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Date |
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| 1 | 1914 | - 28 Jul 1914—11 Nov 1918: World War One
World War One (often abbreviated as WWI or WW1), also known as the First World War or the Great War, was a global war originating in Europe. Contemporaneously described as "the war to end all wars", it led to the mobilisation of more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, making it one of the largest wars in history. It is also one of the deadliest conflicts in history, with an estimated nine million combatants and seven million civilian deaths as a direct result of the war, while resulting genocides and the resulting 1918 influenza pandemic caused another 50 to 100 million deaths worldwide.
Commonwealth countries, including New Zealand and Australia sent troops to the war in support of Great Britian. 8% of Australia's population served overseas in the war (330,000) and total deaths were 60,284. 9% of New Zealand's population served overseas in the war (98,950) and total deaths were 18,058.
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| 2 | 1918 | - Oct 1918: Influenza Pandemic
The second and more deadly wave of a new strain of Influenza arrived in New Zealand in October 1918. By the end of the year around 9,000 people across the country had died. Half as many New Zealanders lost their lives in little more than two months than during the entire First World War, and worldwide the pandemic was responsible for at least 50 million deaths. Maori were particularly affected by the flu, with a death rate eight times that of Pakeha.
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| 3 | 1922 | - 4 Oct 1922: Radio in New Zealand
Radio in New Zealand. The first radio station, Radio Dunedin, began broadcasting on 4 October 1922, but it was only in 1925 that the Radio Broadcasting Company (RBC) began broadcasts throughout New Zealand. In 1932, RBC's assets were acquired by the government, which established the New Zealand Broadcasting Board (NZBB).
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| 4 | 1929 | - 1929—1939: The Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression that took place mostly during the 1930s, beginning in the United States. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations; in most countries, it started in 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s. It was the longest, deepest, and most widespread depression of the 20th century. Personal income, tax revenue, profits and prices dropped, while international trade plunged by more than 50%.
New Zealand was especially vulnerable to worldwide depression, as it relied almost entirely on agricultural exports to the United Kingdom for its economy. The drop in exports led to a lack of disposable income from the farmers, who were the mainstay of the local economy. Jobs disappeared and wages plummeted, leaving people desperate and charities unable to cope. Work relief schemes were the only government support available to the unemployed, the rate of which by the early 1930s was officially around 15%, but unofficially nearly twice that level (official figures excluded Maori and women). In 1932, riots occurred among the unemployed in three of the country's main cities (Auckland, Dunedin, and Wellington). Many were arrested or injured through the tough official handling of these riots by police and volunteer "special constables". After 1932, an increase in wool and meat prices led to a gradual recovery.
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| 5 | 1931 | - 3 Feb 1931: Hawkes Bay Earthquake
When the deadly Hawkes Bay Earthquake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale, struck at 10.47 a.m., many buildings in central Napier and Hastings collapsed immediately. Fire broke out in Napier’s business district shortly after the earthquake, and once the reservoir emptied, firefighters were powerless. Flames gutted almost 11 blocks of central Napier, killing some people who were still trapped. In terms of loss of life (256), it remains the worst civil disaster to have occurred in New Zealand.
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| 6 | 1935 | - 27 Nov 1935—12 Dec 1949: First NZ Labour Government
New Zealand's first Labour Government was elected in the 1935 election. Undermined by its failure to cope with the distress of the Depression, the Coalition (or 'National') government was routed by the Labour Party led by Michael Joseph Savage. Labour held power for 19 years, implementing far-reaching economic and social reforms that set the political agenda for the next half century.
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| 7 | 1938 | - 14 Sep 1938: Social Security Act
The Social Security Act was passed in 1938, the cornerstone of the first Labour government’s welfare programme. The Act overhauled the New Zealand pension system and extended benefits for families, invalids and the unemployed. The Act combined the introduction of a free-at-the-point-of-use health system with a comprehensive array of welfare benefits. It was financed by a tax surcharge of one shilling in the pound, or 5%. Supporters envisaged a scheme that would protect New Zealanders 'from the cradle to the grave'.
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| 8 | 1939 | - 1 Sep 1939—15 Aug 1945: World War Two
World War Two (often abbreviated to WWII or WW2), also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from more than 30 countries. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 70 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.
