1878: Russian Scare
July 16, 2021
By AHNZ
A Victorian gentleman surveys Auckland Harbor from the top of Mt Victoria in 1878. Devonport, below, already very established. It was the time of our second ‘Russian Scare’.
The reason for the photo may be a propagandistic one, a fantasy war- George Grey vs Tsar Alexander of Russia! Our Premier (facing an election the following year, by the way) had it into his head that New Zealand was at risk of attack from the Russians in early 1878.
A photo of an obsolete gun pointing at nothing in 1878 would help serve to highlight the need to defend the heads of Auckland Harbour from invaders. It would put the country in the mood to want a leader like Grey, who had been such a prominent war leader before. But, especially, it would provide an excuse for The State to spend taxpayer money on arms buying once again…
“Twenty-two 64-pounder guns were promptly ordered from Britain. But no sooner had they arrived than the scare abated and the familiar pattern of procrastination reasserted itself”. The new guns were put into storage; Ref. NavyMuseum
It’s funny how the Lefty Governments tend to be the ones who blow lots of tax money on military hardware schemes and scams. You’d think the more Conservative, Right-leaning Governments, would be more Hawkish. But think of Grey’s big guns, Ward’s battleship (HMS New Zealand,) Labour 4.0’s Skyhawks and ANZAC frigates, or even the very recent Labour 6.0 billion-dollar spend on 5 ‘Super Hercules’. Can anyone explain that to me?
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Colourised image. Auckland, from North Shore, Burton Brothers, c.1878; Museum of New Zealand; Timespanner (2020)
Ref. “The first of the new Super Hercules will be delivered in 2024 and the full fleet will be operating by the following year,…” –
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