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Sighting of NZ
Nicholas Young was the first to sight New Zealand from the Endeavor -
Period: to
The events of 6 - 11 of october 1768
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Landing
Cook, Banks, and others took the Endeavour’s two small boats ashore to find fresh water. They landed on the eastern bank of the
Turanganui River by, what is now known as the Cook Landing
Site National Historic Reserve. While searching for people and plants, they heard shots and hurried back. Four boys who had been left in charge of the boats were rowing frantically away from four Maori armed with very long lances. In panic the one of them fired
several shots killing a Maori -
Greeting the natives
early in the morning a large party went back to the
landing site. A group of 50-100 Maori men assembled on the opposite side of the river and challenged Cook’s party with a
haka. after talking with Tupaia one man swam to
a rock where he greeted Cook with a hongi. After this there was meeting, shots were fired, fatally wounding a warrior. As they retreated three more were killed or wounded. Cook and his men took their boats to look for a different fresh water source -
Continued meetings
After a night on the Endeavour, the boys were taken
with Cook, Tupaia, Banks, Solander and others to the
eastern bank of the Turanganui River. About 100 to
150 armed men gathered on the opposite side of the
river. Finally an old man swam the river and presented
Tupaia with a green bough as a gesture of peace.
Later, the three boys were set ashore at Kaiti. -
Leaving NZ
Weighing anchor at 6am the Endeavour sailed out of
Poverty Bay, so named by Cook “... as it afforded no
one thing we wanted.”
Local tradition tells that Maori at the time perceived the
Endeavour as an giant bird with large wing size
and beauty. They saw the longboats as fledglings,
and Cook and his men were thought to be gods.