Hobson lands at Waitangi

Hobson lands at Waitangi

In 1839 William Hobson was appointed Lieutenant Governor with instructions to establish a British colony in New Zealand. On 6 February 1840 at Waitangi, in the Bay of Islands, he negotiated the Treaty of Waitangi with Māori chiefs, and after collecting more than 500 signatures over some months, proclaimed British sovereignty over the whole country. This 1896 oil painting by Matthew Clayton is an imaginative portrayal of Hobson’s landing at Waitangi prior to the first signing.