History

A dawn service has been held this morning at the pa on the outskirts of Waitara where the first shots of the New Zealand wars were fired in 1860. The ceremony kicked off the second day of Te Putake o… Audio

A dawn service is underway at the pā on the outskirts of Waitara where the first shots of the New Zealand wars were fired in 1860.

The ceremony kicks off the second day of the commemorations of the… Audio

A series of three features about the NZEF during WWI created by Christchurch writer, Robyn Anderson, and drawing on personal war diaries of two soldiers, William Anderson and Eric Ryburn. Gallery

New Zealand Land Wars commemorations are getting underway with Te Putake o te Riri, He Ra Maumahara in Waitara to commemorate the wars that took place in Taranaki. RNZ is releasing a documentary this… Audio

Today is Labour Day, but what does that mean in 2019 and where have the name and the holiday come from? Cybèle Locke is a senior lecturer in history at Victoria University with a focus on Labour… Audio

Author Graeme Lay says it's misleading for people to accuse Captain James Cook as being an imperialist and a destroyer of cultures, when he was largely revered by Maori in New Zealand.  Audio

It’s the war that claimed more New Zealand lives than any other. It’s also the event that’s often claimed as the "foundational moment” where we “became a nation”. But is that really true? In this… Audio

British Airways operated its final commercial Concorde flight on October 24, 2003, from New York's JFK International Airport to London Heathrow. Audio

Snippets of sound recalling life in South Canterbury in the 1950s, have been retrieved by Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision from rare and fragile paper recording tape. Sarah Johnston shares what she found.

The traditional image of women in colonial New Zealand is all buttons and crinoline, but such images may belie the reality. A new book written by Dr Catherine Bishop has taken a close look at the role… Audio

Through the final quarter of the 19th Century Pakeha settler numbers swelled. The immigrants sought land and started to create a new, distinct culture. But their land gain came at the cost of Maori… Audio

After the wars, politicians had to figure out how to run the new country. Bold choices saw huge spending on infrastructure, the right of women to vote and the start of refrigeration, helping us out of… Audio

Chinese-born British writer Jung Chang joins the show to discuss her latest book Big Sister, Little Sister, Red Sister and why she still remains optimistic about the future of her homeland. Audio

For over 30 years, philanthropist and author Christine Fernyhough has built an extraordinary collection of over 4000 everyday objects of mid-century New Zealand craft, design and folk art. Audio, Gallery

United States Navy officer Dr. Robert Ballard is confident he will be the man who finds Amelia Earhart's missing plane, despite coming up short in his latest expedition.  Audio

As British troops leave, settler militia enter the fray. Some Māori chose to fight alongside the Crown while others join new religious movements, which seem to promise a way out of the conflict.  Audio