Home » History » New Zealand History » The British Resident - Page 2

The British Resident - Page 2

© Philippa Jane Ballantine

Compounded on the cramped conditions, James had work problems. As British Resident he was supposed to smooth relations between settlers and Maori, and catch the escaped convicts- but he was still a civilian, with no troops, no warships, no power of arrest and couldn’t even take sworn evidence. In fact once shortly after Agnes had given birth to their first child, James and his manservant had to defend the little house with guns. The governor of New South Wales Richard Bourke, who had appointed James was never very helpful- plus of course New Zealand was a drain on his coffers, hence the smaller house. With such a strangle hold on money, James’ hands were pretty much tied. Bourke had told Busby to use his authority to convince Maori to create a “settled form of government”, and this James set to with vigour, perhaps realising it was the one thing he could perhaps achieve.

On the 20th March 1834 James held a meeting a Waitangi of the northern Maori chiefs, in which they chose a national flag for the independent tribes of New Zealand, which was recognised by the British Admiralty. Then on 28th October 1835, after suggestions that Baron de Thierry was planning to declare an independent state in the Hokianga, Busby persuaded 34 chiefs to sign a Declaration of Independence, and to ask the British crown for protection.

But despite these steps, James situation was becoming worse, for tribal fighting had erupted around him, and when in May 1837 William Hobson visited to asses the situation, Busby recommend establishing a protectorate to protect the people. However Hobson’s report favoured more stringent measures, and in early 1839 Hobson was appointed to negotiate a treaty of cession with the Maori.

This document, the Treaty of Waitangi was to be the founding document of a new nation, and was signed in front of Busby’s home, what was later to become the Treaty House. Busby set up the meeting, and helped draft the Treaty.

But things were going to get worse, for both New Zealand and Busby. He had bought extensive land around Waitangi, and had even laid out plans for a settlement, but no one bought any lots. The seat of British governance was moving to Waitamata, and Hobson was questioning the validity of any land bought before 1840.

James went to Sydney to defend the sale, and he was to spend the remainder of his life arguing with authorities. He tried to develop a sheep and cattle station at Whangarei, and shipped over thousands of pounds worth of staff and equipment, but this attempt was futile, as the animals did not flourish. James spent a lot of time going backwards and forwards to Sydney in an attempt to raise finance. He tried his hand too at storekeeping, and in a partnership in a sawmill. But by the 1840s depression had struck New Zealand, and this affected his timber business.

The copyright of the article The British Resident - Page 2 in New Zealand History is owned by . Permission to republish The British Resident - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.