What is the capital of new zealand
What is the capital of new zealand
What Is The Capital Of New Zealand?
New Zealand’s Parliament Building in Wellington.
Where Is New Zealand?
New Zealand is located in the southwest of the Pacific Ocean, approximately 900 miles east of Australia. It is comprised of various islands, the biggest of which are the North and South Islands. Its total land area is 103,483 square miles, and it has a population size of 4,730,480.
What Type Of Government Does New Zealand Have?
The type of government in New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy with a representative parliament. The executive branch is headed by the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The monarch appoints a Governor-General as the representative Head of State. The Prime Minister acts as the Head of Government and administers the Cabinet. Cabinet members are also Parliament members and responsible for answering to Parliament. The legislative branch of New Zealand consists of Parliament, which is also known as the House of Representatives.
What Were The Former Capital Cities Of New Zealand?
European explorers began arriving in the late 17th century, and by 1788, New Zealand was considered part of the colony of New South Wales in Australia. It did not have its own capital until 1840 when Okiato held the distinction. This city was only the capital for one year. With New Zealand under British rule, the Lieutenant-Governor wanted to establish a new, permanent political center in Auckland. The land was purchased from the Maori, and a Government House was built. In 1842, the first Supreme Court was built here as well. Discussions about moving the capital to a new, more central location began with the first meeting of Parliament in the middle of the century. The problem for many of the officials was that Auckland was not a very centralized location. In addition, the Government Building had burned, leaving the government officials to hold parliamentary sessions in a building of poor conditions. After around ten years of discussion, the capital was finally moved to Wellington in 1865.
What Is The Present Capital City Of New Zealand And Where Is It Located?
Today, the capital of New Zealand continues to be in Wellington. This city is the most populated in the country, with 405,000 residents. It is located at the most southwestern point of North Island, and the entire metro area covers approximately 536 square miles.
History Of The Capital City Of New Zealand
The Maori peoples have been inhabiting this area since at least the 13th century, although some evidence suggests it may have been as early as the 10th century. European settlers began arriving between 1839 and 1840. As the population grew, so did the infrastructure of the city. When the previously mentioned discussions began about where to move capital, the residents of Wellington invested in the Wellington Provincial Council Buildings to help influence the decision. These buildings were in much better condition than the previously mentioned government house located in Auckland. The first parliamentary session here took place on July 26, 1865.
Present-Day Role Of The City As The Capital Of New Zealand
Today, Wellington continues to hold an important role as the capital of the country. Here, the country’s Supreme Court, Ministries, Departments, and Parliament can be found. Additionally, the majority of foreign embassies are located in Wellington. This city is an important cultural and economic center that received numerous tourists every year. It has also been ranked as having one of the highest qualities of life in the world.
New Zealand
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New Zealand, Māori Aotearoa, island country in the South Pacific Ocean, the southwesternmost part of Polynesia. New Zealand is a remote land—one of the last sizable territories suitable for habitation to be populated and settled—and lies more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) southeast of Australia, its nearest neighbour. The country comprises two main islands—the North and the South Island—and a number of small islands, some of them hundreds of miles from the main group. The capital city is Wellington and the largest urban area Auckland; both are located on the North Island. New Zealand administers the South Pacific island group of Tokelau and claims a section of the Antarctic continent. Niue and the Cook Islands are self-governing states in free association with New Zealand.
New Zealand is a land of great contrasts and diversity. Active volcanoes, spectacular caves, deep glacier lakes, verdant valleys, dazzling fjords, long sandy beaches, and the spectacular snowcapped peaks of the Southern Alps/Kā Tiritiri o te Moana on the South Island—all contribute to New Zealand’s scenic beauty. New Zealand also has a unique array of vegetation and animal life, much of which developed during the country’s prolonged isolation. It is the sole home, for example, of the long-beaked, flightless kiwi, the ubiquitous nickname for New Zealanders.
New Zealand was the largest country in Polynesia when it was annexed by Great Britain in 1840. Thereafter it was successively a crown colony, a self-governing colony (1856), and a dominion (1907). By the 1920s it controlled almost all of its internal and external policies, although it did not become fully independent until 1947, when it adopted the Statute of Westminster. It is a member of the Commonwealth.
