Major David Stark Durie

David Stark Durie, 1804 - 1874, led a colourful life. From a childhood in Scotland and then Norway where his father, Charles Durie, was British consul, to fighting in Portugal and in the Spanish Carlist wars where he met Colonel William Wakefield who invited him to travel to New Zealand to assist in establishing the new colony.

Durie established himself as part of the administering 'elite' and was active in military and civil roles in Wellington, around the Porirua district and along the Kapiti Coast. He held no less than fourteen government appointments in New Zealand, ranging from the first Inspector of Armed Police, to Customs Officer and Police Magistrate at Waikanae and then Resident Magistrate at Wanganui where a number of place names commemorate his contribution to the city.

The book: 'By His Excellency's Command' gives a valuable insight to the life and times of this one of New Zealand's early pioneers. Bob Maysmor, the author, is David Stark Durie's great-grandson. He lives close to where Major Durie saw action against the Maoris in the late 1840s.