This medal was granted by a general order, March 1st., 1869, to the
troops who had been engaged in the two wars in New Zealand, during the
years 1845–47, and 1860–66. Obverse: Queen’s head, crowned and veiled;
with the inscription, “Victoria, D.G. Britt. Reg. F.D.”; reverse: a
laurel wreath, within which is engraved the years during which the
recipient served, with the words “New Zealand” above and “Virtutis
Honor” below. No clasp issued. Ribbon: dark blue, with broad red stripe
in the centre. Given to both services. Some of the medals were issued
without dates on the reverse, but most with dates varying from 1845 to
1847, and from 1860 to 1866.
[Illustration:
The New Zealand Medal.
]
THE FIRST NEW ZEALAND WAR.
1845–7.
The first actual British settlement in New Zealand was made in 1839, and
in the following year the first Governor, Captain Hobson, concluded the
Treaty of Waitangi with the native chiefs, by which the sovereignty of
the Islands was ceded to Great Britain. Until 1841 all the settlements
in New Zealand were under the Sydney Government, but in that year the
three Islands were constituted an independent colony, with Auckland for
the capital. As the settlers increased, disputes arose between them and
the natives, about the possession of lands; which the settlers asserted
they had purchased, but to which the natives held they had no claim
whatever. These contentions and quarrels were intensified by the
ignorance of both races of the customs and modes of procedure of each
other, as well as by the irregular manner land was bought and sold. In
June, 1843, these disputes culminated in a conflict in the Wairau
Valley, in the province of Nelson; where two chiefs, who had resisted
the survey of their lands, defeated a party sent to arrest them, headed
by the Police Magistrate, killing him and twenty-one settlers in the
fray, or in the general massacre of prisoners which followed it. This
disastrous repulse destroyed the prestige of the English, and the
natives began to boast that they had the settlers at their mercy.
Troops, however, arrived from Australia, the affair was smoothed over,
and for some months peace was undisturbed. Trouble then arose in the
northern Island; a powerful chief, called Hone Heke, who had been
educated by the missionaries, with many of his countrymen, grew
discontented with the customs duties, the high price of tobacco and
blankets, and the absence of the usual whale ships at the town of
Kororareka (now Russell), near which he was residing. Considering that
the British flag, which waved on the hill above the town, represented
the power which fettered the trade and kept away the whalers, and having
a grudge against some of the inhabitants, Heke, on July 8th., 1844,
assembled his men, danced the war-dance at Kororareka, cut down and
burned the flag-staff, plundered several stores, and took possession of
the town for several days. A proclamation was issued by the Governor,
offering £100 for the capture of Heke, who replied by offering a similar
reward for the Governor’s (Captain Fitzroy) head. H.M.S. “Hazard,” with
a detachment of the 96th regiment was sent to Kororareka, the flag-staff
was re-erected, and troops stationed to guard it. As Heke threatened the
flag-staff should not remain, Captain Robertson landed from the “Hazard”
with a gun, a blockhouse was constructed, the inhabitants aroused, and
the town put in a state of defence. At daybreak on March 11th., 1845,
the handful of men guarding the flag-staff were surprised by Heke, and
the staff again cut down. At the same time Captain Robertson was
attacked by two hundred natives, under a chief called Kawiti, and after
a sharp skirmish was compelled to spike his gun and fall back to a
fortified house near the beach. Aided by the guns of the “Hazard,” the
soldiers and inhabitants defended themselves for three hours against the
attacks of the natives, till their magazine exploded. During a truce,
asked by the enemy to carry off their killed and wounded, it was
resolved to abandon the settlement, and the soldiers, with the whole of
the inhabitants, embarking on board the “Hazard,” and other ships which
were lying in the Bay, sailed for Auckland. The town was then plundered
and burnt.
Reinforcements arriving from Sydney, an expedition, under Colonel Hulme,
96th. Regiment, was despatched to Kororareka, which landed without
opposition, re-hoisted the British flag, and proclaimed martial law.
