The Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand (Mori: He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni), signed by a number of Mori chiefs in 1835, proclaimed the sovereign independence of New Zealand prior to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840.

The United Tribes of New Zealand (Māori: Te W(h)akaminenga o Ngā Rangatiratanga o Ngā Hapū o Nū Tīreni) was a confederation of Māori tribes based in the north of the North Island, existing legally from 1835 to 1840. It received diplomatic recognition from the United Kingdom, which shortly thereafter annexed it under the Treaty of Waitangi, an event that has largely shaped relations between the government of New Zealand and the Māori people since the 1960s.