Marianne Williams, together with her sister-in-law

Jane Williams Jane Williams (''née'' Jane Cleveland; 21 January 1798 – 8 November 1884) was a British woman best known for her association with the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Jane was raised in England and India, before marrying a naval ...

, was a pioneering educator in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. They established schools for Māori children and adults as well as educating the children of the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

(CMS) in the

Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for its ...

. The Māori women called her ''Mata Wiremu'' (Mother Williams).

Early life

Marianne Williams, née Marianne Coldham, was born in Yorkshire, England 12 December 1793. Marianne was the oldest child of Wright and Anne Coldham. Wright Coldham and Thomas Williams (Marianne's father-in-law) were hosiers in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

, and both were Sheriffs. The family had moved to

from

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. Her father, Wright Coldham, was an active member of the Presbyterian

High Pavement Chapel High Pavement Chapel is a redundant church building in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England. It is now the Pitcher and Piano public house and is Grade II listed. It was built as, and for most of its existence operated as, a Unitarian place of wo ...

in Nottingham. Wright Coldham received recognition as a

Burgess __NOTOC__ Burgess may refer to: People and fictional characters * Burgess (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Burgess (given name), a list of people Places * Burgess, Michigan, an unincorporated community * Burgess, Missouri, U ...

of Nottingham in 1796; as a

Sheriff of Nottingham The Sheriff of Nottingham is the main antagonist in the legend of Robin Hood. He is generally depicted as an unjust tyrant who mistreats the local people of Nottinghamshire, subjecting them to unaffordable taxes. Robin Hood fights against him, ...

in 1798; and as the Mayor of Nottingham in 1809. In 1810 Anne Coldham died and at the age 16 Marianne took over raising her three sisters, Sarah, Maria and Anne, caring for her blind grandmother Mrs Temple, the running of the mayoral household and acting as Lady Mayoress at civic events. In 1815 Wright Coldham died.''Letters from the Bay of Islands'' p. 3 (Caroline Fitzgerald, 2004) Marianne and

Henry Williams Henry Williams may refer to: Politicians * Henry Williams (activist) (born 2000), chief of staff of the Mike Gravel 2020 presidential campaign * Henry Williams (MP for Northamptonshire) (died 1558), Member of Parliament (MP) for Northamptonshire ...

were married on 20 January 1818 by Henry's cousin and brother-in law, the Rev. Edward Marsh, a member of the

. Marianne and Henry shared a Christian faith and they joined the

(CMS), with the decision eventually being made that Henry would become an ordained minister and CMS missionary in the

. In a letter to the Committee of the CMS of 6 August 1822, Henry said of Marianne: "''she does not accompany me merely as my wife, but as a fellow-helper in the work''".Sarah Marianne Williams. 'Williams, Marianne - Biography', from the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
in ''

Dictionary of New Zealand Biography The ''Dictionary of New Zealand Biography'' (DNZB) is an encyclopedia or biographical dictionary containing biographies of over 3,000 deceased New Zealanders. It was first published as a series of print volumes from 1990 to 2000, went online i ...

'' (DNZB)

The early years in the Bay of Islands

On 11 September 1822 Henry and Marianne and three children embarked on the ''Lord Sidmouth'', a

convict ship A convict ship was any ship engaged on a voyage to carry convicted felons under sentence of penal transportation from their place of conviction to their place of exile. Description A convict ship, as used to convey convicts to the British coloni ...

carrying women convicts to

Port Jackson Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. After a short stay with Rev.

Samuel Marsden Samuel Marsden (25 June 1765 – 12 May 1838) was an English-born priest of the Church of England in Australia and a prominent member of the Church Missionary Society, believed to have introduced Christianity to New Zealand. Marsden was a prom ...