Heke having taken up a fortified position at Okaihau, a place about
eighteen miles inland, a force, consisting of the 58th Regiment, under
Major Bridge, a detachment of the 96th., some seamen and marines from
H.M. Ships “North Star” and “Hazard,” in all about four hundred men,
under Colonel Hulme, with about the same number of native allies, set
out to attack him. Most of the road lay through a forest; it took four
days to reach the fortification, or “pa,” during which time the rain
fell in torrents. Each soldier carried five days’ biscuit and thirty
rounds of ammunition, and, being without tents, two-thirds of the
ammunition and all the biscuits were unfit for use on arriving at
Okaihau. The “pa” was found to be too strong to be taken without
artillery, and after a fruitless assault, and repulse of a sally made by
the natives, the troops returned to the ships, with a loss of fourteen
killed and thirty-nine wounded.
More troops having arrived from Australia, another expedition was formed
against Heke, who now occupied a stronghold at Oheawai, a place nineteen
miles inland from the Bay of Islands. It was composed of the 58th.
Regiment, under Major Bridge, detachments of the 96th. and 99th.
Regiments, thirty men from H.M.S. “Hazard” and eighty volunteers from
Auckland, the whole numbering six hundred and thirty men, with four
guns, and about two hundred and fifty natives, commanded by Colonel
Despard, of the 99th. On June 23rd. the force was before Oheawai, a pa
ninety yards by fifty, with projecting flanks, surrounded by three rows
of palisades, between which was a ditch five feet deep, with traverses
and loopholes. On each side of the pa was a ravine with woody hills, and
the adjacent country was thickly covered with trees. Next day the guns
proved to be useless against the stockades, though at last fired at a
range of eighty yards, but Commander Johnstone, of H.M.S. “Hazard,”
bringing up a thirty-two pounder, two breaches were made, and Colonel
Despard ordered an assault. The assault was made on July 1st., by one
hundred and sixty soldiers, under Major Bridge, and forty seamen and
volunteers, under Lieutenant Philpotts, R.N., who bravely strove to
enter the place under a heavy fire, but the inner palisade being
unbroken, the party was forced to retire, with two officers and half
their number killed and wounded. Among the killed were Captain Grant of
the 58th., and Lieutenant Philpotts,[132] R.N., son of the Bishop of
Exeter.
The troops remained in front of the pa for some days, and were preparing
for another assault, but in the night of July 10th. the enemy abandoned
their position, which was then taken by the British, and the palisades
destroyed.
After this the war languished for some months, till Capt. (afterwards
Sir George) Grey, replaced Captain Fitzroy as Governor, in November,
when more active measures were taken. The new Governor gave the two
chiefs, Heke and Kawiti, a fixed time to decide for peace or war, and
this expiring without any satisfactory answer from either of them,
Colonel Despard was ordered to renew hostilities. The enemy being in
want of food, divided their forces, Heke remaining at a position he had
fortified at Ikorangi, ten miles from Oheawai, while Kawiti fortified
and garrisoned a place called Ruapekapeka, on the side of a hill in a
forest. The English troops comprised the 58th. Regiment, under
Lieutenant-Colonel Wynyard, with detachments of the 99th., Royal
Artillery, East India Company’s Artillery, Royal Marines, and
volunteers, under Captain Atkins with a brigade of three hundred and
sixteen seamen from H.M.S. “Castor,” “North Star,” and “Racehorse,” and
the E.I.C.’s ship “Elphinstone”; and a body of natives, with their
chiefs, Walker, Nene, Repa, and Macquarrie. The whole force amounted to
one thousand one hundred and seventy-three Europeans, and four hundred
and fifty natives, with three thirty-two pounders, one eighteen-pounder,
and seven brass guns and rocket tubes. The enemy had improved in the art
of fortification, and Ruapekapeka was found a much stronger place than
Oheawai. The “pa” measured about one hundred and seventy yards by
seventy, well flanked at the sides and angles, surrounded by two rows of
palisades with a ditch between them, with the earth thrown up behind to
form an inner parapet, and inside were huts with underground
excavations. On December 31st. the British opened fire from all their
guns in position and continued it till January 2nd., when the enemy made
a sally which was repulsed. On the 10th. two breaches were made in the
stockade, and the defenders losing heart began to retire. Next day some
of the native allies finding the “pa” almost deserted, crept up to the
palisades, and supported by a detachment of the 58th. Regiment, under
Captain Denny, rushed through the breaches, and the place was taken and
destroyed, with a loss to the victors of thirteen men killed and thirty
wounded.
