“the Sun Never Sets in the British Empire” (Synge, 2007, P. 239) the Phrase Originally Coined by John Wilson Bears the Reality of the British Empire at Her Height. the British Expanded from as Far as the East to the

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“The sun never sets in the British Empire” (Synge, 2007, p. 239) the phrase originally coined by John Wilson bears the reality of the British empire at her height. The British expanded from as far as the East to the West. Her colonies expanded across the globe, from the Americas to the continent of Africa, the Middle East, to Asia, and Pacifica. At her peak she had a quarter of the Earth’s total land area, and a quarter of the world’s population at the time. This essay will give a critical account of British imperialism underlying Lord Normanby’s instructions to Hobson in August of 1839. This letter gives an articulate account of British imperialist ideology applied one of Britain’s latter colonies, New Zealand. Historical Background The first Europeans to reach New Zealand was in 1642 by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman. However, Europeans did not return until James Cook’s voyage during 1768-71. From then on New Zealand was seen as a trading post for French, British, and American sealers and whalers. It was often that settlers would trade with the indigenous people of the land called the Maori. A relationship between the various Maori tribes and the settlers was formed. For the next fifty or so years there was no law or order in New Zealand. With ongoing insecurity of French interest in territory, the British government in 1832 appointed James Busby as an official Resident of New Zealand. His mission was to “protect the more orderly British settlers and traders and prevent 'outrages' by the less orderly Europeans against Maori” (Ministry for Culture and Heritage, 2009). He would then go on to administer a national flag two years later in 1834. Captain Hobson arrived to New Zealand to investigate the lack of an effective government and the outbreak of Maori tribes. Arriving on the HMS Rattlesnake, this ‘ship of war’ was to protect British subjects; and was

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