Marion du Fresne

Biography

In 1735, and not yet a teenager, Marc Joseph Marion du Fresne joined the French India Company ship Duc de Bourgogne as honorary sub-lieutenant.

He worked his way up the ranks of the Company and the French royal navy until 1771 when he was given command of two ships for a voyage of trade and exploration to the Pacific sponsored by the French authorities.

En route to his destination Marion du Fresne searched for the fabled southern continent in the south Indian Ocean. Eventually landfall was made in Tasmania, and after several days there he set sail for New Zealand. Marion du Fresne sighted Mount Taranaki on 25 March 1772, naming it Pic Mascarin. He then sailed north to Spirits Bay, where a gale caused severe damage to the ships. Marion du Fresne then proceeded south-east and on 4 May reached the Bay of Islands.

The next five weeks were spent exploring the Bay and repairing the ships. On 8 June Marion du Fresne was welcomed at a special ceremony, but within a week he and 24 of his crew were killed by members of the Ngare Raumati tribe. As the French ships could not leave promptly while repairs were incomplete, a counter-attack was organised, which soon turned into violent reprisals and caused an estimated 250 Māori casualties.

The reasons for the killing of Marion du Fresne and his men may never be known. It is likely that the French transgressed in some way, possibly on the fatal day, or more probably on a number of earlier occasions, until it was felt that they had gone too far. Probably a visit of five weeks with no clear signs of departure created serious economic and cultural strains.

The stay, remarkable for its length and the closeness of the contact established between the visitors and the indigenous people, produced many records of early Māori life. The events of mid- 1772, however, strengthened the view in France that New Zealand was inhabited by dangerous natives and did not warrant an attempt at colonisation.

Adapted by Matthew Tonks from the DNZB biography by John Dunmore

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Athol Parkinson

Posted: 11 Dec 2021

Angela Ballara’s book Taua.

Warfare in Maori Society in the early nineteenth century
States.....The killing of Marion was done by a group identified in a Ngapuhi account as Ngati Pou,a section of Ngati Rahiri. Ngati Pou had come from inland(the place was identified as Waimate,but perhaps a broader area including Taiamai was intended) and had been visiting the islands of Motuarohia,Te Wai Iti and others at the time Marions ship arrived.Ngati Pou were using the islañds as fishing stations,but they were there only with permission from others . The islands lay under the mana of Te Kauri,a chief of the hapu Te Hikutu of Whangamumu on the east coast,and Marion and company were killed because Ngati Pou feared that Te Kauri would blame them for the breach of Tapu committed by the tribe of Marion. They were right. Ngati Pou and Ngati Uru were attacked by Te Hikutu for allowing the Tapu beach at Manawaora to be desecrated and had fled to Whangaroa in consequence.