abroad at any time. They are learning new ways and ideas, ready to return home to continue the shaping of their nation.

Geography, flora and fauna

THE NEW ZEALAND land mass was once part of a mighty southern continent known as Gondwanaland, which included Australia, South Africa, South America and India.

Over millennia, tectonic plate movement separated the various countries. New Zealand was the last to break away, between 70 and 80 million years ago and, as the youngest, continues to experience violent upheavals from the earths core in the form of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.

The country sits on the boundaries of the Pacific Plate as it grinds against and overrides the IndoAustralia Plate. Scientists describe this movement as occurring at the rate that fingernails grow.

Over time, tension builds and is released in the form of earthquakes such as those in Christchurch in 2010 and 2011.

Hence, New Zealand has the nickname The Shaky Isles.

In the centre of the North Island is Lake Taupo, 616 square kms of water up to 186 metres deep, which sits in the volcanic cone formed as a result of one of the largest eruptions ever on the planet.

Taupo first erupted 30,000 years ago, before the time of man, and again 1,800 years ago, an event recorded by Chinese and Italian historians who wrote about the reddening of the sky.

The latter eruption was twice the size of the eruption of Mt St Helens in the United States in 1980.

In 1886, Mt Tarawera, near Rotorua, erupted, sending smoke and ash around the Southern Hemisphere.

The lava flow buried what was regarded as a world treasure, the Pink and White Terraces, formed over centuries by hot mineral waters colouring the rock of a series of small waterfalls.

Active volcanoes include Mt Ruapehu just south of Taupo in the central North Island, and White Island, offshore from Whakatane. Auckland is the site of 50 volcanic cones, some of which have been excavated to provide the bluestone hard rock used to build early city buildings and cobbled streets. Scoria, which is a light rock from airblown lava, is used for roading and drainage.

Rangitoto Island, which attracts many tourists, is a good example of Aucklands volcanic cones. Most of Aucklands volcanoes are monogynetic, meaning they erupted just once, though some eruptions lasted up to 10 years.

Scientists believe Auckland will experience further volcano activity at some point in the future, most likely from a new source.

Rangitoto is the likeliest of Aucklands existing volcanoes to erupt again but scientists have no idea when this might occur.

Scientists have proved that more than 200 million years ago, during the Ice Age, the planet experienced about 30 major oscillations in global temperature, the most recent of which affected New Zealand.

The fiords of the South Island and the Canterbury Plains and its river basins were formed by glacial action.

About 12,000 years ago, as temperatures rose, broadleaf forest began to take over the glacial plains and 7,000 years ago, the entire country was covered by rainforest.

The fossils of dinosaur bones have been found in caves in Otago and Hawkes Bay. It is believed the large predators became extinct during the freezing periods. New Zealands isolation since means the wildlife is limited and unusual.