Akaroa i-site Visitor Centre and Post Office

Image Credit: Akaroa Harbour**, circa 1870, New Zealand, by John Hoyte. Gift of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, 1936. Te Papa

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This delightful village is unique in NZ history as the only village where the French settled. Akaroa has something for everyone: charming colonial buildings, magnificent harbour, walks, excursions and a great choice of eating places. An Akaroa historic area is registered with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. The Information Centre, which doubles as the Post Office, is where Christchurch shuttle buses stop. Akaroa can be a day trip from Christchurch but an overnight stay could prove more relaxing.

Akaroa ('long harbour') is the biggest township on Banks Peninsula, which was named after the brilliant botanist, Joseph Banks. He sailed with Captain Cook who sighted the peninsula in 1770 and mistook it for an island when he was mapping the coastline. Maori, the first settlers in the area, were followed some centuries later by European whalers. In the 1830s the French, who were yet to establish a colony in the Pacific, had a fleet of 60 whaling ships off the coast of New Zealand. Jean François Langlois, captain of the whaling ship Cachalot, thought Akaroa with its deep harbour and tree-covered hills would be an ideal place for a colony. In 1839 he gained a signature - a moko or facial tattoo - on a deed written in French which said the local Maori were selling all Banks Peninsula for 40 pounds. Six pounds were to be paid immediately, the rest when Langlois returned from France to take possession of the land. Instead of 6 pounds in cash, the Maori received a pistol and a sort of op-shop collection of 12 hats, 2 coats, 2 shirts, 6 pairs of trousers and two pairs of shoes. The French government, keen to establish a colony in the South Pacific, agreed to subsidise a company, supply a ship to transport the settlers and provide naval protection. Commanded by Captain Lavaud, the Aube set sail on February 19, 1840. The warship was followed in March by the Comte de Paris with 57 French and 5 German settlers. In the meantime, however, Captain Hobson had signed a treaty with the Maori at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands on February 6, 1840, annexing all New Zealand for Britain. He also took the precaution of sending the warship Britomart south to keep an eye on the French.

Langlois was devastated to learn of the British annexation. His passengers had little choice but to settle down and make a living from the land. Most remained at Akaroa becoming naturalised British subjects in the 1850s. Today, some family names and street signs are reminders of the time when French was spoken in this part of New Zealand. There is little to no reminder that the Germans were also here, except that nearby Takamatua used to be called German Bay.

AKAROA HARBOUR AND BANKS PENINSUA ECO MARINE HARBOUR CRUISE SMALL GROUP TOUR

AKAROA RETURN SHUTTLE FROM CHRISTCHURCH


Image Credit: Akaroa, Burton Brothers, and Akaroa Harbour**, circa 1870, New Zealand, by John Hoyte. Gift of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, 1936. Te Papa