Poverty Bay

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Location of Poverty Bay on the North Island of New Zealand

The Poverty Bay is the largest of several consecutive bays along the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand , south of the East Cape .

Between Tuaheni Point in the north and Young Nick's Head in the south, the bay forms an almost circular 270 ° arc with a diameter of around 8 kilometers and an arc of around 12 kilometers in length. The city of Gisborne is located on the northern flank of the bay , and in common parlance the name Poverty Bay is used as a term for the entire lake area around the city.

Poverty Bay got its name from Captain James Cook , who anchored in the bay on his first expedition on October 8th and mentioned the bay for the first time in his ship's log around 5:00 p.m. that day. The first shore leave took place on the following day, on October 9th, east of the Turanganui River and thus became a historic milestone in the history of New Zealand. The first encounter with the Māori resulted in the death of six locals during the welcoming ceremony because the haka was misinterpreted and understood as an attack. This made it impossible for Cook to replenish the Endeavor's supplies. Cook had to continue his voyage with no supplies. Because of the horror of the fateful confrontation, he gave the bay the name Poverty Bay (Bay of Poverty ).

history

In 1868 fighting between European settlers and Māori broke out in Poverty Bay. Te Kooti , an insurgent chief, attacked the schooner Rifleman with a group of around 300 warriors as well as women and children and overpowered the crew without bloodshed. The Māori had previously escaped from the Chatham Islands , where they were imprisoned without trial. From here Te Kooti risked numerous attacks with guerrilla tactics on armed troops of the Pākehā (European settlers) and with these sympathetic Māori groups, but also on settlers and other Māori villages.

Current situation

The Poverty Bay region is anything but poor today. Due to the climate and the fertile soil, the area around Gisborne is used as a growing area for fruit and vegetables. The abundant sunshine ensures that the area, along with Hawke's Bay, is one of the most famous wine-growing regions in New Zealand.

In addition, the region's attractiveness for tourism has been increasing for a few years. As a result, many new holiday homes are being built, especially around Gisborne and along Poverty Bay.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Joseph Angus Mackay, Historic Poverty Bay and the East Coast, NI, NZ , JAMackay, Gisborne, NZ 1949, digitized at pages 16-23 - NZETC - (accessed March 21, 2010)

Coordinates: 38 ° 43 ′  S , 177 ° 59 ′  E