Une Medaille pour Kate
New Zealand Historic Places Trust Information release
16 November 2007
A Northland heritage professional has received formal recognition
for her work in researching and interpreting the history of the French
in Northland and the founding of the New Zealand we know today.
Kate Martin, who manages the New Zealand Historic Places Trust property
Pompallier Mission in Russell, was formally presented with the John Dunmore
Medal by His Excellency the French Ambassador to New Zealand, Mr Michel
Legras, at a special ceremony in Russell today [November 15].
The John Dunmore Medal is awarded by the Federation of Alliances Françaises
of New Zealand in recognition of major contributions to knowledge and
better understanding of the part played by the French people and French
culture in scientific, economic, historical and cultural development in
the Pacific.
John Dunmore was a long-serving Professor of French at Massey University
who was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour by the French Government
in 1976, an Officer of the Ordre des Palmes Academiques in 1986 and a
Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2001. He is a distinguished
historian of the French in the Pacific whose works include Storms and
Dreams, a biography of Louis-Antoine Comte de Bougainville.
"The John Dunmore Medal recognizes Kate Martin's contribution to
raising public knowledge of the role played by Bishop Pompallier and the
Marist Fathers in the history of New Zealand through a number of important
initiatives. She has also built up a major document archive at Pompallier
Mission where she captivates visitors with her accounts and inspires further
research by historians here and in France," said Mr Legras.
"Although contenders for the prestigious John Dunmore Medal are
assessed annually, the medal isn't necessarily awarded every year - something
that makes this award particularly significant."
As well as the day-to-day management and interpretation of Pompallier
Mission - the surviving printery from Bishop Pompallier's mission headquarters
to Western Oceania which was based in Russell in the 1840s - Kate has
spearheaded a number of programmes that investigate the links between
the French, New Zealand and the Pacific. These particularly include the
historic building's unique architecture, its religious and political history,
and its role in the introduction of print culture to New Zealand.
Programmes have included Pompallier @ Pompallier, which saw Pompallier
Mission as the only non-Catholic site that hosted Bishop Pompallier's
remains as they were returned from France in 2002; and the Pompallier
Symposium in 2004 which promoted understanding of the valuable French
part in creating New Zealand's heritage.
According to Kate, the John Dunmore Medal has been the result of huge
dedication on the part of many people.
"It's a tremendous honour to receive this medal. In receiving it,
though, I am very conscious I'm doing so on behalf of all who work at
Pompallier Mission, of many other individuals and organizations, and most
especially Kororareka Marae and the Russell community," she said.
"I'm also conscious of the contribution made by many from the Bay
of Islands and wider Tai Tokerau area - in particular the Hokianga and
Whangaroa communities who have been so generous. Much more than for myself,
this award is for them - I'm just 'picking it up' for them and the Historic
Places Trust in the North."
Kate will continue to explore the history surrounding the French and
New Zealand, and in particular the place of Bishop Pompallier and his
confrères in our history, through her various networks in New Zealand,
the Pacific and France. These include such diverse disciplines as historians,
authorities on earthen buildings, and specialists in the history of books
and printing.
"Bishop Pompallier has sometimes been described as France's first
ambassador to New Zealand. As Manager of Pompallier Mission, and charged
with preserving, interpreting and making relevant its place in New Zealand
history, I feel that my role is similar - I'm not an academic, but act
as ambassador for the stories of those people who were part of his mission,"
said Kate.
"This award is a marvelous encouragement for all of us involved
in researching and telling the stories about historic Te Tai Tokerau Northland's
place in world history. We still have so much more to discover and understand,
including but not only about the French here."
For more information:
Kate Martin
Pompallier
Ph: 09 403-9015
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