This virtually finished the war. Heke was occupied at Ikorangi by a
feigned attack made by Macquarrie, and after the capture of Ruapekapeka,
his followers, and those of Kawiti, began to disperse, and both chiefs
were anxious for pardon and peace. This was granted to them by the
Governor, in January, 1846, and the war in the North Island was at an
end.
While these events were occurring in the North Island, a harassing
series of surprises and skirmishes was carried on in the southern. On
May 16th., 1847, a party of the 58th. Regiment, under Lieutenant Page,
stationed at Boulcott’s Farm, were surprised an hour before daylight,
and six men killed and four wounded.[133] After a skirmish or two, Major
Last, with a detachment of the 99th. Regiment, attacked a stockade held
by Rangihaeata, the chief of the insurgents in the Southern Island, and
was so far successful that the natives abandoned the position, and were
pursued and dispersed by parties of soldiers, militia, and police. A
determined attack was made on May 19th., on the settlement of Wanganui
by six hundred of the enemy, which was defended by one hundred and
seventy men of the 58th. Regiment, in three block houses, aided by a
gunboat on the river. The attack lasted five hours, in spite of a
constant fire of shot and shell, but in the night the enemy decamped,
dispirited by their losses.
In the beginning of June they again appeared in force, attacked a party
of the 65th. Regiment, and a day or two after approaching near the block
houses, challenged the soldiers to come out and fight. On the 19th. the
troops made a sally, and drove the enemy into the bush, and on the 23rd.
they sent in a flag of truce and stated their wish for peace. While the
war lasted they were deprived of their usual supplies of tobacco,
blankets, tea, and other things which had become necessary to them, and
their privations disgusted them with a contest by which nothing could be
gained.
On the 21st. of February, 1848, the principal chiefs met Governor Grey,
at Wanganui; stolen cattle were restored, the natives paid for the lands
in dispute by the Government, a general pardon granted, and peace
concluded. For their services in this war, Captain Sir E. Home, R.N.,
Captain Graham, R.N., Colonel Despard, 99th. Regiment, and
Lieutenant-Colonel Wynyard, 58th. Regiment, were made Commanders of the
Order of the Bath.
THE SECOND NEW ZEALAND WAR.
1860–66.
The long and desultory second war in New Zealand, lasting with an
interval of peace for some months, from 1860 to 1866, arose like the
first, from disputes with the natives concerning the sale and possession
of land. All the members of each tribe looked upon the land they
occupied as their hereditary property, and if the consent of the whole
tribe was not given to the sale and transfer, they considered the
proceeding invalid and worthless. In the year 1861, the sale of land to
the settlers provoked the natives of Taranaki to take up arms in defence
of what they imagined to be their rights, and the conflict eventually
spread over the greater part of the North Island. The Maoris proved
themselves to be no despicable antagonists; they were well-armed with
double-barrelled guns and rifles, and skilled in their use, and in
bush-fighting; so that the heavily equipped British soldiers found it no
easy task to subdue such wily and active enemies. They were also
extremely skilful in the construction of rifle-pits and fortified “pas,”
which were often so strongly palisaded and entrenched as to be almost
impregnable, even to artillery.
At the beginning of the struggle the British troops in New Zealand were
but very few in number, and till reinforcements arrived it was as much
as they could do to maintain their ground.
