Heritage et AL

During the First World War, over 2,000 Māori served under the Native Contingent and the Māori Pioneer Battalion. Conscription of Māori did not take place until 1917, prior to this date, Māori involvement was purely voluntary. Changes put in place in late 1915/early 1916 led to the disestablishment of the Native Contingent and the incorporation of Māori soldiers into the New Zealand Pioneer Battalion, which is more commonly known as the Māori Pioneer Battalion. Ref: Herman John Schmidt, three privates including Pitama probably of the NZ Maori Pioneer Battalion, no location, c. 1915/1916, Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-P917

Updated 18 November 2016 On 23 April earlier this year members of the local Niuean community unveiled a unique war memorial in Mt Roskill’s War Memorial Park. This was the Niue Island World War I Roll of Honour : a polished black granite tablet listing the names of men from Niue Island who served in the New Zealand armed forces during the First World War: 150 men who served in the 3rd Māori Contingent and seven who served in other sections of the NZEF. Why did so many men from a tiny and remote Pacific island volunteer to serve in a war which overtly had little to do with them? Well, New Zealand had annexed both the Cook Islands and Niue in 1901. After war broke out in 1914, many local men from both protectorates were eager to enlist, some of them motivated by patriotism, most of them impelled by a sense of adventure, and the colonial administrators on the spot were keen to facilitate their recruitment. The New Zealand military authorities back home initially welcomed only volun...