NZ Wars - Sources

I haven't quite finished off the bases of my latest Flagstaff War figures, so I thought I'd just do a short post on sources, as a couple of people have asked in the comments. I also need to thank Roly (Arteis) and Pat (Mericanach) for drawing my attention to books I wasn't previously aware of. Anyone coming fresh to this period and wanting to find suitable books will probably find that the most recommended titles are hard to track down cheaply. I've bought most of my books during my trips to New Zealand (and wish I'd listened to my inner wargaming voice and bought more books when I was at the Russell Museum last year), although second hand markets look potentially quite fruitful. That said, there is a mass of information on the internet, and helpful fora. I list below some information sources that I've found most useful.

Books

• "Maori Fortifications" by Ian Knight - Osprey. I reviewed this book for Battlegames a few issues ago and recommend it highly. Easy to get hold of and the author is a reliable guide on Victorian warfare. Excellent illustrations and invaluable for anyone who has any pretensions to model a pa. Whilst the text jumps around in chronological terms, the book provides a short narrative of the entire New Zealand Wars.
  


• "Victoria's Enemies (4)" by Ian Knight - Osprey. This has a good section on the Maori and two decent colour plates, one of which also shows the uniform of a 58th Foot private from the Flagstaff War.
  


• "The British Army on Campaign (1)" by Michael Barthorp - Osprey. This only has a small section on the NZ campaigns but is useful nonetheless.
  


• "The New Zealand Wars" by James Belich - Penguin. This is the only single volume detailed narrative of the entire period that I have found. There appears to be a DVD series that is connected to the book. Belich is a revisionist who objects to much received wisdom and, I think (as I have only read the early chapters so far), considers the idea of a British victory to be much more equivocal.



• "Battlefields of the New Zealand Wars: A Visitor's Guide" by David Green - Penguin. This is what it says, namely a gazetteer, but it includes full descriptions of the sites it refers to and contains much useful information and photos. The introduction has a good summary of the historiography of the period. This book has been published only very recently and I really wish I'd had it when in the Bay of Islands last year!
  


• "The Colonial New Zealand Wars" by Ryan and Parham - Granthan House. This is the one book that people in the know recommend. I can't find it for anything less than £60 and I'm not sure it's actually still in print. I gather that the second, 2002, edition is the one to have as it includes many more illustrations than the first.



• "To Face the Daring Maoris: Soldiers' impressions of the First Maori War 1845-47" by Michael Barthorp - Hodder & Stoughton. I have just ordered this on Pat's and Roly's recommendation. Amazon have a couple of second hand copies.

Websites

• http://history-nz.org/wars.html - good basic information.



• http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/1h16/1 - the DNZB's page on Hone Heke.
  


• http://www.aucklandartgallery.com/whats-on/events/2010/june/goldie-and-lindauer-approaching-portraiture - a link to the Auckland Art Gallery's exhibition of portraits by Lindauer and Goldie, which I saw in March this year. Useful Maori skin and tattoo pictures.



• http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~jray/gordon/moir/war-pics.htm - a collection of the contemporary drawings and watercolours made by John Williams and Cyprian Bridge, both soldiers in the 58th Foot.



• http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~jray/gordon/moir/news1.htm#12th: a collection of contemporary newspaper articles, government announcements and despatches.



• http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cow01NewZ.html - volume 1 of Cowan's "The New Zealand Wars" which covers the Flagstaff War. Well found by Pat!

Wargaming

• http://toofatlardies.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Flagstaff-War-Scenario.pdf - Roly Hermans' Sharpe Practice scenario for the attack on Russell.
  


• http://www.wargamesillustrated.net/Default.aspx?tabid=292&art_id=2166 - articles from WI274 on the Flagstaff War.
  


• http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MaoriWars/?yguid=47512666 - the Maori Wars yahoo group.