Calls to rethink name 'Picton' as history emerges of 'cruel' slave-owner

Friday, 12 June 2020

Celebrated war hero Sir Thomas Picton has been denounced for his treatment of slaves.

The man who Picton was named after has surfaced in a national debate on the glorification of colonial figures prompted by Black Lives Matter protests around the world.

Sir Thomas Picton was a 19th century war hero celebrated for his part in the Napoleonic Wars, but later denounced for his treatment of slaves and the authorisation of torture while Governor of Trinidad.

Branded as “the Tyrant of Trinidad”, it was understood Picton owned slaves, and some sources say he acquired much of his wealth from dealing slaves. He was also convicted of torturing a 14-year-old girl, though the sentence was later overturned.

His descendants in the United Kingdom had joined protesters calling for his marble likeness to be removed from Cardiff, leading New Zealanders to wonder whether the military commander was a worthy namesake for the entrance to the top of the south.

Sir Thomas Picton didn't set foot in the top of the south town.

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Known as Waitohi by local Māori Te Ātiawa, the area had a number of European names before being named in memory of Sir Thomas Picton in 1859.

Marlborough District Councillor David Oddie, pictured at Waitohi Domain in Picton, says the community should discuss a name change.

The push to remove monuments to colonisers and other controversial historical figures was gaining traction around New Zealand, with cheers ringing out around Hamilton's Civic Square on Friday, as a colonial statue was removed.

Marlborough Sounds ward councillor David Oddie said he thought Picton was ready for a name change.

'I've always been sensitive to the chequered history of Thomas Picton,' Oddie said.

'I think the logical progression here would be to give Picton a dual name … and if there is then a public will for the name to be known as Waitohi, that would just surface.'

Kaumātua and historian Mike Taylor formed the view that Thomas Picton was a 'cruel man' after extensive research.

Oddie recognised there would be a 'huge pushback' from a sector of the community about 'any use of a Māori name'.

'Because it's been 'Picton' for pākehā since the 1850s,' he said.

'[The Black Lives Matter movement] has certainly raised awareness and I think this is a really good time, if nothing else, to have the conversation around this,' Oddie said.

Te Ātiawa kaumātua and historian Mike Taylor wrote histories on both Waitohi and Sir Thomas Picton.

According to Taylor's research, Te Weranga o Waitohi was the original name for Picton.

Waitohi Rugby Club president Jimmy Giles, pictured in 2019, says he grew up in the area but had never heard the history of Thomas Picton.

Waitohi means wai (water), and tohi (rite), in reference to a baptism ritual of warriors before they went into battle, he said.

The warriors would line the bank of the sacred stream, and as they filed past, the tohunga (chosen experts) dipped the branch of the karamū bush into the stream, striking each warrior on the right shoulder.

If a leaf fell off the branch, that warrior's chance of returning from battle was quite good, however, if a branch broke then his chance of returning was very remote.

Taylor said this rite was last performed on soldiers preparing to leave with the 28th Māori Battalion in World War II.

Māori historian Dr Peter Meihana says the community should question why they memoralise Thomas Picton.

Following his research, Taylor came to the personal view that Thomas Picton was a 'cruel man'.

'Why did we get landed with his name? Sir Thomas Picton was never here.'

Taylor thought 'Waitohi' would be a 'far better name'. 'It's got a meaning to it.'

Iwi Te Ātiawa called the area Waitohi before it was renamed Picton in 1859.

Waitohi Rugby Club was one of the most well known uses of the original name.

Club president Jimmy Giles said he had grown up in Picton, but Friday was the first he had heard of Thomas Picton's controversial past.

'I was pretty much raised and educated in Picton and it's not something that's taught at the local schools.

'I've never actually thought, 'where did the name come from?'

'I'm not sure how many people would know that … it would be quite interesting if there was a conversation around it.'

Giles' wife and children are Māori, and he said his personal preference was to hear and use Māori names.

Massey University lecturer in Māori history Dr Peter Meihana said he thought the community could start a discussion about the name of Picton by asking 'why do we memorialise this person?'

'Let's have that debate first, settle that debate and then let's talk about the name.'

While there could have been a number of Māori names for the Picton area, he thought it would be a 'deflection' to not change the present name if a replacement could not be agreed upon.

'It's an argument that suits maintaining the status quo.'

Marlborough Museum historian John Orchard said in the mid-1800s when the New Zealand provincial government system was established, names of famous British people were chosen.

'Such as Admiral Nelson, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Duke of Wellington, Sir Thomas Picton and General Havelock were also chosen for town names.'

The New Zealand Geographic Board required support of the local authority before it would deal with a proposal to change the name of a town.