The ascent of Mount Everest by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in 1953 was one of the defining moments of the 20th century. “In some ways,” Hillary suggested, “I believe I epitomise the average New Zealander: I have modest abilities, I combine these with a good deal of determination, and I rather like to succeed.”
Despite New Zealand’s isolation, the country has been fully engaged in international affairs since the early 20th century, being an active member of a number of intergovernmental institutions, including the United Nations. It has also participated in several wars, including World Wars I and II. Economically the country was dependent on the export of agricultural products, especially to Great Britain. The entry of Britain into the European Community in the early 1970s, however, forced New Zealand to expand its trade relations with other countries. It also began to develop a much more extensive and varied industrial sector. Tourism has played an increasingly important role in the economy, though this sector has been vulnerable to global financial instability.
The social and cultural gap between New Zealand’s two main groups—the indigenous Māori of Polynesian heritage and the colonizers and later immigrants from the British Isles and their descendants—has decreased since the 1970s, though educational and economic differences between the two groups remain. Immigration from other areas—Asia, Africa, and eastern Europe—has also made a mark, and New Zealand culture today reflects these many influences. Minority rights and race-related issues continue to play an important role in New Zealand politics.
Wellington, New Zealand
Wellington urban area within New Zealand
New ZealandLower Hutt (administered by Hutt City Council)
Upper Hutt City
Porirua City
Wellington is the capital of New Zealand, the country’s second largest urban area and the most populous national capital in Oceania. It is in the Wellington region at the southern tip of the North Island, near the geographic center of the country.
Like many cities, Wellington’s urban area extends well beyond the boundaries of a single local authority. Greater Wellington or the Wellington Region includes the entire urban area, plus the rural parts of the cities and the Kapiti Coast, and across the Rimutaka Range to the Wairarapa (the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east Wellington and south-west of the Hawke’s Bay region).
Contents
Nearly all Wellington residents are within 2 miles (3 kilometers) of the coast. This cosmopolitan city exists in close proximity to nature. Its geography has created a compact city, nestled between harbor and forested hills. The city and its surrounds are replete with wildlife sanctuaries, islands, seaside villages, ocean beaches and regional parks.
Wellington was named in honor of Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington and victor of the Battle of Waterloo. The Duke’s title comes from the town of Wellington in the English county of Somerset.
In Māori, Wellington goes by two names. Te Whanganui-a-Tara refers to Wellington Harbour and means «the great harbor of Tara.» Te Upoko-o-te-Ika-a-Māui, meaning The Head of the Fish of Māui (often shortened to Te Upoko-o-te-Ika), is a more traditional name, derived from the legend in which the North Island was fished up by the demigod Māui Tikitiki-a-Taranga. [4]
History
Maori History and Legend
Maori legend recounts that the great Polynesian explorer Kupe discovered and explored the district in about the tenth century. Maori mythology credits Maui with fishing up a large fish known today as the North Island of New Zealand or Te Ika a Maui and his canoe (waka) or Te Waka a Maui was the South Island. To the Maori, the head of the fish is the sweetest part. Several other Wellington region geographical features make up other parts of the Maui’s «fish» including, Wellington Harbour and Lake Wairarapa (the eyes), Palliser Bay (the mouth), Cape Palliser and Turakirae Head (the jaws) and The Rimutaka, Tararua and Ruahine mountains (the spine). [4]
Tara’s descendants, the Ngāi Tara people, were joined by the Ngāti Ira tribe from Hawke’s Bay around the seventeenth century. Other tribes including Rangitāne, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Mamoe and Ngāi Tahu also occupied parts of the Wellington region. [5]
During 1819–1820 the chief Te Rauparaha of Ngāti Toa and a war party, swept south through the North Island, besieging villages and killing the local tribes with muskets. After reaching the shores of Cook Strait he persuaded his people to migrate to the region. During the mid-1820s, tension between these tribes caused the Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Tama and Ngāti Mutunga tribes to move south, and became Wellington’s people of the land. [5]
European settlement
European settlement began with the arrival of an advance party of the New Zealand Company on the ship Tory, on September 20, 1839, followed by 150 settlers on the Aurora on January 22, 1840. The city was named Wellington in honor of the Duke of Wellington who lent his support to the New Zealand Company and the expedition leader Sir William Wakefield. Wakefield is reported as having purchased Wellington from the Maori people for 100 muskets, 100 blankets, 60 red nightcaps, a dozen umbrellas and other various goods. [6] After the Treaty of Waitangi was signed on February 6, 1840, the New Zealand Company was barred from negotiating further land sales. [5]