, he accompanied them on ship the ''Brampton'' from

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

to the

where they arrived at

Kerikeri Kerikeri () is the largest town in Northland, New Zealand. It is a tourist destination north of Auckland and north of the northern region's largest city, Whangarei. It is sometimes called the Cradle of the Nation, as it was the site of th ...

on 7 August 1823. The CMS had an established mission at

where they stayed while Henry and other CMS members and built a store of plank and timber and a raupo hut on

Paihia Paihia is the main tourist town in the Bay of Islands in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is 60 kilometres north of Whangārei, located close to the historic towns of Russell and Kerikeri. Missionary Henry William ...

beach. On 15 September 1823 the family moved into the raupo hut, which Marianne described as having the appearance of a beehive. In 1830 a more substantial house was built using lath and plaster. Chickens, ducks, goats and a horse were brought from

. A garden was soon cultivated. Food was either cultivated or imported on the infrequent ships from

. Pork and

Kūmara The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable. The young shoot ...

could be traded from the Māori, however in the early days

musket A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually d ...

s were the item of barter which Māori wanted to trade, but

refused to trade muskets. The supply of pork and other food was withheld in an attempt to pressure Henry to trade muskets for food.

The protection of the mission by the chiefs of the Ngāpuhi

The members of the mission were under the protection of

Hongi Hika Hongi Hika ( – 6 March 1828) was a New Zealand Māori rangatira (chief) and war leader of the iwi of Ngāpuhi. He was a pivotal figure in the early years of regular European contact and settlement in New Zealand. As one of the first Māori l ...

, the

rangatira In Māori culture, () are tribal chiefs, the hereditary Māori leaders of a hapū. Ideally, rangatira were people of great practical wisdom who held authority () on behalf of the tribe and maintained boundaries between a tribe's land and that ...

(chief) and war leader of the

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165, ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

(tribe). The immediate protector of the

mission was the chief Te Koki and his wife

Ana Hamu Ana Hamu was a Māori people, Māori woman of the Ngāpuhi iwi (tribe) in northern New Zealand. She was a woman of high rank and the owner of the land occupied by the New Zealand Church Missionary Society, Church Missionary Society (CMS) at Paihia. ...

, a woman of high rank and the owner of the land occupied by the mission at

. In 1827 Hongi Hika lead the Ngāpuhi against the tribes at

Whangaroa Whangaroa is a settlement on Whangaroa Harbour in the Far North District of New Zealand. It is 8 km north-west of Kaeo and 35 km north-west of Kerikeri. The harbour is almost landlocked and is popular both as a fishing spot in its o ...

which caused anxiety amongst the missionaries as they feared they would be caught up in the fighting. The fears of the missionaries were increased when some of the warriors of Hongi Hika, acting contrary to his orders, plundered and burnt the

Wesleyan Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles W ...

mission at Whangaroa. During a skirmish Hongi Hika was shot in the chest by one of his warriors, which resulted in the missionaries fearing that they would suffer in the event that a muru occurred following his death (an attack launched out of respect for a deceased chief). On 6 March 1828

spent his last moments "exhorting his followers to be valiant, and repel any force, however great, which might come against them - telling them this was all the utu, or satisfaction, that he desired". The death of Tiki, a son of

Pōmare I Pōmare I (c. 1753 – September 3, 1803) (fully in old orthography: Tu-nui-ea-i-te-atua-i-Tarahoi Vaira'atoa Taina Pōmare I; also known as Tu or Tinah or Outu, or more formally as Tu-nui-e-a'a-i-te-atua) was the unifier and first king of T ...

(also called Whetoi) and the subsequent death of

Te Whareumu Te Whareumu (died 1828) was the ariki and warrior chief of Ngāti Manu, a hapū within the Ngāpuhi iwi based in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand. Te Whareumu was the most important chief in the Kororakeka area in his day. He was a warrior c ...

in 1828 threw the

Hokianga The Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as the Hokianga River, a long estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. The original name, still used by local Māori, is ...

into a state of uncertainty as the other Ngāpuhi chiefs debated what revenge was required. Henry was asked to mediate between the combatants. As the Ngāpuhi chiefs did not want to escalate the fighting, a peaceful resolution was achieved. In 1830 there was a battle, at

Kororareka Russell, known as Kororāreka in the early 19th century, was the first permanent European settlement and seaport in New Zealand. It is situated in the Bay of Islands, in the far north of the North Island. History and culture Māori settle ...

(Russell), that is called the Girls' War,Smith, S. Percy – Maori Wars of the Nineteenth Century. Christchurch 1910 which also caused the missionaries to fear they would be caught up in the fighting. While there were misunderstandings and arguments between the missionaries and the Ngāpuhi, the CMS mission was never threatened.

