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Story: Scots

Pledge of the Band of Hope

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Pledge of the Band of Hope

A strong Calvinist sense of morality made New Zealand Scots prominent in the temperance and prohibition movements. The Presbyterian Church was a stronghold of the Band of Hope, founded in the 1840s, which encouraged young people to sign a pledge not to touch ‘the demon drink’.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: Eph-D-ALCOHOL-Temperance-1886-01

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

John Wilson, Scots – Scots in public life, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/ephemera/197/pledge-of-the-band-of-hope (accessed 11 June 2026).

Story by John Wilson, published 4 March 2009, updated 1 August 2024.