In 1840 Governor William Hobson chose Auckland as the capital of New Zealand, dashing Wakefield’s hope to make Wellington the capital. He also began reviewing the land purchases by the New Zealand Company. In November 1863, the Premier Alfred Domett moved a resolution before Parliament (in Auckland) that «… it has become necessary that the seat of government … should be transferred to some suitable locality in Cook Strait.» Apparently there was concern that the southern regions, where the gold fields were located, would form a separate colony. Commissioners from Australia selected Wellington because of its central location and harbor. In 1865, Wellington became the capital of New Zealand, replacing Auckland. Parliament officially sat in Wellington for the first time on July 26, 1865. During the last half of the nineteenth century Wellington grew rapidly from 7,460 residents in 1867 to 49,344 by the end of the century. [5]
In spite of natural hazards such as earthquakes, fires and the ever-present gale force winds, the fledgling colony of the mid-1800s quickly became a thriving import and export center. The Old Government Buildings were built in the 1870s and is the largest wooden structure in the Southern Hemisphere. The Parliament Buildings, built in 1922, with its square marble angles contrast dramatically with the rounded contours of the Beehive, the capital’s distinctive circular Cabinet offices, built in the late 1970s. [6]
Geography
Wellington stands at the south-western tip of the North Island on Cook Strait, the passage that separates the North and South Islands. On a clear day the snowcapped Kaikoura Ranges are visible to the south across the strait. To the north stretch the golden beaches of the Kapiti Coast. On the east the Rimutaka Range divides Wellington from the broad plains of the Wairarapa, a wine region of national acclaim.
Wellington is the southernmost national capital city in the world, with a latitude of 41° 17′ South and a Longtitude of 174° 46′ East. It is more densely populated than most other settlements in New Zealand, due to the small amount of building space available between the harbor and the surrounding hills. Wellington has very few suitable areas in which to expand and this has resulted in the development of the surrounding cities in the greater urban area.
Wellington has a reputation for its picturesque natural harbor and green hillsides adorned with tiered suburbs of colonial villas. The central business district is sited close to Lambton Harbor, an arm of Wellington Harbour. Wellington Harbour lies along an active geological fault, which is clearly evident on its straight western coast. The land to the west of this rises abruptly, meaning that many of Wellington’s suburbs sit high above the center of the city.
In the east is the Miramar Peninsula, connected to the rest of the city by a low-lying isthmus at Rongotai, the site of Wellington International Airport. The narrow entrance to Wellington is directly to the east of the Miramar Peninsula, and contains the dangerous shallows of Barrett Reef, where many ships have been [[shipwreck|wrecked\\ (most famously the inter-island ferry Wahine in 1968).
The southern section of the North Island’s longest active fault, the Wellington–Mōhaka Fault, passes through the heart of Wellington. Over 75 percent of people in the Wellington region live within 6 miles (10 kilometers) of the fault. Wellington’s distinctive landscape is a result of activity on this fault. The sea has flooded into the fault depression near the coast creating Wellington Harbour. During earthquakes along the fault, areas of land south-east of the fault subside, while land along the north-western side moves upward. [8]
Earthquakes
Wellington suffered serious damage in a series of earthquakes in 1848 and from another earthquake in 1855. The 1855 Wairarapa earthquake occurred on a fault line to the north and east of Wellington. It ranks as probably the most powerful earthquake in recorded New Zealand history, with an estimated magnitude of at least 8.2 on the Richter scale. [9] An estimated 1930 sq. miles (5000 sq. kilometers) of land shifted vertically, with an estimated uplift of 20 feet (6 meters) near Turakirae Head and 3-6 feet (1-2 meters) in the Wellington Harbour. The main quake shook for 50 seconds. [4] The earthquake raised an area of land out of the harbor and turned it into a tidal swamp. Much of this land was subsequently reclaimed and is now part of Wellington’s central business district. Although «Quay» is usually reserved for streets that run along the water, Lambton Quay now runs 100 to 200 meters from the harbor. Plaques set into the footpath along Lambton Quay mark the shoreline in 1840 and thus indicate the extent of the uplift and of subsequent reclamation. As a result of the 1855 Wairarapa earthquake, a local tsunami washed over Lyall and Evans Bays and flooded shops along Lambton Quay.