New Zealand and Australia contributed to the Allies war effort. 575,799 Australians served overseas. About 140,000 New Zealand men and women served, 104,000 in 2nd NZEF, the rest in the British or New Zealand naval or air forces. Fatal casualties during the conflict numbered 39,429 for Australia and 11,928 for NZ.
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| 9 | 1947 | - Jul 1947—1975: Assisted Immigration
The Immigration Assistance Scheme, introduced in July 1947, was designed to bring skilled workers into New Zealand. Unlike earlier schemes, the focus was on attracting single people with practical skills. There was an initial preference for 20 to 35-year-olds, but the upper age limit was extended to 45 in 1950. While assistance went primarily to white British citizens, the country also sought other European groups who could easily assimilate into post-war New Zealand. The most favoured were the Dutch – over 6000 arrived in the 1950s as part of an assisted passage scheme from the Netherlands. Most assisted immigrants travelled by ship and docked at Wellington, but in later years many arrived by plane at Auckland's Whenuapai Airport.
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| 10 | 1950 | - 25 Jun 1950—27 Jul 1953: Korean War
The Korean War was a war between North Korea (with the support of China and the Soviet Union) and South Korea (with the support of the United Nations, principally from the United States). The Korean War was among the most destructive conflicts of the modern era, with approximately 3 million war fatalities and a larger proportional civilian death toll than World War II or the Vietnam War. It incurred the destruction of virtually all of Korea's major cities and thousands of massacres by both sides.
About 6,000 New Zealand men served during the Korea War, with 45 deaths. 17,000 The Korean War had a dramatic indirect economic impact in New Zealand. The sense of crisis precipitated by the outbreak in 1950 encouraged the United States to seek to buy large quantities of wool to complete its strategic stockpiles. This demand led to the greatest wool boom in New Zealand's history, with prices tripling overnight.
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| 11 | 1953 | - 24 Dec 1953: Tangiwai railway accident
On 24 December a North Island main trunk express plunged off the Tangiwai bridge into the Whangaehu River. The bridge had been fatally weakened by a lahar from Mt Ruapehu’s crater lake. Of the 285 people on board, 151 were killed. This is New Zealand’s worst rail disaster.
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| 12 | 1959 | - 30 May 1959: Auckland Harbour Bridge
Auckland Harbour Bridge opened after four years of construction in 1959. The bridge is 1017 m long, and used 5670 tonnes of steel, 17,160 cubic m of concrete and 6800 litres of paint. Originally, the bridge had only four lanes, but this quickly proved inadequate. In September 1969 the ‘Nippon clip-ons’ – two lanes on each side, pre-fabricated in Japan – were added. At the time, this was pioneering technology, but 15 years later fatigue was discovered in the splice joints and several thousand had to be replaced. Tolls were charged on the bridge until 1984.
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| 13 | 1960 | - 1 Jun 1960: First NZ TV Broadcasts
First NZ TV Broadcasts. Full-time black and white television broadcasting was first introduced in New Zealand in 1960. Initially, programming was done on a regional basis, with different services broadcasting from the main cities, AKTV2 in Auckland, being the first on 1 June 1960, followed in 1961 by CHTV3 in Christchurch on 1 June and WNTV1 in Wellington on 1 July, and then DNTV2 in Dunedin on 31 July 1962.
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| 14 | 1964 | - 1 Jun 1964—30 Apr 1975: Vietnam War
The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. It was officially fought between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. North Vietnam was supported by the Soviet Union, China, and other communist allies; South Vietnam was supported by the United States, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and other anti-communist allies.
New Zealand's involvement in the Vietnam War was from 1964 until 1975 was modest, involving approximately 3,800 military personnel, with 37 killed and approximately 187 injured.
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| 15 | 1967 | - 1967: Citizenship for all Aboriginal people
At the time of Federation, Aborigines were excluded from the rights of Australian citizenship, including the right to vote, the right to be counted in a census and the right to be counted as part of an electorate. In addition, they were not subject to Commonwealth laws and benefits in relation to wages and social security benefits such as maternity allowances and old age pensions. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people matters were in the hands of State governments. The Australian Constitution was amended in 1967 to give the Commonwealth power to make laws for Aboriginal people and to make it possible to include Aboriginal people in the census, which in effect, made them count as Australian citizens for the first time.