After some skirmishes, an attack on the Maories at Taranaki, June 13th.,
1860, was repulsed with heavy loss to the assailants, but reinforcements
were despatched from Australia, under Major-General Pratt, who defeated
the enemy at Mahoetaki, on November 6th. A chain of redoubts was thrown
up to keep the natives in check, and to protect the town of New
Plymouth, and these being occupied by detachments of different
regiments, almost daily skirmishes took place with the enemy. A
detachment of the 40th. Regiment was stationed in Redoubt No. 7, on the
river Waitara, and on March 18th. a party, under Capt. Richards, was
sent out to discover the Maories, who were known to be lurking in the
bush, which about a thousand yards from the redoubt was in its primitive
condition. The open space was crossed without opposition, but as soon as
the detachment entered the bush, they were received with a heavy fire
from unseen foes. Captain Richards ordered his men to extend in
skirmishing order, and return the fire, which had little effect on their
concealed opponents, by whose deliberate aim several of the soldiers
fell killed and wounded. Lieutenant Rees, the second in command, seized
the rifle of one of the fallen men, and encouraged his men by his
example to keep up a steady fire. In a few minutes the lieutenant fell
wounded, but Sergeant Lucas came to his assistance and sent him to the
rear, while he himself with two men only that remained unwounded in that
part of the field, took shelter behind a tree, and by the spirited fire
they maintained, kept the enemy at bay, amid showers of bullets which
flew on every side of them, till they were rescued by a party from the
redoubt, under Lieutenants Gibson and Whelan, at whose approach the
Maories fled. For his gallant behaviour on this occasion Sergeant Lucas
obtained the Victoria Cross. The natives having previously experienced
several defeats, were convinced of the futility of further resistance,
and this was the last affair in the Taranaki war. Next day, March 19th.,
1861, witnessed a general surrender, and the establishment of peace.
Unfortunately the embers of discord still smouldered, and the hoped-for
peace proved to be but a lengthened truce. On May 4th., 1863,
hostilities were resumed by an attack made by the natives on a military
escort, who were fired upon from the bush, and eight of their number
killed. In consequence of this, an encounter took place at Kuitkara, in
which twenty-four Maories were slain, and the province of Auckland
became again the scene of war.
The Maories having chosen one of their chiefs to be king, prior to the
beginning of the war, now asserted their intention of driving the
settlers out of the North Island; while General Duncan Cameron,
Commander-in-Chief, by a proclamation declared all natives in arms,
rebels, if they did not surrender in a week. The result of this was,
that they retired with their goods to a place called Kohewa, and taking
up a strongly fortified position at Roherea, a mountainous ridge, two
miles from Kohewa, and near the Waikato river, set the General at
defiance. Here Cameron attacked them; and under a hot fire carried their
rifle-pits, and drove the Maories into the adjacent swamps.
Previous to this, Volunteers, or Militia, had been raised among the
colonists, four thousand of whom took up arms in defence of their homes,
and redoubts had been erected for the defence of Auckland and other
towns.
In September, a detachment of the 65th. Regiment was stationed at Fort
Alexandra, in the neighbourhood of Cameron Town, when news reached the
fort, that Mr. Armitage, a magistrate living near, and a number of
friendly natives had been massacred by the enemy. Captain Swift, in
command of the detachment, with Lieutenant Butler, Sergt. McKenna, and a
party of about fifty men, started into the bush in pursuit of the foe.
They crossed swamps and forded rivers, till they suddenly found
themselves exposed in the bush to a heavy fire on both sides. Captain
Swift and Lieutenant Butler were mortally wounded, and the command of
the party devolved on Sergeant McKenna, to whose coolness and
intrepidity the party owed its safety. The skirmish was kept up till
nightfall, when the little band—several of them wounded—began their
retreat, through ten miles of swamp and bush, in the face of three
hundred savages, thirsting for their blood. After a harassed night
march, and more than once losing their path, about eight in the morning
they met a party of their comrades, under Colonel Murray, coming to
their assistance, and were in safety.
For his intrepid behaviour, Sergeant McKenna received the Victoria Cross
and a Commission. Corporal Ryan, who with four privates had remained
with the wounded officers till they died, and fortunately escaped in
safety at the break of day, also received the Cross, and the four
privates the medal for distinguished conduct in the field.
This affair was followed by some unimportant skirmishes, in one of
which, at Pontoko, October 2nd., Ensign Down and Drummer Stagpoole, of
the 57th. Regiment, gained the Victoria Cross, for bringing in a wounded
man, under a heavy fire at close range.
