BRODIE, WALTER ( ) was a son of the Rev. Alexander Brodie, D.D., chaplain to King George IV, his mother being a daughter of John Walter (of The Times). He first came to New Zealand in 1839, when he purchased land at Bay of Islands. In 1840 he chartered the schooner Hope to ship stock to the Chatham Islands for two stations of 300,000 acres which he had purchased for £2,000. Except for a short stay in Port Nicholson (1842) and a visit of twelve months to Tahiti, he lived at Bay of Islands till 1843. He was a witness of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Brodie travelled widely in New Zealand, purchasing land mainly with a view to mining, and claimed to have acquired valuable copper tracts. In 1844 he gave evidence before the select committee of the House of Commons. In 1845 he published a controversial book on The Past and Present State of New Zealand. In 1850 he visited California (with Carleton, q.v.) and next year published his book on Pitcairn's Island. In 1861 he again appeared as the author of a pamphlet criticising Grey's administration.

Brodie established a business in Auckland as a general merchant, retiring about 1870 and returning to live in England. He was M.P.C. for Auckland Suburbs (1855-57) and M.H.R. for the same constituency (1855-60). He had a large estate also at Mangonui, on which he liberated English sparrows and pheasants.

G.B.O.P. 1844/556; Parltry Record; Cycl. N.Z., ii; Hocken.

Reference: Volume 1, page 64

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