Editing Ross Dependency (section)

== History of claim ==
Following his discovery of [[Victoria Land]] in 1841, James Clark Ross took possession of this territory, along with the surrounding sea, on behalf of [[United Kingdom|Britain]]. On 30 July 1923, the [[Government of the United Kingdom|British Government]] passed an [[Order in Council]] under the British Settlements Act 1887, which defined the current borders of the Ross Dependency as follows:

{{quote|From and after the publication of this Order in the Government Gazette of the Dominion of New Zealand that part of His Majesty's Dominions in the Antarctic Seas, which comprises all the islands and territories between the 160th degree of East Longitude and the 150th degree of West Longitude which are situated south of the 60th degree of South Latitude shall be named the Ross Dependency.}}

The Order in Council then went on to appoint the [[Governor-General of New Zealand|governor-general]] and [[commander-in-chief]] of [[New Zealand]] as the governor of the territory.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ross Dependency Boundaries and Government Order in Council 1923 (SR 1923/974) (as at 17 August 1923), Imperial Contents – New Zealand Legislation |url=https://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/imperial/1923/0974/latest/DLM1195.html |access-date=2022-11-27 |website=www.legislation.govt.nz}}</ref> This Order in Council was published in the ''[[New Zealand Gazette]]'' on 16 August 1923, and on 14 November 1923, the governor-general issued regulations extending New Zealand law to the Ross Dependency.

After the Order in Council was read in the [[New Zealand House of Representatives]] by the [[Prime Minister of New Zealand]] [[William Massey]], a clarification was made by the [[Attorney-General (New Zealand)|Attorney-General]] Sir [[Francis Bell (New Zealand politician)|Francis Bell]] in the [[New Zealand Legislative Council|legislative council]]. Bell stated:

{{quote|The boundaries of New Zealand are not extended to include the Ross sea and adjacent lands. His Majesty's delegation to the Governor-General of New Zealand did not confer upon the government or parliament of New Zealand the same powers as were vested by the [[New Zealand Constitution Act 1852|Constitution Act]] in respect of the Dominion itself. It might be assumed that in the administration of the Ross Dependency that he would invite advice from his New Zealand ministers and it was certain that details would be entrusted to the New Zealand Government. But his excellency was required in all matters of legislation and regulation for the Ross Territory to comply with instructions from the [[Chief Secretary (British Empire)|colonial secretary]]. There was no reason to believe that the [[Colonial Office]] would give such instructions without prior consultation with the Government of the Dominion, but the part which the New Zealand Government had agreed to take in enabling His Majesty to exercise jurisdiction in and over the Ross Territory must be taken on behalf of the Empire as a whole and not specially in the interests of New Zealand.}}

It has been said that the Order in Council contained no suggestion of a transfer to New Zealand of the United Kingdom's claim,<ref>See {{cite journal |title=New Zealand's Claims in the Antarctic |first=Ivor L. M. |last=Richardson |journal=New Zealand Law Journal |volume=33 |issue=9 |pages=38–42
|ssrn=2257655 |year=1957 }}</ref> but the fact remains that the territory is administered by the Government of New Zealand.<ref name="Colonial Law' 1966. P. 137">''Commonwealth and Colonial Law'' by [[Kenneth Roberts-Wray|Sir Kenneth Roberts-Wray]], London, Stevens, 1966. P. 137 (word for word quote as at 2 May 2015)</ref> Technically, the claim is that of the monarch and they can exercise it through any of their governments.<ref name="Colonial Law' 1966. P. 137"/>

At an [[1930 Imperial Conference|Imperial Conference in 1930]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.statusquo.org/aru_html/html/impconf.html|title=Imperial Conferences|website=www.statusquo.org|access-date=2019-02-10|archive-date=2016-03-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307124002/http://statusquo.org/aru_html/html/impconf.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> it was agreed that the governors-general of the [[British Dominions|Dominions]] would be appointed by the king on the advice of the Dominion in question. And following the passing of the [[Statute of Westminster 1931|Statute of Westminster]] in 1931 (which was adopted in full by New Zealand in 1947), the Government of the United Kingdom relinquished all control over the government of New Zealand. This however had no bearing on the obligations of the governor-general of New Zealand in their capacity as governor of the Ross Dependency on the appointment of the Government of the United Kingdom. Then in the year 1959, the [[Antarctic Treaty System|Antarctic Treaty]] was signed by twelve nations, which included both the United Kingdom and New Zealand.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.state.gov/antarctic-treaty/ |title=Antarctic Treaty |publisher=[[United States Department of State]] |access-date=2 May 2020}}</ref>

The New Zealand government began to take some interest in the territory in 1955. As reliance on the United Kingdom waned, New Zealand's exercise of authority began to rely on the United States, which maintained a much larger presence in the territory, despite the United States not recognising the New Zealand claim and reserving the right to make a claim of its own.  The New Zealand [[Scott Base]] was established close to the American [[McMurdo Station]], and Americans in the territory are exempt from taxation, customs, and criminal jurisdiction in minor matters.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sahurie |first1=Emilio J. |title=The International Law of Antarctica |date=27 November 2023 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789004639287 |pages=17–19 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RMX7EAAAQBA}}</ref>