After the 1848 earthquake, it was realized that the wooden buildings withstood the shaking better than buildings constructed of other materials and for many years after the 1855 earthquake, the majority of buildings constructed in Wellington were made entirely of wood. The 1996-restored Government Buildings, near Parliament is the largest wooden office building in the Southern Hemisphere. While masonry and structural steel have subsequently been used in building construction, especially for office buildings, timber framing remains the primary structural component of almost all residential construction. [9]
Climate
Wellington has a cool moderate, windy climate with average daily maximum temperatures in mid-summer of 68.5°F (20.3°C) and average daily minimum temperatures in mid-winter of 42.6°F (5.9°C). The warmest month is February with an average temperature of 63°F (17°C) and the coldest month is July with an average temperature of 47.6°F (8.7°C). Average annual sunshine hours is 2025 and average annual rainfall is 50 inches (1270mm).
Because of its location in the roaring forties latitudes and its exposure to omnipresent winds coming through Cook Strait, the city is known to Kiwis as «Windy Wellington.» Wellington average wind speed is 13.7 miles per hour (22 kilometers per hour) with 22 days per year recording wind speeds in excess of 39 miles per hour (63 kilometers per hour).
Governance
Wellington is New Zealand’s political center, housing Parliament and the head offices of all government ministries and departments, plus the bulk of the foreign diplomatic missions based in New Zealand. Wellington is also the seat of regional and local governments.
Federal
New Zealand is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy. The only body which can make laws is the House of Representatives commonly called Parliament (120 seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, and 51 proportional seats chosen from party lists serving three-year terms. [10] The House of Representatives has the power to pass laws and approve the raising and spending of money by the government. The most powerful political body is cabinet made up of ministers of the Crown and chaired by the prime minister. The speaker is the presiding officer of the House of Representatives and is elected by the House. The Executive Council, presided over by the governor general, no longer makes policy decisions, but has formal functions and makes statutory regulations (under powers delegated by Parliament). [11]
Regional
The Greater Wellington Regional Council is responsible for developing policies that direct the activities of the greater Wellington area. They are responsible for such matters as emergency management, the environment, and transportation in the greater Wellington area, which also includes other urban areas in addition to Wellington City. The Council is a statutory body made up of 13 regional councilors, representing six constituencies. Representation in each constituency is determined by population (90 per cent), land area (5 per cent) and land’s capital value (5 per cent). Elections are held every three years and all persons 18 years and over are eligible to vote. [12]
Local
The Wellington City Council (WCC) is responsible for determining local legislation and defining the overall vision for the city. The WCC is an elected council made up of a Mayor and fourteen Councilors. The Mayor and Councilors appoint a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to lead the Council’s administrative organization and to manage Council operations. The CEO has statutory powers granted by the Local Government Act and is responsible for advising the Mayor and Councilors on policy matters and ensuring policies adopted by the Council are correctly implemented. [13]
Economy
Wellington ranks as one of New Zealand’s chief seaports and serves both domestic and international shipping. The port of Wellington handles millions of tons of cargo annually importing petroleum products, motor vehicles, minerals and exporting meats, wood products, dairy products, wool, and fruit. Cruise ships also use the port.
Wellington’s economy is primarily service-based, with an emphasis on finance, business services, and government. Many national government departments have their head offices in Wellington and many of New Zealand’s banks and insurance companies have their headquarters in the city.
