New Zealand Constitution Act 1846
Encyclopedia
The New Zealand Constitution Act 1846 (9 & 10 Vict. c. 103) was an Act
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
intended to grant self-government
to the colony of New Zealand
, but it was never fully implemented. The Act's long title
was An Act to make further Provision for the Government of the New Zealand Islands, and it received the royal assent
on 28 August 1846.
The Act formally remained part of New Zealand's constitution until it was repealed by the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852
.
was the Charter of 1840, which specified:
The Executive and Legislative Councils met infrequently during the governorships of Hobson and his successors, Lieutenant Willoughby Shortland (as Administrator), Robert FitzRoy and Sir George Grey. Throughout the Crown colony period each Governor held, in the name of the Crown, complete control over the executive and legislative functions of government.
settlement, briefly had its own independent governing council, until Governor Hobson sent his Colonial Secretary, Willoughby Shortland
, and some soldiers to Port Nicholson to end any challenge to British sovereignty (the colonists had set up a "colonial council", which Hobson described as a "republic", in March 1840 headed by Wakefield and Smith, and primitive legal institutions).
The people of Auckland, then the capital, were less interested. Eventually, pressure led to the enactment in 1846 in London of an intricate constitution.
The Act was intended to be implemented by a royal charter
and royal instructions
, issued on 23 December 1846.
George Grey
argued that the Constitution Act would place the Māori majority under the political control of the settlers, and so undermine his efforts to protect Māori interests. In 1848 (just before Grey created two provinces, New Ulster and New Munster) the British Parliament passed the Government of New Zealand Act 1848 under which parts of the 1846 Act dealing with establishment of provincial assemblies and the General Assembly were not to come into force for another five years.
The Charter provisions relating to the Legislative Council for the whole colony continued and the Governor was authorised to establish Legislative Councils in each of the provinces. However, settler pressure for representative institutions and criticism of Grey intensified, and for the next four years the Governor pursued a course that gave little satisfaction to the settlers.
Early in 1848 he had appointed Major-General Pitt
(he was followed by Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Henry Wynyard) as Lieutenant-Governor of New Ulster, and Edward John Eyre
as Lieutenant-Governor of New Munster. Each had associated with him an Executive Council. Later in the same year Grey, through an Ordinance of the General Legislative Council, established nominated Legislative Councils in each province. The Provincial Council of New Ulster was never summoned. In 1851, under the authority of the 1846 Act, Grey made the town of Auckland a municipality, but this step did not relieve the pressure for a Legislative Council which would be representative of the whole province.
The Provincial Council of New Munster had only one legislative session – in 1849 – before it succumbed to the virulent attacks of the Wellington settlers. Grey, sensible to the pressures, inspired an ordinance of the General Legislative Council under which new Legislative Councils would be established in each province with two-thirds of their members elected on a generous franchise. Grey, however, proceeded to implement the ordinance with such deliberation that neither Council met before advice was received that the Parliament at Westminster had passed the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852
.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
intended to grant self-government
Self-governing colony
A self-governing colony is a colony with an elected legislature, in which politicians are able to make most decisions without reference to the colonial power with formal or nominal control of the colony...
to the colony of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, but it was never fully implemented. The Act's long title
Long title
The long title is the formal title appearing at the head of a statute or other legislative instrument...
was An Act to make further Provision for the Government of the New Zealand Islands, and it received the royal assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
on 28 August 1846.
The Act formally remained part of New Zealand's constitution until it was repealed by the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852
New Zealand Constitution Act 1852
The New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that granted self-government to the colony of New Zealand...
.
The Charter of 1840
Prior to the Act, the basic document setting out the governance of New Zealand since the signing of the Treaty of WaitangiTreaty of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi is a treaty first signed on 6 February 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and various Māori chiefs from the North Island of New Zealand....
was the Charter of 1840, which specified:
- The three principal islands of New Zealand were to be known as New UlsterNew UlsterNew Ulster was the name of a province of New Zealand that existed between 1841 and 1853.-Original province:Between 1841 and 1846 the province included all the North Island north of the Patea River. With the passing of the New Zealand Constitution Act 1846, the province came to include all of the...
, New Munster, and New LeinsterNew LeinsterNew Leinster was a province of New Zealand, consisting of Stewart Island/Rakiura named after the Irish province of Leinster.Governor William Hobson named the North Island New Ulster, the South Island New Munster and Stewart Island/Rakiura New Leinster after the correspondence regions in Ireland in...
. - The Governor was to summon an Executive CouncilExecutive Council of New ZealandThe Executive Council of New Zealand is the body which legally serves the functions of the Cabinet. It has a function similar to that served by the Privy Council in the United Kingdom...
to advise and assist him. This Council comprised the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, and the Treasurer. - A Legislative Council of seven people – the Governor, the members of the Executive Council, and three nominated Justices of the Peace – was to make laws and ordinances "for the peace, order, and good government" of the colony.
