Vincent O'Malley's New Book, 'The Invasion Of Waikato'

Vincent O’Malley continues his remarkable work on the New Zealand Wars with his latest book, The Invasion of Waikato / Te Riri ki Tainui. This concise account of a pivotal event in Aotearoa’s history sheds light on the lasting impact of these conflicts.

The book begins with the July 1863 crossing of the Mangatāwhiri River by British troops, an act that marked the start of the Crown’s war against the Waikato tribes. This moment ignited a fierce and far-reaching conflict, rooted in the Crown’s push for control over Māori lands and its determination to crush Māori self-governance – a right that had been affirmed in Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The Waikato War, as Dr O’Malley powerfully argues, was a defining moment for Aotearoa New Zealand: 'The fighting that followed over the next nine months was a struggle between two competing visions of what New Zealand was, and what it might become. The answer would determine the fate of the nation for the next century or more.’

Richly illustrated with detailed maps and photographs, The Invasion of Waikato / Te Riri ki Tainui includes short biographies of key figures and groups who have contributed to our contemporary understanding of these events, including tribal historians, teachers, academics, activists, and artists. And the book draws on Dr O'Malley's recent research through the Marsden Fund Project (co-led with Professor Joanna Kidman) on remembering and forgetting the New Zealand Wars.

Dr O’Malley’s writing on the New Zealand Wars has earned significant recognition, including the 2022 Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement and Ockham New Zealand Book Award for non-fiction. In 2023, he was awarded the Royal Society Te Apārangi’s Humanities Aronui Medal.

The Invasion of Waikato / Te Riri ki Tainui publishes ahead of the national commemoration of the New Zealand Wars, Te Pūtake o te Riri, He Rā Maumahara, on 28 October, with funding support from the Te Pūtake o te Riri | Wars and Conflicts in New Zealand Fund.

Vincent O'Malley has gained recognition and awards for his extensive research and publications on the New Zealand Wars. His key works include The Great War for New Zealand: Waikato 1800–2000 (BWB, 2016) and the bestseller The New Zealand Wars / Nga Pakanga o Aotearoa (BWB, 2019). Voices from the New Zealand Wars / He Reo no nga Pakanga o Aotearoa (BWB, 2021) won the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Award for non-fiction, and he received a Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement that same year. In 2023, he was awarded the Royal Society Te Aparangi’s Humanities Aronui Medal. Dr O’Malley is a Fellow of the Royal Society Te Aparangi and a founding partner of HistoryWorks, which specialises in Treaty of Waitangi research.

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