Sovereignty proclamations On 21 May 1840, Lieutenant-Governor Hobson proclaimed sovereignty over the whole country, (the North Island by treaty and the South Island and Stewart Island by discovery) and New Zealand was constituted the Colony of New Zealand, separate from New South Wales by a Royal Charter issued on 16 November 1840, with effect from 3 May 1841.
Sovereignty proclamations On 21 May 1840 Lieutenant-Governor Hobson proclaimed sovereignty over the whole country, (the North Island by treaty and the South Island and Stewart Island by discover,y) and New Zealand was constituted the Colony of New Zealand, separate from New South Wales by a Royal Charter issued on 16 November 1840, with effect from 3 May 1841.