Auckland

Auckland in the North Island of New Zealand is the largest metropolitan area in the South Pacific Ocean. It is known in Māori as Tamaki Makau Rau.

At 37 degrees south latitude, Auckland is situated between two major harbours. The Manukau Harbour opens to the Tasman Sea on the west. The major port is on the Waitemata Harbour, which opens to the Hauraki Gulf of the Pacific Ocean on the east. A narrow isthmus of land separates the two harbours.

Volcanoes

Auckland is built on the volcanoes of the Auckland Volcanic Field. The approximately 48 volcanoes take the form of cones, lakes, lagoons, islands and depressions. Some of the cones have been partly or completed quarried away. The volcanoes are all individually extinct although the volcanic field itself is merely dormant. The most recent and by far the largest volcano is Rangitoto Island which formed within the last 1000 years. Its size, its symmetry, its position guarding the entrance to the Waitemata Harbour and its visibility from many parts of the Auckland region make it Auckland's most iconic natural feature.

Climate

The city's climate is warm-temperate, with warm summers and slightly cooler but lengthy winters. January temperatures average 21-24 °C. (February and March are typically warmer than January, however), and July temperatures average 14-16 °C. High levels of rainfall occur almost year-round (over 1000mm per year), especially in winter.

People

The majority of inhabitants are of European (roughly 60%), predominantly British, descent, but there are also substantial Maori and Pacific Island communities. In fact, Auckland is described as the largest Polynesian city in the world. Comparably-sized communities of people of East Asian origin also live in Auckland, due to New Zealand's world-leading level of immigration, which primarily flows into Auckland. Ethnic groups from all corners of the world have a presence in Auckland, making it by far the country's most cosmopolitan city.

Aucklanders and other New Zealanders have 'love-hate' relationship: Aucklanders seeing anywhere in the country 'south of the Bombay Hills' as provincial and unsophisticated, while the rest of the country sees them as brash and arrogrant.

Cities and districts

Auckland consists of five local council areas. They are North Shore City in the north, Waitakere City in the west, Auckland City in the centre, and Manukau City and Papakura District in the south. Note that Auckland City is only part, albeit the central and most populous part, of the wider Auckland metropolitan area which is the subject of this article. The Auckland Region (population 1,158,891 (2001 census)) also encompasses Rodney District in the north and half of Franklin District in the south.

The name "Auckland" also applies to wider areas, such as the Land District (used in property registration) and the 19th century provincial district.

Traffic

Auckland has long been plagued by traffic problems. Soon after the Auckland Harbour Bridge was first built, it was not able to cope with the amount of traffic, and four more lanes had to be added, two to each side. In July 2003 the Britomart Transport Centre was opened. In March 2004 Mayor John Banks proposed the Eastern Transport Corridor. There is opposition to this $4bn scheme. [1] Most public transport is provided by bus services, with commuter trains being run down and offering a limited service. Plans for light rail, mooted over the years, are unlikely to be pursued further.

Landmark

Auckland's Sky Tower is the tallest free standing structure in the Southern Hemisphere at 328 metres.

Airports

Auckland International Airport, the country's largest airport, is located beside the Manukau Harbour, in the southern suburb of Mangere. There are also ongoing negotiations regarding the development of a second airport from Whenuapai, a disused military airbase in the north-west.

The Birth of Auckland

After the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in early 1840 the new governor, William Hobson was faced with the task of choosing a capital for the colony. At the time the effective capital was Kororareka, now called Old Russell, in the Bay of Islands. However, Kororareka was very remote from the rest of the country and had a notorious reputation for drunkenness and immorality.

The obvious choice even then was probably Port Nicholson. Centrally situated at the south of the North Island, close to the South Island, and growing fast, it had a lot to commend it. But it was a settlement built by and dominated by the New Zealand Company and the Wakefield brothers. Furthermore, it already had a bad reputation with the Maori for unscrupulous or even illegal occupation of land.

On the initial recommendation of the missionary Henry Williams, and supported by the Surveyor General, Felton Mathew, Hobson selected the south side of the Waitemata Harbour as his capital. The necessary land was soon purchased from the owners by the Chief Magistrate, Captain William Symonds, and the foundation ceremony took place at 1pm, September 18, 1840, probably on the higher ground at the top end of what is now Queen Street.

From early times the eastern side of the settlement was reserved for government officials while mechanics and artisans, the so-called unofficial settlers, were directed to the western side. This social division still persists in modern Auckland. From the outset there was a steady flow of new arrivals from within New Zealand and from overseas.

Eventually the capital did move to Port Nicholson, since renamed Wellington. The advantages of a central position became even more obvious as the South Island grew in prosperity with the discovery of gold in Otago and the development of sheepfarming and refrigeration.

Panorama

See also

• George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland
• William Hobson
• Auckland Islands

External links

• Auckland
• Maps of greater Auckland region
• Over 300 profiled categorised web pages about the region or parts of it