The Executive and Legislative Councils met infrequently during the governorships of Hobson and his successors, Lieutenant Willoughby Shortland (as Administrator), Robert FitzRoy and Sir George Grey. Throughout the Crown colony period each Governor held, in the name of the Crown, complete control over the executive and legislative functions of government.
Settler demands for representative government
There was a growing agitation from the settlers for representative government. This was particularly the case in Wellington which, as a New Zealand CompanyNew Zealand Company
The New Zealand Company originated in London in 1837 as the New Zealand Association with the aim of promoting the "systematic" colonisation of New Zealand. The association, and later the company, intended to follow the colonising principles of Edward Gibbon Wakefield, who envisaged the creation of...
settlement, briefly had its own independent governing council, until Governor Hobson sent his Colonial Secretary, Willoughby Shortland
Willoughby Shortland
Commander Willoughby Shortland RN was a British naval officer and colonial administrator. He was New Zealand's first Colonial Secretary from 1841, after having arrived in New Zealand with Lieutenant Governor William Hobson in January 1840...
, and some soldiers to Port Nicholson to end any challenge to British sovereignty (the colonists had set up a "colonial council", which Hobson described as a "republic", in March 1840 headed by Wakefield and Smith, and primitive legal institutions).
The people of Auckland, then the capital, were less interested. Eventually, pressure led to the enactment in 1846 in London of an intricate constitution.
Effect
The Act provided for a three-tiered system of representative government:- Municipal corporations were to be created with the powers of English boroughs;
- Two provincesProvinces of New ZealandThe Provinces of New Zealand existed from 1841 until 1876 as a form of sub-national government. They were replaced by counties, which were themselves replaced by districts.Following abolition, the provinces became known as provincial districts...
were to be established with assemblies that would include a Governor, a nominated Legislative Council, and a House of Representatives elected by the mayor and councillors of the municipalities in the province; - A General Assembly for the whole colony consisting of a Governor-in-Chief, a nominated Legislative Council, and a House of Representatives appointed by the houses of the provinces from their own members.
The Act was intended to be implemented by a royal charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
and royal instructions
Royal instructions
Royal instructions are formal instructions issued to Governors of the United Kingdom's colonial dependencies. They have also been issued to the Governor General of certain Commonwealth realms.Traditionally the royal instructions were issued to a Governor to:...
, issued on 23 December 1846.
Suspension
Governor of New ZealandGovernor-General of New Zealand
The Governor-General of New Zealand is the representative of the monarch of New Zealand . The Governor-General acts as the Queen's vice-regal representative in New Zealand and is often viewed as the de facto head of state....
George Grey
George Edward Grey
Sir George Grey, KCB was a soldier, explorer, Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Governor of Cape Colony , the 11th Premier of New Zealand and a writer.-Early life and exploration:...
argued that the Constitution Act would place the Māori majority under the political control of the settlers, and so undermine his efforts to protect Māori interests. In 1848 (just before Grey created two provinces, New Ulster and New Munster) the British Parliament passed the Government of New Zealand Act 1848 under which parts of the 1846 Act dealing with establishment of provincial assemblies and the General Assembly were not to come into force for another five years.
The Charter provisions relating to the Legislative Council for the whole colony continued and the Governor was authorised to establish Legislative Councils in each of the provinces. However, settler pressure for representative institutions and criticism of Grey intensified, and for the next four years the Governor pursued a course that gave little satisfaction to the settlers.
Early in 1848 he had appointed Major-General Pitt
George Dean Pitt
Major-General George Dean Pitt was Lieutenant-Governor of the former New Zealand Province of New Ulster from 14 February 1848 to his death on 8 January 1851...
(he was followed by Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Henry Wynyard) as Lieutenant-Governor of New Ulster, and Edward John Eyre
Edward John Eyre
Edward John Eyre was an English land explorer of the Australian continent, colonial administrator, and a controversial Governor of Jamaica....
as Lieutenant-Governor of New Munster. Each had associated with him an Executive Council. Later in the same year Grey, through an Ordinance of the General Legislative Council, established nominated Legislative Councils in each province. The Provincial Council of New Ulster was never summoned. In 1851, under the authority of the 1846 Act, Grey made the town of Auckland a municipality, but this step did not relieve the pressure for a Legislative Council which would be representative of the whole province.
The Provincial Council of New Munster had only one legislative session – in 1849 – before it succumbed to the virulent attacks of the Wellington settlers. Grey, sensible to the pressures, inspired an ordinance of the General Legislative Council under which new Legislative Councils would be established in each province with two-thirds of their members elected on a generous franchise. Grey, however, proceeded to implement the ordinance with such deliberation that neither Council met before advice was received that the Parliament at Westminster had passed the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852
New Zealand Constitution Act 1852
The New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that granted self-government to the colony of New Zealand...
.