History of Auckland Trivia Quiz

Answer: Religious reasons

The area where Auckland stands is on a narrow piece of land surrounded by several bodies of water including Waitemata Harbor and Manukau Harbor. This allowed for the Maori people to have an abundance of fish all around Tamaki Makau Rau as well as having fertile farming lands. The Maori people would increase the size of their farmlands by building terraces into the sides of volcanoes.

Answer: Two Maori iwi (tribes) against each other

The Battle of Moremonui was a skirmish between two rival Maori iwi or factions: the Ngati Whatua and the Ngapuhi. The Europeans in the area supplied the Ngapuhi with muskets; however they were defeated anyway because the Ngapuhi were not skilled in their usage. The Battle of Moremonui did not take place within Auckland territory but it is important in the city's history because it is the first of the Musket Wars that saw Maori iwi exchange territory at the beginning of the 19th century.

Pictured it the bluff of Moremonui near where the battle took place.

Answer: Treaty of Waitangi

The Treaty of Waitangi was signed on February 6, 1840. It still remains controversial to this day. The English-language version of the treaty claims the Maori ceded all lands to the crown and New Zealand became a British colony under full British control. The Maori-language version claims the Maori ceded their land to the crown in exchange for protection and the Maori would retain self-governance. Many Maori and people of Maori believe the British did not follow through on their side of the bargain. Since the treaty was signed, the British Crown has issued a number of apologies to the Maori and has paid out reparations.

The area where Auckland now stands was chosen to be the capital by William Hobson, the new New Zealand governor. It was called Auckland after George Eden, the Earl of Auckland. The capital was moved to Wellington in 1865.

Answer: Wellington is centrally located.

Wellington, then called Port Nicholson, is located on the southern tip of North Island, while Auckland is located on the northern end of the same island. Wellington's location made it the ideal hub between the two major islands of New Zealand. This was important because of the discovery of gold in the 1860s on South Island. Gold and sheep would be transported from South Island to Wellington and then onward throughout North Island or to Britain and beyond. Wellington thus became a major port city which made it a bigger player in the New Zealand economy than Auckland.

Pictured is the statue of Richard John Seddon outside of the Parliament House in Wellington.

Answer: To facilitate the movement of soldiers into Maori lands

New Zealand Governor George Grey ordered the construction of the Great South Road as a means to move soldiers easily into Maori territory. During the 1860s, the Maori people started Kingitanga or Maori King Movement. This was an attempt to start a Maori monarch-like role. Grey saw this movement as a threat to his power. The original purpose of the Great South Road allowed Grey to wield his power in Maori lands, which were mostly swampy and marshy areas isolated from white New Zealand. The conflict between the British who controlled New Zealand and the Maori is commonly called the Waikato Campaign.

The Maori did establish a controversial Maori monarch who is basically only a figurehead and holds no real power. It is a controversial position because some iwi claim the Maori monarch is only king or queen of the iwi he or she belongs to and not all iwi.

Pictured is the Great South Road, which is now part of New Zealand State Highway One, in an area of downtown Auckland.

Answer: A fake Russian war ship

Beginning in he 1850s, there was a recurrence of Russian ships randomly visiting New Zealand and other South Pacific islands. This created a so-called "Russian Scare" in Auckland during the last decades of the 19th century. The fears of the people were further exacerbated when David Luckie, the editor of the "Daily Southern Cross", published a hoax report that Kaskowiski, a Russian ship that really did not exist, had invaded Auckland.

Despite the fact the report was dated months in advance from when it was published, many people still believed it.

The name Kaskowiski actually means "case of whiskey" (hence the picture). The Russian Scare continued well into the 1880s when Auckland began fortifying its coast in preparation for a Russian invasion amidst tensions between Britain and Russia over Afghanistan.

Answer: Wellington

The 1913 Great Strike began in Wellington when unionized ship workers sought compensation for transportation. Laws passed in the decade prior made striking illegal in some circumstances and heavy penalties imposed on strikers. After more dockworkers, who also happened to be union leaders, were fired in Huntley, workers in Auckland went on strike both for solidarity purposes and to seek improved work conditions and benefits. Workers from all industries eventually went on strike from all over New Zealand.

Pictured is part of Wellington's skyline and harbor.

Answer: False

There was a constant fear the Auckland would be invaded by Japan during the war. Indeed, the Japanese did fly over the city on many occasions. Auckland primarily served as a harbor for Allied ships to be repaired. One of New Zealand's most powerful ship during the war was the HMNZS Leander which sunk a number of Axis ships in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Answer: Rainbow Warrior

The Rainbow Warrior was about to a lead a fleet of ships to the Mururoa Atoll to protest nuclear testing by France. However, while docked in Auckland Harbor the ship was bombed. There were two bombs planted. The first bomb was intended not to destroy the ship but to evacuate it since the Rainbow Warrior was open to the public. The second explosion sunk the ship. However, a Portuguese photographer named Fernando Pereira was killed when he went back on the ship to retrieve his camera. The perpetrators were two French agents who were eventually arrested by New Zealand police and charged with manslaughter, arson and other crimes. The incident caused a riff in New Zealand-France relations as the two countries had been close allies prior.

Pictured is the Rainbow Warrior Memorial which was designed by Chris Booth and stands in Auckland.

Answer: Sky Tower

Sky Tower stands 1,076 feet tall above the city of Auckland. It is comparable to the Space Needle in Seattle as both are similarly shaped and have a revolving restaurant in them. The top of the tower is used for telecommunications and broadcasting purposes.

It is also comparable to the Empire State Building in New York, the Eiffel Tower in Paris and other world landmarks because the top is lit in different colors to celebrate different holidays.