​Please join us on Wednesday 7 October at 12.15pm to hear Ron Crosby discuss his latest book: KUPAPA - the bitter legacy of Maori alliances with the Crown

Kupapa has been variously defined as being neutral (in a quarrel), being loyal, being an ally or being a traitor, the word itself has come to be as hotly contested as its history. 

​The Treaty of Waitangi struck a bargain between two parties - the Crown and Maori. Its promises of security however, were followed from 1845 to 1872 by a series of volatile and bloody conflicts commonly known as the New Zealand Wars.

Many people believe that these wars were fought solely between the Crown and Maori, when the reality is Maori aligned with both sides, resulting in three participants from differing viewpoints.

It is rarely recognised for instance, that Te Wherowhero, later the first Maori King, was originally a strong supporter of the Crown, or that the numbers of Maori who aligned with the Crown or were neutral probably exceeded those who fought against it. Or that the frontline combat over the final two years was fought almost exclusively between opposing Maori forces. ​Kupapa is an important work that gives voice to an unspoken chapter of Maori history

About the author:  Ron Crosby was born in 1949 and spent the first 30 years of his working life as a court lawyer, initially in partnership for a few years in Auckland, and from 1975 in Blenheim where he still lives. He was admitted to the Bar in 1971 and gained an LLB Hons at Auckland University. In 2002 Ron formally retired as a partner of the law firm Gascoigne Wicks, but continued as a consultant to that firm predominantly in resource management and iwi fields for another six years finally retiring at the end of December 2007 to concentrate on writing.  ​His personal interests include a wide range of sports, and his interest in exploring on foot the bush and back country areas of New Zealand has led to an interest in writing on New Zealand history.

​Publications: ​In 1999 Ron Crosby wrote The Musket Wars –A History of Inter-Iwi Conflict 1806-1845, in 2004 Gilbert Mair – Te Kooti’s Nemesis, in 2006 Andris Apse – Odyssey and Images, in 2008 Albaneta – Lost Opportunity at Casino (all Reed publications); in 2009 NZSAS: The First Fifty Years (Penguin), in 2012 A Desperate Dawn - The Battle for Turuturu Mokai 1868 Tawhi Museum and in 2015 Kupapa - The bitter legacy of Maori alliances with the crown (Penguin Random House).  He has also contributed a chapter on the resource management experiences of the Te Tau Ihu iwi for the book Whenua – Managing our Resources (ed. M. Kawharu, Reeds 2002) a chapter on Gilbert Mair for the book Maori Treasures of New Zealand – Ko Tawa (ed. P.Tapsell, David Bateman, 2006) and a chapter on the iwi of the Te Tau Ihu o the Waka a Maui for the book Marlborough - Celebrating 150 Years (Marlborough District Council, 2011.)

Date: Wednesday 7 October at 12.15pm.   Venue: Ministry for Culture and Heritage, L4 ASB House, 101 The Terrace, Wellington.

To listen again to MCH History Group talks go to: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/handsonhistory/downloads-and-podcasts.  For more information about our regular public history talks please contact lyn.belt@mch.govt.nz.