Dr Michael King OBE (15 December 1945 - 30 March 2004) was a widely respected Pakeha New Zealand historian, author and biographer. Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in order of seniority: Knight or Dame Grand Cross... December 15 is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1945 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Pakeha is a New Zealand English word for European New Zealanders, that is, New Zealanders of predominantly European descent. ... History Forums - History is Happening -Discuss all historical topics, as well as current events, in an academic setting. ... The word author has several meanings: The author of a book, story, article or the like, is the person who has written it (or is writing it). ... This article needs cleanup. ...

Educated at Sacred Heart College in Auckland and St Patrick's College at Silverstream (Wellington), he went on to study history at Victoria University of Wellington before working as a journalist at the Waikato Times newspaper in Hamilton. Auckland, in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest urban area in New Zealand. ... St Patricks College many mean: St Patricks College of Education, Dublin St Patricks College, Maynooth Colleges and other institutions called after Saint Patrick, patron saint, are common in Ireland. ... Wellington (Te Whanganui-a-Tara or Poneke) is the capital city of New Zealand and the countrys third-largest urban area. ... Victoria University of Wellington is the oldest university in Wellington, New Zealand. ... The Waikato Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Hamilton, New Zealand with a circulation to the greater Waikato region. ... Waikato River passing through Hamilton Hamilton is New Zealands 4th-largest metropolitan area. ...

He earned degrees in history at Victoria, (BA 1967) and the University of Waikato (MA 1968), and gained his Ph.D. at Waikato (1978) and D.Litt. at Victoria (1997). A Bachelor of Arts (B.A. or A.B.) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or program in the arts and/or sciences. ... 1967 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The University of Waikato is located in Hamilton and Tauranga, New Zealand, and was established in 1964. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ... 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. ...

He was well-known for his knowledge of Maori culture and history, although not Maori himself. He was lauded for writing about New Zealanders, for New Zealanders, presenting them with themselves and their country as had never before been done. He wrote biographies of Te Puea Herangi, Whina Cooper, Frank Sargeson (1995) and Janet Frame (2000). More general works are Being Pakeha (1985), Moriori (1989), and The Penguin History of New Zealand (July 2003) which by February 2004 was into its seventh edition. In all, he wrote, co-wrote and edited more than 40 books. Māori culture is a distinctive component of New Zealand culture. ... Te Puni, Māori Chief Māori is the name of the indigenous people of New Zealand, and their language. ... Te Puea Herangi (1883-1952) was a respected Maori leader from New Zealands Waikato region. ... Dame Whina Cooper ONZ DBE was born at Te Karaka, Hokianga, in northern New Zealand on 9 December 1895, the daughter of a Maori leader of the Te Rarawa iwi. ... Frank Sargeson (21 March 1903 - 1 March 1982) was born Norris Frank Davey in Hamilton, New Zealand. ... Janet Paterson Frame (August 28, 1924 - January 29, 2004) was a New Zealand writer. ... Moriori are the indigenous people of the Chatham Islands (Rekohu in the Moriori language), east of the New Zealand archipelago. ...

He was joint winner of the 2003 Prime Minister's Awards for Literary Achievement. Throughout his career he won the Feltex Television Writers' Award (1980), Winston Churchill Fellowship (1980), Fulbright Visiting Writers' Fellowship (1988), Order of the British Empire (1988), NZ Literary Fund Award (1987 and 1989), Wattie Book Of The Year Award (1984 and 1990), NZ Book Award (non fiction) (1978) and was Burns Fellow at Otago University (1998-99). His book The Penguin History of New Zealand was overwhelmingly the Readers' Choice at the 2004 Montana NZ Book Awards. The Prime Minister of New Zealand is most senior officer in the Government of New Zealand. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in order of seniority: Knight or Dame Grand Cross... The Robert Burns Fellowship, established in 1958 as a bicentennial celebration, is claimed to be New Zealands premier literary residency. ... The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealands oldest university. ...

Dr King and his second wife Maria Jungowska were killed when their car crashed into a tree and caught fire near Maramarua, on SH2 in the north Waikato. The cause of the crash was reported by the police at the time to be a complete mystery as speed was not a factor and investigators have little idea why the car would veer off a straight road. A Coroner's inquest into the deaths determined that the accident was most likely caused by driver inattention. Waikato is the name of a region in the North Island of New Zealand. ...

Bibliography

Moko: Maori Tattooing in the 20th Century (1972)

Make it news: how to approach the media (1974)

Face value: a study in Maori portraiture (1975)

Te Ao hurihuri: Aspects of Maoritanga (ed.) (1975)

Te Puea: a biography (1977)

Tihe mauri ora: Aspects of Maoritanga (ed.) (1978)

New Zealand: Its Land and Its People (1979)

The Collector: A Biography of Andreas Reischek (1981}

Being Maori - John Rangihau (1981)

New Zealanders at War (1981)

A place to stand: a history of Turangawaewae Marae (1981)

G.F. von Tempsky, artist and adventurer (with Rose Young) (1981)

New Zealand in colour (1982)

Maori: A Photographic and Social History (1983)

Whina: A Biography of Whina Cooper (l983)

Te Puea Herangi: from darkness to light (1984)

Being Pakeha: An Encounter with New Zealand and the Maori Renaissance (1985)

Auckland (with Eric Taylor) (1985)

Kawe korero: A guide to reporting Maori activities (1985)

Death of the Rainbow Warrior (1986)

New Zealand (1987)

After the War: New Zealand since 1945 (1988)

One of the boys?: changing views of masculinity in New Zealand (1988)

Apirana Ngata: e tipu e rea (l988)

Moriori: A People Rediscovered (1989)

A Land Apart: The Chatham Islands of New Zealand (1990)

Pakeha: The quest for identity in New Zealand (1991)

Hidden Places: A Memoir in Journalism (1992)

Coromandel (1993)

Frank Sargeson: A Life (1995)

God's Farthest Outpost: A History of Catholics in New Zealand (1997)

Nga iwi o te motu: One thousand years of Maori history (1997)

Being Pakeha Now: reflections and recollections of a white native (1999)

Wrestling with the Angel: A Life of Janet Frame (2000)

Tomorrow comes the song: A Life of Peter Fraser (with Michael Bassett) (2000)

Tread Softly For You Tread On My Life: new & collected writings (2001)

An Inward Sun: The World of Janet Frame (2002)

At the Edge of Memory: A family story (2002)

Penguin History of New Zealand (2003)

See also

• New_Zealand_literature

New Zealand claims as its own many writers, even those immigrants born overseas or those emigrants who have gone into exile. ...

External link

• New Zealand Book Council biography
• Michael King's obituary from The New Zealand Herald