SOLDIERS ’ FOODWAYS: Historical Archaeology of Military Comestibles in the Waikato Campaign of the New Zealand Wars

ii Food is an essential part of human existence and directly linked to the cultural behaviour of individuals, groups, and institutions. In their commentary on food studies, Mintz and Du Bois (2002, p. 8) noted that war has been relatively neglected as a research focus. This thesis investigates British and colonial soldiers ’ comestibles during the Waikato campaign of the New Zealand Wars, a regional conflict that commenced in 1863. It is the first major investigation that has been carried out on this subject in New Zealand and one of the few investigations worldwide on soldiers ’ comestibles during a war. The thesis addressed three questions: what did soldiers eat and drink during the campaign; how was food security ensured; and what foodways practices indicated status. The questions address themes that are at the core of foodways research (Dery 1997, Bray 2003, Cool 2006, Andersen and Moltsen 2007, Peres 2008, and Eichelberger 2010). Food security was of specific interest because the Waikato campaign followed the disastrous Crimean War and took place during a time of British military supply system reform