The enemy having retired to a strong “pa” they had erected on an
eminence at Rangariri, midway between the Waikato and a lake, on
November 20th, after a bombardment lasting an hour and a half, the
position was attacked by a force of regular troops—artillerymen, seamen,
and militia—about one thousand in all, commanded by General Cameron. The
outer works and rifle-pits were soon carried, but the stormers on
finding stronger defences still in front of them, hesitated, and fell
back before the fire of the enemy. The militia, though encouraged by
their officers, who placed themselves in the front, remained immoveable,
but the small body of Royal Artillery—about fifty all told—armed with
swords and revolvers, at a word from the General, headed by their
Colonel—Mercer—rushed forward, and gained the parapet of the “pa,” when
their gallant leader fell mortally wounded, and his brave handful of
gunners were repulsed. Two or three of his men in the attempt to rescue
him were shot down, when Surgeon W. Temple, R.A., went to his assistance
and dressed his wound, under showers of bullets, at the risk of his own
life. His noble conduct was witnessed by General Cameron, who
recommended him for the Victoria Cross, which he obtained.
A body of seamen, commanded by Commander Mayne, of H.M.S. “Eclipse,”
next endeavoured to carry the position, but were also repulsed, and an
attempt made to dislodge the enemy with hand-grenades failed. Luckily
the Maories felt that they had had enough, and at dawn next day they
hoisted a white flag and surrendered. One hundred and eighty Maories
were taken in the “pa,” and forty-five were found there dead. The loss
of the assailants were six officers killed and nine wounded, and one
hundred and twenty men killed and wounded, made up the roll of
casualties. This affair however produced the surrender of the Maori
King, on December 9th., but the war still continued.
A native stronghold at Rangiawhia was attacked and captured February
21st., 1864. On the 2nd. of April another fortified “pa” at Orakau was
taken by assault, by a force commanded by Major-General Carey, after
three days’ investment; and then for several weeks the Maories, without
interruption by the military, occupied themselves in the erection of a
most formidable “pa” at Tauranga. It was built on the highest part of a
narrow neck of land, well palisaded, and further defended by an
entrenched line of rifle-pits. On both sides were swamps extending to
the water, so that it was secure from a flank attack, and was named the
Gate Pa. On the 28th. of April, General Cameron, after a reconnaissance
of the entrenchments, made preparations for an attack. The forces at his
disposal were the 43rd. and 68th. Regiments, detachments of the 14th.,
65th., and 70th., Regiments, a Naval Brigade of over three hundred men
from the squadron of Commodore Sir W. Wiseman, and a detachment of Royal
Artillery, amounting to nearly one thousand seven hundred men of all
ranks, with six Armstrong guns, two howitzers, and eight mortars. The
intention of the General being to cut off the retreat of the enemy,
after dark a feigned attack was made on the front of his position, while
the 68th. Regiment, with some seamen, picked their way through the
swamp, and before morning were posted in the rear of the “pa.” The
Artillery opened fire soon after daybreak on the 29th., and continued
with little intermission till about four p.m., when, the pallisades
being almost destroyed and a practicable breach made, the assault was
ordered. One hundred and fifty of the 43rd., with the same number of
seamen and Marines, led by Commander Hay, of H.M.S. “Harrier” formed the
assaulting column under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Booth, of the
43rd. The remainder of the 43rd., with a body of seamen and Marines,
formed the reserve. Commander Hay led the stormers, who, with a ringing
cheer, crossed the ditch, mounted the embankment, and rushed through the
breach into the “pa,” and, as only a few straggling shots were heard,
the troops outside thought the place was won and the enemy beaten; when
all at once a tremendous fire of musketry accompanied with savage yells,
broke out in the interior of the entrenchment, and after a fierce
conflict of a few minutes, during which Colonel Booth, Commander Hay,
and Captain Glover fell mortally wounded, and almost every officer of
the column was killed or disabled; the storming party was seen pouring
out through the breach in utter confusion. Captain Hamilton at once led
on the supports, but fell shot through the head, the supports became
mixed with the fugitives, and in spite of the exertions of the officers,
the whole body hotly fired on by the enemy, fell back to the nearest
cover.[134] Darkness had now set in, but the troops lay on their arms in
their entrenchment, within a hundred yards of the enemy, furious at
their repulse and fully determined to conquer or die on the morrow.
