Sovereignty in the English treaty text
The inspected English text of the Treaty of Waitangi, Article the First, says that the chiefs cede to the Queen of England all rights and powers of sovereignty over their respective territories.
What this does and does not establish
A claim about the English text only, not a conclusion about the Māori text, historical consent, legal interpretation, or implementation.
How it is dated
- In the source
- Done at Waitangi this Sixth day of February in the year of Our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty.
- How we use it
- Document-year grouping; bilingual versions remain distinct.
- Method
- Explicit year in English treaty conclusion, not a date for every signature or proof of implementation
Sources and quoted text
Source 1
Treaty of Waitangi, English text
1840 Treaty text reproduced by Waitangi Tribunal from Schedule 1, Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975
English-language treaty text (statutory transcription, not the signed original)
The Chiefs of the Confederation of the United Tribes of New Zealand and the separate and independent Chiefs who have not become members of the Confederation cede to Her Majesty the Queen of England absolutely and without reservation all the rights and powers of Sovereignty which the said Confederation or Individual Chiefs respectively exercise or possess, or may be supposed to exercise or to possess over their respective Territories as the sole Sovereigns thereof.Reuse conditions recorded for this source: Attribute Waitangi Tribunal, historical treaty texts reproduced from Schedule 1 of the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975. Keep English and Māori text distinct; any AI working translation is non-authoritative; preserve qualifications and source URL.
Exact source version
e2686f902f07db0c817ed6185ceeef4af277a674ddd945371d6bd686de8a318fSource 2
Treaty of Waitangi, English text
1840 Treaty text reproduced by Waitangi Tribunal from Schedule 1, Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975
English-language treaty text (statutory transcription, not the signed original)
Done at Waitangi this Sixth day of February in the year of Our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty.Reuse conditions recorded for this source: Attribute Waitangi Tribunal, historical treaty texts reproduced from Schedule 1 of the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975. Keep English and Māori text distinct; any AI working translation is non-authoritative; preserve qualifications and source URL.
Exact source version
e2686f902f07db0c817ed6185ceeef4af277a674ddd945371d6bd686de8a318fChecks and changes
Source checked 2026-11-04. An independent AI evidence review supports this bounded, attributed wording. That review does not guarantee historical truth.
Revision p04_04_1
Exact revision fingerprint
59d007ca88e1b9b8a31586df982755e60b95c489bbbff3ecf0af57ed6165b7a5