Waitangi Day

The treaty

On 6 February 1840 the Treaty of Waitangi — Te Tiriti o Waitangi — was first signed in the grounds of James Busby’s house at Waitangi, in the Bay of Islands, by representatives of the British Crown and about 45 Māori chiefs. Over the next seven months copies were taken around the country, and in the end around 540 chiefs signed. The treaty led to British sovereignty over New Zealand and is regarded by many as the nation’s founding document.

From 1934 to a national day

In 1932 the Governor-General, Lord Bledisloe, and his wife bought Busby’s run-down house, now known as the Treaty House, and gave it to the nation. The grounds were dedicated as a public reserve on 6 February 1934, an event considered the first Waitangi Day. Annual commemorations began in 1947 with a Royal New Zealand Navy ceremony at a flagpole in the grounds; a Māori speaker was added the next year, and a Māori cultural performance became usual from the mid-1950s. The day became a national holiday in 1974 under the name New Zealand Day, and was renamed Waitangi Day in 1976.

At the Treaty Grounds

In the days before, politicians are welcomed at the marae and hear speeches from the local iwi, which often deal with the issues of the day and lead to vigorous debate; the day has also long been a focus of protest by Māori activists. On 6 February itself the Waitangi National Trust holds a public service at dawn, attended by Māori elders, religious leaders, politicians, diplomats and the defence force, and since 2018 government ministers have served a barbecue breakfast to the public afterwards. Through the day there is kapa haka — Māori song and dance — on stages across the grounds, talks and entertainment, and waka, and sometimes a navy ship, take part in displays on the harbour. The day ends when the Navy lowers the flags.

Elsewhere in New Zealand the day is quieter, with no mass parades or fireworks. Some marae hold open days, and city councils, museums, libraries and galleries put on free events.