During the night, which was wet and dark, the enemy evacuated the “pa,”
and stealing in small parties through the swamps eluded the vigilance of
the 68th.; and in the early morning Major Greaves, of the 70th.,
creeping up to the breach found the stronghold silent and deserted.
Colonel North[135] and a few privates were found still alive, and to the
credit of the enemy they had not been ill treated during the night, nor
had the bodies of the slain been mutilated. In this sad affair seven
officers of the 43rd. Regiment were killed, or died of their wounds, and
the Naval Brigade had four officers and forty seamen and Marines killed
and wounded.
When Commander Hay fell, mortally wounded, Samuel Mitchell, captain of
the foretop of H.M.S. “Harrier,” refused to leave his dying officer,
though ordered by him to leave him and look after his own safety. He
raised the commander in his arms, and carried him outside the “pa”
amidst a shower of bullets, and for his gallant conduct deservedly
obtained the Victoria Cross. Surgeon Manly, R.A., also gained the same
distinction for attending to the wounded under a heavy fire.
The day after the affair at Gate “pa,” a redoubt at Sentry Hill,
Taranaki, held by a detachment under the command of Major Shortt, of the
57th. Regiment, was attacked by a strong body of Maories, who were
repulsed with heavy loss.
Some weeks later, it being known that the natives were gathering in
force, and engaged in the construction of another stronghold at Te
Ranga, a place about four miles from Gate “pa,” Colonel Green,
commanding the troops at Tauranga, marched with the 43rd. and part of
the 68th. Regiment, against the enemy, whom he found strongly posted in
a chain of rifle-pits, the commencement of a formidable “pa.” After a
smart skirmish for about two hours, being reinforced by the Waikato
Militia, the advance was sounded, and the pits carried by storm in the
most dashing manner.[136] For a few minutes the Maories fought
desperately, but were utterly routed, and pursued for several miles. As
usual, their situation was favourable for their retreat, otherwise few
would have escaped. On the following day the bodies of one hundred and
eight of the enemy were found and buried in their own rifle-pits, but
many more were killed and remained in the ravines. Among the slain were
several powerful chiefs, one of whom, Rawhiri, was the leader at Gate
“pa.” The British loss was small, ten men killed and thirty-three
wounded, considering the heavy fire they were exposed to in advancing to
the attack.
During the following month, many of the natives laid down their arms and
surrendered; and on August 6th., 1864, most of the chiefs proffered
their unconditional submission to the government: yet the war still
lingered on. In January, 1865, the natives made a daring attack on the
British camp at Nukumaru, and suffered a severe repulse; and in the
month of July following, a force under the command of Lieut.-Colonel
Trevor, consisting of detachments of the 14th. and 18th. regiments, some
colonial troops, and a body of friendly natives, captured the Wereroa
“pa,”—an exceedingly strong position occupied by the Maories, about
three hundred feet above the wooded banks of the Waitotara river,
surrounded by precipices and swamps.
During the years 1865–66, the war was mostly confined to the West Coast.
In January of the latter year a strong “pa” at Pretahi was captured, and
the Otapawa “pa” was stormed by the 57th. regiment, with the loss of
Lieut.-Colonel Hassard and many brave men; but the contest dwindled to a
fitful series of unimportant skirmishes, and the capture and destruction
of “pas” and villages. After the year 1866, the struggle was carried on
by the colonial forces, commanded by Colonel Whitmore, who had been
military secretary to General Cameron (afterwards General Sir George
Whitmore, K.C.M.G.), who in January, 1869, finally crushed the last
Maori outbreak.
At the end of the year 1864, the colonial ministry had requested the
home government to withdraw the imperial troops, and to allow them
complete responsibility, but it was not till January, 1870, that the
last British regiment, the 18th., left the colony. The same year the
long and harassing war was brought to a close, and a durable peace
established.
The regiments engaged in the New Zealand War of 1845–47 were the 58th.,
65th., 96th., and 99th. Foot; and in the war of 1860–66 the 1st.
Battalion, 12th. Regiment; 2nd. Battalion, 14th. Regiment; 2nd.
Battalion, 18th. Regiment; and the 40th., 43rd., 50th., 57th., 65th.,
68th., and 70th. Regiments.