In 1868 Hamilton's population, which was about 1,000 in 1864, dropped to 300 as farmers left. Much of the land was swampy or under water. Many of the soldier/settlers who intended to farm after the 1863 war, walked off their land in 1868 due to its poor quality. The settlement was founded on 24 August 1864. The 1st Regiment was at Tauranga, the 2nd at Pirongia, the 3rd at Cambridge and the 4th at Kirikiriroa. Hamilton was settled by the 4th regiment of the Waikato Militia. On 10 August 1864 the government advertised for tenders to build 10 huts and a hospital at Kirikiriroa.

After the Invasion of the Waikato and confiscation of the invaded land, militia-settlers were recruited in Melbourne and Sydney. By the time British settlers arrived after 1863, most of these villages had been abandoned as a result of the land confiscation, also known as Raupatu. After the war in the Waikato, large areas of land (1.2 Million Acres), including the area of the present city of Hamilton were unjustly confiscated by the Crown under the New Zealand Settlements Act 1863. The government estimated the Waikato area had a Māori population of 3,400 at the same time. Magistrate Gorst, estimated that Kirikiriroa had a population of about 78 before the Invasion of Waikato via the Waikato Wars of 1863–64. However, one article said Kirikiriroa flour was well known. Millstones were acquired and a water wheel constructed, though possibly the flour mill wasn't completed. Imports included blankets, clothing, axes, sugar, rum, and tobacco. A chapel and house were built at Kirikiriroa for visiting clergy, presumably after Benjamin Ashwell established his mission near Taupiri.īetween 18 crops such as wheat, fruit and potatoes were exported to Auckland, with up to 50 canoes serving Kirikiriroa.

However, by the 1830s Ngati Wairere’s principal pa was Kirikiriroa, where the missionaries, who arrived at that time, estimated 200 people lived permanently. In 1822, Kirikiriroa Pa was briefly abandoned to escape the Musket Wars. In December 2011 several rua or food storage pits were found near the Waikato River bank, close to the Waikato museum. Local Māori were the target of raids by Ngāpuhi during the Musket Wars, and several pā sites from this period can still be found beside the Waikato River.

The area now covered by the city was originally the site of several Māori villages (kāinga), including Te Parapara, Pukete, Miropiko and Kirikiriroa ('long stretch of gravel'), from which the city takes its Māori name. A local Māori elder Taitimu Maipi, who had vandalised the statue in 2018, has also called for the city to be renamed Kirikiriroa, its original Māori name. The statue's removal has been linked to calls for the removal of statues of figures associated with colonialism and racism in New Zealand and the world, which were precipitated by the protests related to the murder of George Floyd. On 12 June 2020, the Hamilton City Council removed the statue at the request of local Māori iwi Waikato Tainui. On 10 March 2013 a statue of Captain Hamilton was given to the city by the Gallagher Group a gesture that has since been viewed as controversial by some. The settlement was named by Colonel William Moule after Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton, the commander of HMS Esk, who was killed in the battle of Gate Pā, Tauranga. 13.3.1.2 Greenwood Street and Kahikatea Drive.Education and research and development play an important part in Hamilton's economy, as the city is home to approximately 40,000 tertiary students and 1,000 PhD-qualified scientists. Hamilton Gardens is the region's most popular tourist attraction. Initially an agricultural service centre, Hamilton now has a diverse economy and is the third fastest growing urban area in New Zealand, behind Pukekohe and Auckland. By the time English settlers arrived, most of these villages, which sat beside the Waikato River, were abandoned as a result of the Invasion of Waikato and land confiscation ( Raupatu) by the Crown. The area now covered by the city was originally the site of several Māori villages, including Kirikiriroa, from which the city takes its Māori name. In 2020, Hamilton was awarded the title of most beautiful large city in New Zealand. Encompassing a land area of about 110 km 2 (42 sq mi), Hamilton is part of the wider Hamilton Urban Area, which also encompasses the nearby towns of Ngāruawāhia, Te Awamutu and Cambridge. With a territorial population of 178,500, it is the country's fourth most-populous city. Located on the banks of the Waikato River, it is the seat and most populous city of the Waikato region. Hamilton ( Māori: Kirikiriroa) is an inland city in the North Island of New Zealand.

Hamilton capital island