Two Peoples, One Land

The New Zealand Wars - at one time called the Land Wars and the Maori Wars - represent one of the most misunderstood (and misreported) 30 years in this country's history. This is the first highly illustrated volume to comprehensively detail the events and personalities who gave shape to the conflict, combined with primary source materials such as official documents, diaries, manuscripts, private papers and statistical records collected and studied over many years. What results is a fascinating exploration of cultural miscommunication and the impact of Maori and Pakeha society on each other, of politics and religion, which peel back the veneer of previous studies to reveal the truth of this bloody war - which pitted British against Maori as well as Maori against Maori - fought out both on the physical battlefield and in the arenas of national pride and personal ambition.