The Nelson Battalion of Militia was a short-lived military unit of settlers, formed 12 August 1845 under the terms of the Militia Act of 1845. It was part of the
New Zealand Wars
The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the M ...
.
This made the Nelson Battalion of
Militia
A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...
the first Army unit to be formed in the
South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...
and indeed one of the first in New Zealand. The 2nd Battalion (Canterbury and Nelson-Marlborough, and West Coast),
Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment
The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment is the parent administrative regiment and corps of regular and reserve infantry battalions in the New Zealand Army. It was originally formed in 1947 with a singular Regular regiment and multiple reserve r ...
celebrates 12 August 1845 as the beginning of its preceding units.
History
The battalion was commanded by a Commandant, Captain Donald Sinclair, who was also the Nelson Magistrate and was organised into two companies, each of 50 men.
The appointment of the Commandant and other officers was gazetted on 28 August 1845 as being:
* ''Captains'': Donald Sinclair, John D. Greenwood,
David Monro
Sir David Monro (27 March 1813 – 15 February 1877) was a New Zealand politician. He served as Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 1861 to 1870.
Early life
Monro was born in Edinburgh. His father was Alexander Monro, ...
* ''Lieutenants'':
Thomas Renwick,
Francis Dillon Bell
Sir Francis Dillon Bell (8 October 1822 – 15 July 1898) was a New Zealand politician of the late 19th century. He served as New Zealand's third Minister of Finance (the first parliamentary finance minister), and later as its third Speaker of ...
* ''Ensigns'': Charles Thorpe, Alexander le Grand Campbell
* ''Quartermaster'': Henry Seymour
* ''Adjutant'': Richard Newcombe
The Militia Act of 1845, enabled the Governor to form local Militia units in districts that were under threat of hostile actions or emergencies. All males between the ages of 18 and 60, excepting judges, members of the Legislative Council, Māori and clergymen were expected to make themselves available for 28 days service every year. These Militia units were only permitted to operate within 25 mile radius of the settlement, and were consequently used mainly for garrison duties.
Uniforms were a blue shirt of sailor type pattern, a cap and trousers of any type. Whilst armaments were old flintlock muskets - weapons that had originally been imported for bartering with the Māori.
It is believed that the Nelson Militia had fifes and drums to provide them with musical support.
The battalion paraded and trained three times a day for the first 28 days at Fort Arthur in Nelson. By 28 November 1845 the last of the Militiamen had completed their service obligations and the unit was disbanded.
Fort Arthur
Fort Arthur was an elongated hexagonal earthwork about 445 ft by 259 ft (136 m by 80 m), with bastions at each corner, on the flanks of a hill. Within the earthworks, on high ground, stood a stockade measuring 156 ft by 48 ft (48 m by 15 m). It had been built in September 1843 on the site of what is now
Christ Church Cathedral (or Cathedral Hill) by the
New Zealand Company
The New Zealand Company, chartered in the United Kingdom, was a company that existed in the first half of the 19th century on a business model focused on the systematic colonisation of New Zealand. The company was formed to carry out the principl ...
, to provide a safe haven for the settlers of Nelson following the
Wairau Massacre
The Wairau Affray of 17 June 1843, also called the Wairau Massacre in older histories, was the first serious clash of arms between British settlers and Māori in New Zealand after the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and the only one to take ...
and growing aggression from local
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...
.
See also
*
10th (Nelson) Mounted Rifles
References
*
Latter, E. G. (Edward Gale), Marching onward: a history of the 2nd Battalion (Canterbury, Nelson, Marlborough, West Coast) Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment, 1845-1992.
hristchurch: The Battalion, 1992. {{ISBN, 0-473-01567-6
External links
The Nelson Battalion of Militia
Nelson, New Zealand
Military units and formations of New Zealand
History of the Nelson Region