In 1830 there were 100000 Māori and 100 Europeans living in New Zealand. In 1840, the treaty was signed. There were many reasons for this, but the four main reasons are the lawless behaviour of the Whalers on Kororareka, the desire of the Missionaries’ to help protect Maori rights, the Musket Wars that were occurring all over the country, as well as the existence of the Declaration of Independence.
One reason that a treaty was needed was the lawless behaviour of some British Settlers such as Whalers. This is important because the lawless behaviour gave places like Kororareka (The biggest New Zealand port at the time) a bad reputation. Kororareka even became known as the hell hole of the Pacific. At the time, the British did not have the authority to enforce their laws and bring their police force to New Zealand. So when around 300 Sailors, from up to 12 ships came ashore, no laws were binding the Sailors. Once the Sailors came ashore, their activities were basically nothing but drinking, fighting, and sex with prostitutes. This might not sound like it was a big deal, but all of this was done at an extreme level, to a point where people were actually dying. This lawless behaviour concerned both the Maori chiefs as well as the Missionaries and led them to sign the Treaty of Waitangi.
Another reason for the creation of the treaty was the Missionaries intentions to protect Maori rights. During that time, the Europeans were buying land everywhere they could. This worried the Missionaries because the land owned by Maori were getting smaller and smaller. The Missionaries did all they could to help the Maori chiefs that were constantly getting pushed into selling their land, they bought patches of land for them. They did this because it would mean that the Maori could live in peace, without the threat of the Crown buying their land, as well as gain the trust of the Maori. Then came the Treaty of Waitangi. The idea of the treaty was that the land occupied by Maori tribes would be left undisturbed. The Missionaries thought the treaty would help the situation, so they supported it. And because they had gained the trust of the Chiefs, they convinced them to do so as well.
Ever since the introduction of the musket at the beginning of the 19th century, wars fought by Maori completely changed. Because the wars were fought with such powerful weapons, the death count was around 20000 Maori. Traditional weapons such as Taiaha became useless at the face of muskets, and tribes without muskets needed to do whatever they could to obtain them. The amount of power a tribe had largely depended on the number of muskets they owned. The trading requirements for muskets varied depending on the year, however, it could cost the Maori up to 200 full baskets full of potatoes for a single musket. The cost was extremely high but tribes had no choice but to trade. To trade for more muskets, Maori replaced much of their usual crops with potatoes. Changing their way of life. In the 1830s all the tribes had muskets, and a balance in power occurred between the tribes. But up until that point, tribal boundaries were constantly shifting and many Maori died. The constant musket wars between the Maori made it apparent that laws were mandatory. And to enforce those laws, they needed more authority. The need for laws and authority were contributing factors to the signing of the treaty.
The final reason that a treaty was needed was the existence of the Declaration of Independence. In 1835 the Declaration of Independence was created. The declaration gave all the power to the Maori in exchange for the exclusive trading rights with the British. If any changes were to be made, it would have to go through the Maori first. This was great for Maori and Europeans, but because the Maori had all the power, it meant that the British couldn’t do whatever they wanted. To gain back the power over New Zealand, the Europeans suggests the treaty.
In the end, the four main reasons for the signing of the treaty were the need for police to control the lawless behaviour of the Whalers around Kororareka, The strong desire that the Missionaries had to help the Maori, The need for laws to stop the death and enslavement of Maori, caused by the Musket War, and the existence of the Declaration of Independence. I personally feel that New Zealand didn’t need the treaty. If they needed laws and a police force, the Maori could have set one up. Although the Maori were losing large amounts of land, it was nothing compared to the amount of land they lost after the treaty, and just like any other war, the Musket Wars would have stopped eventually. So in the end, the treaty wasn’t even needed. Everything would have sorted itself out eventually.
