Abstract:
This paper focuses on Māori, monarchy and the representation of Meghan Markle within the context of Aotearoa New Zealand with its bicultural foundation and ties with the Crown. Historically, Māori as tangata whenua (indigenous people of the land) have a significant relationship with the Crown as a Treaty of Waitangi partner. Queen Victoria's representative, Governor William Hobson, signed Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi), the founding document of Aotearoa New Zealand, on her behalf on 6 February 1840. Since this time, many Māori remain loyal to the British monarchy and there has been an expectation that Queen Victoria and her descendants would honour the Treaty.
As a direct descendent of Ngatata-i-te-Rangi, a signatory of the Henry Williams copy of the Treaty, the paper also brings my own indigenous lens to both the representation of Meghan Markle and Māori perspectives on monarchy.
