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Declaration of Independence of New Zealand |
| Category: | Event | |
| Date: | 28 October 1835 | |
| Sub Category: | Declaration |
| Place: | Waitangi |
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| State/Country: | Aotearoa - New Zealand |
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| Summary Information: | |
The Declaration of Independence was adopted at Waitangi on 28 October 1835. James Busby, the British Resident of New Zealand, concerned by the growing interest of other nations in the country, called the chiefs together to declare the country an independent state. The Declaration maintained that all sovereign power and authority would reside in the hereditary chiefs and tribal leaders who asked King William IV to be the parent of their infant state. The 34 chiefs who signed the declaration called themselves the United Tribes of New Zealand and agreed to meet at Waitangi in the autumn of every year to frame laws for the peace and good order of the country. Later, there was an invitation for the Southern chiefs to sign the declaration and in total 52 chiefs signed.
The Declaration of Independence was later rescinded by the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 which, in the English version, gave sovereignty to Britain. |
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