The Paihia mission

The missionary work of

and his attempts to act as peacemaker in intertribal conflicts meant that he spent months at a time travelling through the North Island of New Zealand. Marianne shared mission responsibilities with her sister-in-law, Jane Williams, together they cared for and educated their families. Together with

, Marianne set up a boarding school for Māori girls; and provided classes to the children of CMS missionaries in the morning with schools for Māori children and adults in the afternoon. Schools were established in the communities inland from the

. Marianne trained and supervised the teachers, who included the wives of other CMS missionaries, her daughters, nieces or future daughters-in-law. In 1832 Marianne and Janes Williams, together with Mrs. Brown, Mrs. Fairburn, and Mrs. Puckey, continued in charge of the Native Girls' School, and of an Infant School at Paihia. The domestic responsibilities of Marianne extended beyond her large family and included Māori and Pakeha visitors to the mission as well as providing assistance to other CMS members in

and

Waimate North Waimate North is a small settlement in Northland, New Zealand. It is situated between Kerikeri and Lake Ōmāpere, west of the Bay of Islands. It was one of the earliest centres of European settlement and features the second-oldest surviving E ...

. Marianne and Henry had eleven children:Evans 1992, p. 19 Henry and Marianne Williams gravestones

* Edward Marsh (2 November 1818 – 11 October 1909). Married Jane Davis, daughter of CMS missionary the Revd Richard Davis. * Marianne (28 April 1820 – 25 November 1919). Married CMS missionary the Revd Christopher Pearson Davies. *

Samuel Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...

(17 January 1822 – 14 March 1907). Married Mary Williams, daughter of William and Jane Williams. * Henry (Harry) (10 November 1823 – 6 December 1907). Married Jane Elizabeth Williams (also a daughter of William and Jane). * Thomas Coldham Williams (18 July 1825 – 19 May 1912). Married Annie Palmer Beetham, daughter of

William Beetham William Beetham (25 July 1809 – 3 August 1888) was an English-born portrait painter, who painted mainly in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. He exhibited his paintings at the Royal Academy of Arts in London (1834–53) and painted in Hamburg, ...

. * John William (6 April 1827 – 27 April 1904). Married Sarah Busby, daughter of

James Busby James Busby (7 February 1802 – 15 July 1871) was the British Resident in New Zealand from 1833 to 1840. He was involved in drafting the 1835 Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand and the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi. As British Resident, ...

. * Sarah (26 February 1829 – 5 April 1866). Married Thomas Bidulph Hutton. * Catherine (Kate) (24 February 1831 – 8 January 1902). Married the Revd

Octavius Hadfield Octavius Hadfield (6 October 1814 – 11 December 1904) was Archdeacon of Kapiti, Bishop of Wellington from 1870 to 1893 and Primate of New Zealand from 1890 to 1893. He was a member of the Church Missionary Society (CMS) for thirty years. H ...

. * Caroline Elizabeth (13 November 1832 – 20 January 1916). Married Samuel Blomfield Ludbrook. * Lydia Jane (2 December 1834 – 28 November 1891). Married

Hugh Carleton Hugh Francis Carleton (3 July 1810 – 14 July 1890) was New Zealand's first member of parliament. Early life Carleton was born in 1810. He was the son of Francis Carleton (1780–1870) and Charlotte Margaretta Molyneux-Montgomerie (d. 1874). ...

. * Joseph Marsden (5 March 1837 – 30 March 1892).

Life at Pakaraka

Henry and Marianne moved to

Pakaraka Pakaraka is a settlement in Northland, New Zealand, at the junction of State Highway 1 and 10, in the district the Ngāpuhi tribe called Tai-a-mai. Demographics Pakaraka statistical area covers and had an estimated population of as of wit ...

when Henry refused to back down in an argument with Governor

George Grey Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Go ...

over the amount of land Henry had acquired so as to provide for his children. In this argument

Bishop Selwyn George Augustus Selwyn (5 April 1809 – 11 April 1878) was the first Anglican Bishop of New Zealand. He was Bishop of New Zealand (which included Melanesia) from 1841 to 1869. His diocese was then subdivided and Selwyn was Metropolitan (late ...