- 10 Jul 1967: Decimal Currency
Decimal Currency, dollars and cents, replaced Pounds, shillings and pence in 1967. The banks were closed from Wednesday 5 July to give staff time to convert their records by 10 July. The new coins were in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents. The new $1, $2, $5, $10, $20 and $100 banknotes each had different native birds and plants on the reverse, and were distinguishable by colour. Their design featured complicated geometric patterns, including Maori iconography. A $50 note was introduced in 1981, and in 1990 the $1 and $2 notes were replaced by coins.
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| 16 | 1971 | - 25 Oct 1971: End of Steam Railways
The last steam powered locomotive on New Zealand Railways (NZR) network was the Christchurch–Dunedin overnight express, headed by a JA-class locomotive, on 25 October 1971. This brought to an end 108 years of regular steam rail operations by NZR. New Zealand’s rail system was predominantly steam-powered from 1863, when the first public railway opened in Christchurch, until the 1950s, when the transition to diesel power gathered momentum. The dieselisation of North Island railways was complete by the late 1960s.
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| 17 | 1973 | - 31 Oct 1973: Colour TV
Colour TV. On Wednesday 31 October 1973, colour television using the Phase Alternating Line (PAL) system was introduced in NZ, in readiness for the 1974 British Commonwealth Games, which were to be held in Christchurch in January and February 1974. The final switchover for colour from black and white television was in December 1975.
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| 18 | 1975 | - 10 Oct 1975: Waitangi Tribunal
The government created the Waitangi Tribunal to hear Maori claims of breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi. It has evolved ever since, adapting to the demands of claimants, government and public. The Tribunal reports on and suggests settlement for contemporary Maori claims to the government, and ensures that future legislation was consistent with the treaty. In 1985, the government extended its jurisdiction to claims about any alleged breach of the treaty since 1840. This resulted in a huge increase in the number of claims and an expansion of the Tribunal’s activities.
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| 19 | 1979 | - 28 Nov 1979: Mt Erebus air crash
On 28 November an Air New Zealand DC-10 airliner, on a sightseeing flight to Antarctica, crashed into Mt Erebus. All 257 passengers and crew were killed in New Zealand’s worst air disaster.
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| 20 | 1983 | - 28 Mar 1983: CER Agreement
The Australia–New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement, better known as CER, was New Zealand’s first comprehensive bilateral trade agreement. CER came into force on 1 January 1983, but the agreement was not formally signed until 28 March, by New Zealand’s High Commissioner in Canberra, Laurie Francis, and Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade, Lionel Bowen. By 1990, there was free trade in goods and nearly all services between the two countries. In recent years NZ and Australia have moved towards even closer cooperation in policies, laws and regulatory regimes.
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| 21 | 1986 | - 1 Oct 1986: Goods and Services Tax
New Zealand introduced a Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 1986, adding 10 per cent to the cost of most goods and services. GST was a key part of the economic reforms of the fourth Labour government – dubbed 'Rogernomics' after Minister of Finance Roger Douglas. This 'regressive' tax hit the poorest the hardest, because people on low incomes spend a higher proportion of their money on basic goods and services than the better-off. The rate of GST was increased to 12.5 per cent in 1989 and to 15 per cent in 2010.
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| 22 | 1988 | - 7 Mar 1988: Cyclone Bola
Cyclone Bola, one of the most damaging storms to hit New Zealand, struck Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne–East Cape in March 1988. The weather system slowed as it moved over the area, bringing torrential rain for more than three days. Worst affected was the hill country behind Gisborne, where warm moist air increased rainfall. In places, more than 900 mm of rain fell in 72 hours, and one area had 514 mm in a single day. Ensuing floods overwhelmed river stopbanks, damaged houses, swept away bridges and sections of roads and railway lines, and destroyed parts of Gisborne’s main water pipeline. Three people died in a car swept away by floodwaters, and thousands were evacuated from their homes. Farmers lost large tracts of grazing area, and thick sediment from floods smothered pastures, orchards and crops. The government repair bill for the cyclone was more than $111 million ($210 million).
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| 23 | 1995 | - 22 May 1995: Waikato-Tainui Settlement
Waikato-Tainui iwi signed Deed of Settlement with the Crown on 22 May 1995. Waikato–Tainui was the first iwi to reach an historical Treaty of Waitangi settlement with the Crown for injustices that went back to the wars and land confiscations (raupatu) of the 1860s. The Deed of Settlement included cash and land valued at a total of $170 million. The agreement was a major landmark in New Zealand’s developing treaty settlements process. By 2014, Tainui Group Holdings and Waikato–Tainui Fisheries had assets of over $1 billion.
