Invasion of Waikato

The Invasion of Waikato was a campaign during the middle stages of the New Zealand Wars, fought in the North Island of New Zealand from July 1863 to April 1864 between the military forces of the Colonial Government and a federation of Māori tribes known as the Kingitanga Movement. Forty four chiefs from this area had signed the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 which in the Colonial Government's eyes gave the British sovereignty over New Zealand and made Māori British subjects. By launching multiple unprovoked attacks on soldiers and settlers Maniapoto warriors defied the wishes of the Māori King for peaceful relations with the government.

Initiated by the Government in response to an unprovoked rebel attack on British soldiers escorting a soldier to New Plymouth in the Taranaki Region, the invasion ended 9 months later with the retreat of the Kingitanga Māori into the rugged interior of the North Island and the confiscation of about 12,000km² of Māori land. Originally 1.2 million acres was confiscated but 6 months after the war, 314,364 acres was returned to loyal kupapa Māori who had supported the Government during the invasion. Although one of the Government's main aims was achieved – the Waikato was brought under Government control – the King Movement itself was defeated on the battle field and its influence was severely reduced. For more than 15 years the King lived in isolation in the rohe potae, with no political influence beyond the approximately 3000 inhabitants and ignored by the Government until they wished to build the North Island Main Trunk.

Following the defeat and the subsequent confiscation of 1.2 million acres of their homelands the King Movement tribes were left with a legacy of sadness, poverty, and bitterness that would last for generations, which was partly assuaged in 1995 when the Waikato Tainui tribe completed negotiations with the Government and accepted a settlement package worth approximately 1 percent of the value of the lands confiscated in 1863. The Government conceded that the 1863 invasion and confiscation was wrongful and apologised for its actions, while the tribe accepted a compensation of cash and some Government controlled lands amounting to a total of approximately $171 million NZD. Later that year, the tribe received an apology for the historical grievance from Queen Elizabeth II during a private meeting with the Māori Queen Te Atairangikaahu.