Wellington has a growing film industry and is a regional health and education center. Tourism is also an important part of the Wellington economy. Manufacturing in the city itself has declined since the late 1980s, however the region still has a printing industry and factories in the Wellington area manufacture chemicals, plastics, clothing, electrical machinery, processed foods, and other products. [14]
Demographics
Wellington has the highest average income of a main urban area in New Zealand and the highest percentage of people with tertiary qualifications. [17]
Education
Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington’s oldest university, has its main campus in the hill suburb of Kelburn overlooking the center of the city. It also has two downtown campuses, and a campus in the western suburb of Karori. It was established as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand.
The senate of the University of New Zealand was located in Wellington until its dissolution in 1961.
There is also a branch of Massey University in Wellington, taking over the former Wellington Polytechnic. The campus is based at the former national museum (the Dominion Museum), which has been replaced by the Te Papa («Our Place») museum. The University of Otago also has a Wellington connection, as the Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences is a department of that university.
Wellington Institute of Technology caters to Wellington and neighboring Petone and the Hutt Valley. It is one of the largest polytechnic schools in the region and was established in 1904.
Numerous primary and secondary educational institutions are located throughout the city, see List of schools in Wellington, New Zealand.
Culture
The city’s new arts center, Toi Poneke, serves as a nexus of creative projects, collaborations, and multi-disciplinary production. Wellington is home to Te Papa Tongarewa (the Museum of New Zealand), the Museum of Wellington City and Sea, the Katherine Mansfield Birthplace Museum, Colonial Cottage, the New Zealand Cricket Museum, the Cable Car Museum, Old St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the Law School (largest wooden building in the southern hemisphere) and the Wellington City Art Gallery.
As the culture capital of New Zealand, Wellington is home to the Royal New Zealand Ballet, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the National Opera and the National dance and drama schools. Wellington also hosts three professional theaters offering Pacific Island, New Zealand and international productions.
Wellington is home to many of New Zealand’s Heritage organizations including the National Archives, the National Art Gallery, the National Library, the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and the National War Memorial.
Financial institutions such as the New Zealand Stock Exchange and the Reserve Bank are located in Wellington as are the National Headquarters of the High Court and the National Cricket Museum.
Wellington’s cafe culture is extremely strong. The city has more cafes per capita than New York.
Architecture
Wellington has many notable buildings including the Government Building, on Lambton Quay, which is one of the largest wooden buildings in the world. This colonial-style, four-story structure was built in 1876 and designed to look as though it were made of stone. The Wellington Cathedral of St. Paul is one of New Zealand’s most beautiful churches. The Beehive, probably Wellington’s most famous modern building, houses the executive offices of the national Parliament. This cylindrical structure, completed in 1981, was designed by the British architect Sir Basil Spence. [18]
Religion
As in the rest of the country, more than half (58.4 percent) of Wellingtonians are nominally Christian, and 30.4 percent profess no religion|religious affiliation. In addition to the Christian figures are several Maori Christian denominations including Ratana and Ringatü, accounting for an additional 1.2 percent of the population. The main Christian denominations are Roman Catholic, Anglican (both with 16.9 percent of the population) with 10.2 percent professing Presbyterian, Congregational or Reformed faiths. Other immigrant cultures have added to the religious diversity of the city, adding faiths such as Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam to Wellington’s religious landscape. There is also a small, long-established Jewish community. [19]
Although the role of religion in Wellington life has waned dramatically recently, the city has several important ecclesiastical buildings. These include several synagogues, mosques, temples and other religious buildings and Old St Paul’s Cathedral, a wooden Gothic-revival structure built in 1865, and Futuna Chapel, a modernist style structure designed by Māori architect John Scott. [20]
Festivals
Wellington has become home to a myriad of high-profile events and cultural celebrations, including a biennial International Festival of the Arts, annual International Jazz Festival, and major events such as Cuba Street Carnival, the New Zealand Fringe Festival, the Summer City, the New Zealand Affordable Art Show, numerous film festivals, and the World of Wearable Art.
Sport
Sport is a very important part of all New Zealander’s lives and especially for Wellingtonians.