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| 24 | 1997 | - 20 Oct 1997: 'Black Tuesday' share-market crash
'Black Tuesday' share-market crash occurred when billions of dollars were wiped off the value of New Zealand shares in the weeks following 20 October, as the shock-waves of a sharp drop in New York’s Wall St stock market rippled around the world. Many investors lost everything as companies that had over-extended themselves with debt were dragged under. Small 'mum and dad' investors were also burned by the experience; many deserted the share market, which languished until the early 2000s in NZ.
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| 25 | 2003 | - 2003: NZ Population 4 million.
Population of New Zealand exceeds 4 million.
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| 26 | 2005 | - 26 Apr 2005: Civil unions in NZ
Civil unions come into effect on 26 April 2005 in New Zealand. Couples (heterosexual or homosexual) were now able to register their relationship as a civil union. The change meant that all couples in New Zealand, whether they were married, in a civil union or in a de facto partnership, now had the same legal rights and obligations. Marriage between two adults of the same sex was legalised in August 2013 by the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Act.
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| 27 | 2010 | - 4 Sep 2010: Canterbury Earthquake
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake strikes the Canterbury Region causing widespread damage to Christchurch and surrounding areas. The earthquake which struck at 4.35 a.m. on a Saturday morning was felt by many people in the South Island and southern North Island. There was considerable damage in central Canterbury, especially in Christchurch, but no loss of life. It was the largest earthquake to affect a major urban area since the 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake.
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| 28 | 2011 | - 22 Feb 2011: Christchurch Earthquake
The Christchurch Earthquake occurred at 12.51 p.m. on Tuesday 22 February 2011, magnitude 6.3, causing severe damage in Christchurch and Lyttelton, killing 185 people and injuring several thousand. The earthquake struck at lunchtime, when many people were on the city streets. More than 130 people lost their lives in the collapse of the Canterbury Television and Pyne Gould Corporation buildings. Falling bricks and masonry killed 11 people, and eight died in two city buses crushed by crumbling walls. Rock cliffs collapsed in the Sumner and Redcliffs area, and boulders tumbled down the Port Hills, with five people killed by falling rocks.
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| 29 | 2019 | - 15 Mar 2019: Christchurch mosque shootings
Christchurch mosque shootings involved two consecutive terrorist shooting attacks at mosques in Christchurch during Friday Prayer on 15 March 2019. The attacks began at the Al Noor Mosque in the suburb of Riccarton at 1:40 p.m. and continued at Linwood Islamic Centre at about 1:55 p.m. The gunman live-streamed the first attack on Facebook. The attacks killed 51 people and injured 49. Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old man from Grafton, New South Wales, Australia, described in media reports as a white supremacist and part of the alt-right, was arrested and charged with 51 murders, 40 attempted murders, and engaging in a terrorist act. Gun laws in NZ were tightened after the shootings.
- Dec 2019—2022: COVID-19 pandemic
COVID-19 pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern regarding COVID-19 on 30 January 2020, and later declared a pandemic on 11 March 2020. As of 17 May 2021, more than 163 million cases have been confirmed, with more than 3.38 million deaths attributed to COVID-19, making it one of the deadliest pandemics in history. Australia and NZ closed their borders and had lock downs that limited COVID, there being 910 and 26 deaths respectively by 17 May 2021.
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| 30 | 2020 | - Mar 2020: NZ population 5 million
Population of New Zealand 5 million. New Zealand's resident population provisionally reached 5 million in March 2020, Stats NZ said. It was also the fastest million in NZ history, taking 17 years after reaching 4 million in 2003.
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| 31 | 2023 | - 12 Feb 2023—19 Feb 2023: Cyclone Gabrielle
Ex-tropical cyclone Gabrielle struck the north and east of the North Island, resulting in 11 deaths. An estimated 10,000 people were displaced as a result of the cyclone. 1,720 claims of injuries were accepted by ACC. Treasury estimated the total damage from Gabrielle and the earlier Auckland Anniversary floods to properties and transport infrastructure at between $9 billion and $14.5 billion. The total cost in the Hastings District alone is estimated to surpass NZ$2 billion.
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Chris Korte's New Zealand Genealogy Project
1918 -
