James Busby
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James Busby (7 February 1802 – 15 July 1871) was the British Resident in
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
from 1833 to 1840. He was involved in drafting the 1835 Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand and the 1840
Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi (), sometimes referred to as ''Te Tiriti'', is a document of central importance to the history of New Zealand, Constitution of New Zealand, its constitution, and its national mythos. It has played a major role in the tr ...
. As British Resident, he acted as New Zealand's first jurist and the "originator of law in Aotearoa", to whom New Zealand "owes almost all of its underlying jurisprudence". Jamieson, Nigel (1986), "The Charismatic Renewal of Law in Aotearoa", ''New Zealand Law Journal'', July 1986, pp. 250–255 Busby is regarded as the
father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...
of the
Australian wine The Australian wine industry is one of the world's largest exporters of wine, with approximately 800 million out of the 1.2 to 1.3 billion litres produced annually exported to overseas markets. The wine industry is a significant contributor ...
industry, as he brought the first collection of vine stock from Spain and France to Australia.J. Robinson (ed.) ''The Oxford Companion to Wine''. 3rd edition. p. 116. Oxford University Press, 2006


Life

He was born in
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
, Scotland, the son of English engineer John Busby and mother Sarah Kennedy. His parents and he emigrated from Britain to
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, in 1824. Busby received a Grant of Land from the
Governor of New South Wales The governor of New South Wales is the representative of the monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia, Governor-General of Australia at the national level, the governor ...
and after much careful deliberation chose a block of 2,000 acres in the Coal River area of the Hunter Valley, where he began growing grapes. At the same time, he took employment at the Male Orphans School at Bald Hills near
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
where he was in charge of the farm and taught
viticulture Viticulture (, "vine-growing"), viniculture (, "wine-growing"), or winegrowing is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine ...
. When the trustees of the Church and School Corporation took over control of the school in 1827, Busby lost the job. He was then appointed collector of internal revenue temporarily, until 1829. The government made him a new job offer but he was not happy with it nor with the terms of his severance from the orphan school, and returned to England in 1831 to petition the Colonial Office. He also visited Spain and France to further his study in
viticulture Viticulture (, "vine-growing"), viniculture (, "wine-growing"), or winegrowing is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine ...
. He wrote a number of reports that he presented to the Colonial Office and one on the state of
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
earned him appointment as British Resident in New Zealand in March 1832. Busby returned to Sydney on 16 October 1832.


In New Zealand

Busby married Agnes Dow at Segenhoe, in the Hunter Region, on 1 November 1832. He left for New Zealand on HMS ''Imogene'' in April 1833 and arrived in the Bay of Islands on 5 May. Agnes followed him, arriving in July. A house (which still stands) was completed for him at Waitangi, where he planted some of the vine stock he had collected in Europe, from which
vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...
wine was being made before his vines were productive in Australia. His duties were to protect British commerce, control, and to mediate between the unruly European settlers and Māori in New Zealand. However, he was not provided with any resources to impose this authority. After an unregistered New Zealand ship was seized in Australia, Busby proposed that New Zealand should have a
national flag A national flag is a flag that represents and national symbol, symbolizes a given nation. It is Fly (flag), flown by the government of that nation, but can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanin ...
. A selection of three or four designs was sent from Australia, and Māori chiefs chose one at a meeting at his residency on 20 March 1834; see United Tribes of New Zealand.


Independence and Treaty of Waitangi

In 1835 Busby learned that Baron Charles de Thierry, a Frenchman, was proposing to declare French
sovereignty Sovereignty can generally be defined as supreme authority. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within a state as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body or institution that has the ultimate au ...
over New Zealand. He drafted the Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand and at a meeting in October signed it together with 35 chiefs from the northern part of New Zealand. After the arrival of William Hobson in 1840, Busby co-authored with him the
Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi (), sometimes referred to as ''Te Tiriti'', is a document of central importance to the history of New Zealand, Constitution of New Zealand, its constitution, and its national mythos. It has played a major role in the tr ...
. It was first signed on 5 and 6 February 1840 on the lawn outside his residence. Busby and his family left Waitangi that year. He declined an offer for a position in the new colonial government, and instead focused on farming interests, but became entangled in litigation over his own land titles: the New Zealand Banking Company seized his Waitangi property without giving Busby's debtors an opportunity to pay what they owed, and Governor Grey expropriated Busby's land at
Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...
. He also edited a newspaper and in 1853 was elected a member of the
Auckland Provincial Council The Auckland Province was a Provinces of New Zealand, province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Area The province covered roughly half of the North Island of New Zealand. It was the largest of the ...
. As a member of the provincial council, he became an outspoken supporter of establishing Auckland as a separate colony to the rest of New Zealand. Popular opinion at the time went against Busby, and some newspapers claimed his arguments for Auckland's separation were due to his inability to settle land claims with the colonial government. He contested the 1860 general election for a seat in the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
for the Bay of Islands electorate, but was unsuccessful.


Later life

He died in 1871 in Anerley, England, after travelling back for an eye operation, and is buried at West Norwood Cemetery in London. His wife returned to New Zealand where she died, at Pakaraka, in 1889, and is buried at
Paihia Paihia is a town in the Bay of Islands in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is 60 kilometres north of Whangārei, located close to the historic towns of Russell, New Zealand, Russell and Kerikeri. Missionary Henry Wi ...
. James and Agnes had six children. Daughter Sarah married John William Williams, son of missionary Henry Williams. The Waitangi property, on which the Treaty was signed, was derelict until the 1930s, when it was purchased by the
Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...
of the day, Viscount Bledisloe and donated to the nation.


Published writings

* ''Treatise on the Culture of the Vine'' (1825) * ''A Manual of Plain Directions for Planting and Cultivating Vineyards and for Making Wine in New South Wales'' (Sydney 1830) * ''Journal of a Tour through some of the vineyards of Spain and France'' (Sydney 1833)


See also

*
Australian wine The Australian wine industry is one of the world's largest exporters of wine, with approximately 800 million out of the 1.2 to 1.3 billion litres produced annually exported to overseas markets. The wine industry is a significant contributor ...
* New Zealand wine * List of wine personalities


References


Sources

*


External links


James Busby, Melbourne University

Waitangi Treaty Grounds

Newsletter 48, Friends of West Norwood Cemetery

Colonial Secretary's papers 1822-1877
State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland (State Library) is the state public reference and research library of Queensland, Australia, operated by the Government of Queensland, state government. The Library is governed by the Library Board of Queensland, whi ...
- includes digitised letters written by Busby to the Colonial Secretary of New South Wales when he was employed as Collector of Internal Revenue {{DEFAULTSORT:Busby, James 1802 births 1871 deaths 19th-century Australian businesspeople 19th-century New Zealand businesspeople 19th-century Scottish businesspeople Australian people of English descent Australian people of Scottish descent People from the Bay of Islands Wine merchants Treaty of Waitangi Burials at West Norwood Cemetery New Zealand people of Scottish descent New Zealand people of English descent