New Zealand HistoryNew Zealand History documents that New Zealand was first discovered by Europeans in 1642 by Abel Tasman, a Dutch explorer. Tasman did not claim New Zealand for Holland. Then followed British explorer, James Cook, captain of the Endeavour in 1769. Cook sketched 2400 miles of New Zealand coastline on the journey and in doing so proved New Zealand was not part of a major continent.
The British and about 540 Maori chiefs signed The Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, in which the Maoris pledged their allegiance to the British Crown. Fast forward to World War I, New Zealanders figured dramatically as part of the ANZAC, Australia and New Zealand Army Corps, contingent that were a key component of the Gallipoli campaign. Return to New Zealand Facts
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