Captain william hobson biography of martin luther

First Governor of New Zealand and co-author of the Treaty of Waitangi

For the professional wrestler, see Powerhouse Hobbs.

CaptainWilliam Hobson (26 September 1792 – 10 September 1842) was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Royal Navy, who served as the first Governor of New Zealand.^[1] He was a co-author of the Treaty of Waitangi.^[2]

Hobson was dispatched from London in July 1839, with instructions to take the constitutional steps needed to establish a British colony in New Zealand.^[3] He was sworn in as Lieutenant-Governor in Sydney (under George Gipps) and arrived in New Zealand on 29 January 1840.

On 5 February 1840, Hobson met with Māori chiefs at Waitangi, and the following morning they signed a treaty by which the chiefs purportedly voluntarily transferred sovereignty to the British Crown in return for guarantees respecting their lands and possessions and their rights as British subjects.

Three months later, Hobso