The Meeting Place - A New Zealand History Blog

Back in March this year I launched Unsettling: Aotearoa New Zealand History , a   brand new history newsletter on a dedicated email newsletter platform.  In my first post , I talked about how I saw this as an extension of my goal to help raise awareness of Aotearoa New Zealand history. But also, since the past permeates the present in so many ways, how I expected from time to time to also introduce a historical lenses to contemporary debates.   I’ve done that with various issues, including the odious Treaty Principles Bill , cuts to the historian roles at the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, the outrageous assault on basic legal principles represented by the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Amendment Act and other matters.     But I have also traversed a range of other topics, from the  invasion of Parihaka , He Whakaputanga (the 1835 Declaration of Independence of New Zealand),   the Waitangi Tribunal’s 50 th anniversary , the 1852...

I am pleased to say a new edition of my book The Meeting Place: Māori and Pākehā Encounters, 1642-1840 will shortly be published by Bridget Williams Books after the original 2012 work has been out of print for some time now.  The book launch  will be held in Wellington on Tuesday 14 October at the Royal Society Te Apārangi, featuring Hon. Justice Sir Joe Wiliams as guest speaker.   Aronui Lecture Theatre Royal Society Te Apārangi 11 Turnbull Street Thorndon Wellington Tuesday 14 October Doors open from 5.30pm, event starts 6pm. Nau mai, haere mai. Public event, no RSVP needed.    Facebook event https://www.facebook.com/events/1799133634057978/         To mark the release of this new edition, I will be giving away a signed copy of the book to a randomly selected paid (premium) subscriber to my newsletter Unsettling: Aotearoa New Zealand History  on the official launch date. The winner can either receive their prize ...

I have recently been developing an Aotearoa New Zealand History workshop that will cover Te Tiriti o Waitangi/the Treaty but also explore Māori and Tangata Tiriti relations much more broadly, from the late eighteenth century through to today, showing how this history continues to resonate in the present.   The workshop can be delivered online or in-person. And by way of rewarding premium subscribers to my newsletter, I am offering free and exclusive access to the very first online workshop.  Everyone who is a paid subscriber to Unsettling: Aotearoa New Zealand History as at 26 June 2025 will receive a Zoom link to the workshop to be held the following day at:  10.00am-12.00pm NZT Friday 27 June 2025  Just sign up as premium subscriber before then for access and that’s it. All I would ask in return is that, if possible, you provide feedback afterwards on the workshop so that I can make any necessary tweaks or adjustments for future sessions.   Meanwhile if ...

About four years ago Blogger removed the Feedburner email subscription service allowing those who signed up to it to be notified whenever new content was posted on this blog. Although I explored and tried alternatives, none were satisfactory and so this site no longer has that functionality. There are no more notifications.  That was one of the reasons that drove me to set up a brand new newsletter on a dedicated email newsletter platform. And so Unsettling: Aotearoa New Zealand History was quietly launched this week. I'm going to continue with this blog site. But if you are after regular content head over to the newsletter and subscribe (there is a button at the bottom of this post). The first newsletter appears below.   xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx     Ko Vincent O’Malley toku ingoa He kaimahi hītori au Nō Airangi, Koterangi me Ingarangi ōku tīpuna I tipu ake au ki Ōtautahi E noho ana au ki Te Whanganui-a-Tara   No reira, nau mai, haere mai ki tēnei kōrer...

Submissions on the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill close on 7 January 2025 and can be made here . The Waitangi Tribunal has concluded that 'if this Bill were to be enacted, it would be the worst, most comprehensive breach of the Treaty/te Tiriti in modern times'. I have posted my submission to the Justice Committee on the Bill below.   At the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti, 19 November 2024 My name is Dr Vincent O’Malley. I am a Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi (FRSNZ), a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society (FRHistS), a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement in Non-Fiction, besides multiple other awards and prizes. For more than thirty years now I have worked as a professional historian, researching and writing on Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the New Zealand Wars and related matters, including a number of acclaimed and best-selling books. I draw on this background and expert knowledge of the topic matter, in making the following submission stron...