Which histories does a nation prioritise – and which are left quietly aside? These are questions hotly debated in the international press. And in Aotearoa New Zealand, they are brought sharply into focus by the new history curriculum, arriving in schools in 2023.
Fragments from a Contested Past is the latest addition to the BWB Texts series, and it examines these questions of memory, loss and ‘difficult histories’. The team of authors, several from iwi invaded or attacked during the New Zealand Wars, are: Joanna Kidman, Vincent O’Malley, Liana MacDonald, Tom Roa and Keziah Wallis.
Combining first-hand fieldnotes from their journeys to sites of conflict and contest with innovative archival and oral research, these writers draw on some central narratives in our history – including:
- Tuia 250, the nationwide commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Cook’s arrival in New Zealand;
- Boulcott’s Farm and Battle Hill, the locations of two of the main clashes of the 1846 Wellington Wars;
- the Great South Road, following in the footsteps of the British invasion from Auckland to Waikato;
- Ōrākau and the stillness and memory of Rangiaowhia; and
- the backlash to the Ōtorohanga College Petition calling for a statutory day of recognition for ‘The New Zealand Land Wars’, among others.
Fragments from a Contested Past is available now through local bookstores, and from our website. Watch Joanna Kidman and Vincent O’Malley discuss some of the research behind the book in our BWB Talks video: