'Extracts from a Diary Kept by the Rev. R. Burrows during Heke's War in the North, in 1845' Summary

The Flagstaff War, also known as Heke's War, was a conflict fought between Maori warriors, led by Hone Heke, and British troops between March 1845 and January 1846 in and around the Bay of Islands. The war was ostensibly triggered by the cutting down of the flagstaff above Kororareka (now Russell), but it was also a consequence of festering grievances following the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and annexation of New Zealand by the British Crown in 1840. The Reverend Robert Burrows, a missionary who had charge of the mission station and school at Waimate, inland from the Bay of Islands, kept a diary during the war. His day-by-day account paints a vivid picture of the conflict, in which his chosen role was to mediate between the two sides. Burrows's diary is a valuable historical document that provides insights into the causes and course of the Flagstaff War. It also sheds light on the role of missionaries in the conflict and the complex relationships between Maori and British settlers in New Zealand during the early colonial period.