“Do not go back, but sit here, a Governor” Matiu, Chief of Uri-o-ngongo, at Waitangi, 5th February 1840 During the late 1700s and early 1800s, incessant intertribal wars, led by the various tribal chiefs, were decimating the Maori population, nearing the point of total extermination.[1] A number of Maori chiefs, unable to resolve the matter between themselves, and for fear of the French, appealed to King William IV of Great Britain to protect them and bring an end to this situation.[2] At first, the Crown was reluctant to intervene,[3] but finally it was agreed to establish a government in New Zealand to assume control of the situation and to establish law and order for Maoris and British alike. This was only possible if the Crown was granted superiority by the chiefs, that is, recognized as sovereign.[4] In the event, the British took control by invitation not by conquest nor by stealth.