Wellington’s regular high winds create ideal conditions for sailing and windsurfing, especially on Porirua and Wellington harbors. Wellington’s first cricket club was formed in 1841, and the Basin Reserve, regularly hosts both first-class and international games. Soccer is popular in Wellington with the region represented at the interprovincial level by Team Wellington, and the Wellington Phoenix soccer team representing New Zealand in the Australian A-league. [21] The two main sports grounds in Wellington are Westpac Stadium, one of New Zealand’s chief rugby union football grounds, and the Basin Reserve, one of New Zealand’s finest cricket grounds.
Wellington also supports several franchised or local teams that compete in international or inter-provincial competitions. These teams include:
Sister city relationships
Historical sister cities
Friendly sister city
Notes
References
External links
All links retrieved August 18, 2020.
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Wellington
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Wellington, capital city, port, and major commercial centre of New Zealand, located in the extreme south of North Island. It lies on the shores and hills surrounding Wellington Harbour (Port Nicholson), an almost landlocked bay that is ranked among the world’s finest harbours. Mount Victoria rises 643 feet (196 metres) near the centre of the city. Wellington is in a fault zone and has survived several earthquakes.
In 1839 a ship belonging to the New Zealand Company arrived with officials who were to select a site for the company’s first settlement. The site chosen, at the mouth of the Hutt River, proved unsuitable, and a move was made to Lambton Harbour on the west shore. The settlement was named in 1840 in recognition of the aid given the company by Arthur Wellesley, 1st duke of Wellington. It was made a borough in 1842 and a city in 1886. In 1865 the seat of the central government was transferred there from Auckland. The city is part of the Wellington local government region.
Wellington is the country’s transportation and communications hub. Rail and road services extend from it to all parts of North Island, and ferries to Picton link the capital to South Island. The city’s international airport is the focal point of the country’s internal aviation network. The harbour, serving domestic and international shipping, imports petroleum products, motor vehicles, and minerals and exports meats, wood products, dairy products, wool, and fruit. The economy is primarily service-based, with an emphasis on finance, business services, and government. Wellington is also a regional health and education centre. Tourism is important, and there is a growing film industry. Although manufacturing in the city itself has declined since the late 1980s, the region still has a printing industry and produces chemicals, plastics, and machinery. Victoria and Massey universities are in Wellington.
Much of the city is built on land reclaimed from the bay. Notable institutions include the Parliament buildings (among them the distinctive “Beehive” building), the National Library, the City Gallery Wellington (housing contemporary art), and the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts (featuring the work of New Zealand artists). Te Papa Tongarewa, the national museum, moved to new quarters in 1998. The zoo and botanical gardens feature local species. The Old Government Building (built in 1876) is one of the world’s largest wooden structures. Wellington is the home of the Royal New Zealand Ballet and the National Symphony Orchestra. Pop. (2006) city, 178,671; urban agglom., 397,974; (2012 est.) city, 201,300; urban agglom., 395,600.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.
Page 3. A new capital
In September 1854 James FitzGerald, briefly New Zealand’s first head of government, proposed in the Assembly that the next session ‘should be held in a more central position in the colony’. 1 The proposal was defeated 13–11 as a result of FitzGerald’s failure to consult sufficiently with other members of the Assembly, with many South Island members absent from the chamber at the time of the vote.
Big shake-up
Wellington was affected by a major earthquake in the Wairarapa in January 1855. At magnitude 8.2, it is the largest earthquake ever recorded in New Zealand. The quake destroyed the offices of the Wellington provincial government. While this did not deter those recommending Wellington as a preferred site for the country’s capital, in modern times significant effort has gone into the installation of building stabilisation techniques (in Parliament and the Beehive, for instance) in order to guard against the effects of another earthquake – seen as inevitable given the capital’s location at the site of several fault lines.