took the side of Grey, and in 1849 the CMS decided to dismiss Henry from service. However, in 1854 Henry was reinstated to the CMS following representations to the CMS by Governor Grey, Bishop Selwyn and supporters of Henry Williams.Mitcalfe 1963, p. 35 Henry and Marianne lived in the house known as ''The Retreat'', that still stands at Pakaraka. Marianne Williams died at

, on 16 December 1879 and was buried in the grounds of the Holy Trinity Church at

alongside the grave of

Literature and sources

* * (1874) - ''The life of Henry Williams, Archdeacon of Waimate'', Volume I. Auckland NZ.
Online available
from

Early New Zealand Books Early New Zealand Books (ENZB) is a project from the library of the University of Auckland, New Zealand, launched in 2005, that aims at providing keyword-searchable text of significant books published about New Zealand in the first two-thirds of ...

(ENZB). * (1877) - ''The life of Henry Williams, Archdeacon of Waimate'', Volume II. Auckland NZ.
Online available
from

(ENZB). * Evans, Rex D. (compiler) (1992) ''Faith and farming Te huarahi ki te ora; The Legacy of Henry Williams and William Williams''. Published by Evagean Publishing, 266 Shaw Road, Titirangi, Auckland NZ. (soft cover), (hard cover), (leather bound) *Fitzgerald, Caroline (2004) ''Letters from the Bay of Islands'', Sutton Publishing Limited, United Kingdom; (Hardcover). Penguin Books, New Zealand, (Paperback) * Fitzgerald, Caroline (2011) ''Te Wiremu - Henry Williams: Early Years in the North'', Huia Publishers, New Zealand * Gillies, Iain and John (1998) ''East Coast Pioneers. A Williams Family Portrait; A Legacy of Land, Love and Partnership''. Published by The Gisborne Herald Co. Ltd, Gladstone Road, Gisborne NZ. * Mitcalfe, Barry (1963) ''Nine New Zealanders''. Christchurch : Whitcombe and Tombs. The chapter 'Angry peacemaker: Henry Williams – A missionary's courage wins Maori converts' (p. 32 - 36) * Rogers, Lawrence M., (1973) ''Te Wiremu: A Biography of Henry Williams'', Pegasus Press * Williams, William (1867) – ''Christianity among the New Zealanders''. London
Online available
from Archive.org. * Williams, W. ''The Turanga journals'', 1840–1850. Ed. F. Porter. Wellington, 197
Online available
from ENZB * Woods, S. M. ''Marianne Williams'', Christchurch, 1977

References

External links

Henry Williams copy
of the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

on ''New Zealand History online''.
The Early Journals of Henry Williams; Senior Missionary in New Zealand of the Church Missionary Society (1826–40)
Edited by Lawrence M. Rogers. Pegasus Press, Christchurch 1961, at

NZETC The New Zealand Electronic Text Collection (NZETC; mi, Te Pūhikotuhi o Aotearoa) is a freely accessible online archive of New Zealand and Pacific Islands texts and heritage materials that are held by the Victoria University of Wellington Library ...

some sketches made by Henry Williams
at

The Character of Henry Williams
described by Hugh Carleton (1874) – ''The Life of Henry Williams''
Sarah Marianne Williams. 'Williams, Marianne - Biography', from the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
in ''

'' (DNZB)
Robin Fisher. 'Williams, Henry - Biography', from the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
in ''

'' (DNZB)

Gallery

Image:Holy Trinity, Pakaraka.jpg, Holy Trinity Church at Pakaraka Image:Holy_Trinity_Church_Pakaraka_New_Zealand.jpg, Gravestones of Henry and Marianne Williams, Holy Trinity Church Image:Holy Trinity, Pakaraka,i interior.jpg, Interior of the Holy Trinity Image:Holy Trinity, Pakaraka, plaque.jpg, A plaque in the church Image: Henry_and_Marianne_Williams_gravestones.jpg, Gravestones of Henry and Marianne Williams {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Marianne 1793 births 1879 deaths New Zealand educators English Anglican missionaries Anglican missionaries in New Zealand 19th-century New Zealand people Female Christian missionaries Missionary educators