Why Was a Treaty Needed in New Zealand?

In 1830 there were 100,000 Māori 200 and Europeans living in New Zealand. The behaviour of the Whalers, the Missionaries’ desire to help protect Māori rights and the Musket Wars were reasons that a treaty was needed. The Declaration of Independence was another contributing factor to the need for a treaty.

One reason that a treaty was needed was the lawless behaviour of some of the British Settlers like whalers. When whalers came back after months and months at sea, they would get very drunk which caused many fights and arguments. There was also a lot of prostitution which lead to many diseases. This is important because without the treaty fighting would increase and more people would have died. Without it, things would have gotten way out of hand. 

Another reason that a treaty was needed was to protect Māori rights. One group that felt strongly about this was the missionaries. They were worried about the number of Māori being killed or enslaved because of musket wars, the Pakeha sailors violent behaviour, the spread of diseases and the large land sales. The missionaries taught the Māori a lot of things. Including, teaching them farming and methods, taught them how to read and write in Māori, and about their religion. The numbers of Māori living in New Zealand dropped from 100k in 1836 to less than 30k in 1901. While European numbers skyrocketed. Only one hundred Europeans were living in New Zealand in 1836 but by 1901 there were almost 1 million Europeans in New Zealand. In 1901 there were only 25k Māori living in New Zealand, but now there are around 600k. If there was a treaty around this time, the Māori population wouldn’t have dropped so low. 

Another reason that a treaty was needed was the Musket Wars. From the years 1807-1842, the musket wars were occurring. Tribes were able to get muskets by trading various things for a musket in return. The first tribe to get a musket was Nga Puhi. Over 20,000 people died during this time period. Population and power changed, all the tribes had muskets and had turned them into killing machines. With a treaty, these wars would not have happened. 

The final reason that a treaty was needed was the existence of the Declaration of Independence. Interestingly, the treaty was signed for trading and legal purposes. It was created to protect the rights of Māori and give Māori power of New Zealand. It was signed on the 28th of October 1835 and was signed by 52 chiefs. The Declaration of Independence meant that Māori could only trade with the British. The Declaration of Independence only helped the Māori, not everyone living in New Zealand. This country would not be the same without it. 

This essay has demonstrated that without the treaty the behaviour from Europeans would have gotten out of hand. Without a treaty, Māori numbers would have dropped even lower, Māori wouldn’t have power over New Zealand and musket wars could have still continued today. If so, the number of Māori living in New Zealand would become extremely low. I think that the treaty helped to save this country and that it wouldn’t be the same without it.