Auckland and Wellington
In May 1856 a resolution affirming that the General Assembly’s next meeting should be held in Auckland was amended, by deleting ‘Auckland’ and substituting ‘a more central position’. While ultimately the Assembly chose to leave the matter to the governor, in July the question was debated again, with a vote for Nelson – New Zealand’s most centrally situated community, in the north of the South Island – only narrowly defeated. Following support for meeting in Wellington, the colony’s upper house – the Legislative Council – decided to advise the governor of ‘the great inconvenience and mischief’ 2 that would result from a move away from Auckland. In response, Governor Thomas Gore Browne suggested that there might be merit in alternating meetings between Auckland and Wellington.
Wellington and Nelson
In 1862 Wellington was given the opportunity to host a session of the General Assembly, but a proposal for the arrangement to be made permanent was defeated – by a single vote. The following year, a group of Wellington and Nelson legislators proposed that the capital be moved somewhere on the shores of Cook Strait between the North and South islands – Wellington was at one end of the strait and Nelson more or less at the other. The choice was to be made by an independent tribunal.
Heroic names
Both Wellington and Nelson were named for British military heroes of the Napoleonic period, with Wellington honouring the first Duke of Wellington (Arthur Wellesley), victorious at Waterloo in 1815, and Nelson celebrating Admiral Horatio Nelson, hero of the battle of Trafalgar (1805). European settlement, under the auspices of the New Zealand Company, began in Wellington in 1840 and in Nelson in 1842.
Choosing a new capital
The resolution proposed that three of Australia’s governors (of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania) should appoint commissioners to select the site of the New Zealand capital. New Zealand is in the unusual position of having had its capital city chosen – on the preference of its own elected legislators – by a commission comprising people who lived in another country.
The Australian commissioners
The three commissioners who chose Wellington as New Zealand’s capital were Francis Murphy, speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Colony of Victoria; Joseph Docker, a member of the Legislative Council of the Colony of New South Wales; and Ronald C. Gunn, formerly a member of Tasmania’s Legislative Council and House of Assembly.
The commissioners’ report
The commissioners were appointed by Governor George Grey, following a resolution from the Legislative Council declaring ‘that the Seat of Government should be placed in a central position, that is to say, somewhere upon the shores of Cook’s Straits’. 3 The commissioners submitted their report from Government House, Nelson, on 3 October 1864. It was a brief statement – a letter – taking up only two pages when reprinted in the records of the New Zealand Parliament.
The commissioners reviewed their travels in New Zealand, noting that they had inspected Wellington and various sites in the north of the South Island, including Picton, Queen Charlotte’s Sound and the Tory Channel, Blenheim, Pelorus Sound, Havelock and Nelson. They stated that the main criteria to be followed in determining the choice of capital were the central position of the site; the ‘water capabilities’, including the character of the harbour; the ‘land capabilities’, including the extent of the proposed site; the resources of the surrounding country; the ‘capabilities of defence’, with respect to both attack by land or sea; and any natural disadvantages. 4
Nelson as New Zealand’s capital
Most New Zealanders are probably unaware that Wellington and Nelson had once competed to be the site of the capital. The choice of a country’s capital can have significant economic and regional consequences, affecting political, social and cultural developments. A view of how New Zealand might have been dramatically altered had Nelson been chosen rather than Wellington is offered in ‘What if Nelson had been made the capital of New Zealand?’, a chapter in the 2008 book New Zealand as it might have been.
The choice of Wellington
The choice of Wellington by the commissioners was announced, without elaboration, in a single sentence: ‘Having thus made themselves acquainted, as far as was practicable, with the character and capabilities of both shores of Cook’s Strait, the Commissioners have arrived at the unanimous conclusion that Wellington, in Port Nicholson, is the site upon the shores of Cook’s Straits which presents the greatest advantages for the administration of the Government of the Colony.’ 5 No further explanation was given. It is assumed that their preference for Wellington reflected the city’s superior harbour, particularly important at a time when most members of Parliament would have travelled to the capital by sea.
Having made their recommendation, the commissioners were paid for their services and left the country. In the aftermath there was public protest in Auckland and a bid by Auckland’s assembly members to separate Auckland from the rest of the country. The proposed secession did not proceed, and a subsequent measure to separate the North and South islands likewise came to naught. The move to Wellington – as the capital for a united New Zealand – took place in 1865.