Editing Niue (section)

===Request for colony status===
[[File:Richard Seddon and the King of Niue.jpg|thumb|Prime Minister of New Zealand [[Richard Seddon]] and the King of Niue, {{circa|1900}}]]

In 1889, the chiefs and rulers of Niue, in a letter to [[Queen Victoria]], asked her "to stretch out towards us your mighty hand, that Niue may hide herself in it and be safe".<ref name="Colonial Law' 1966. P. 897">''Commonwealth and Colonial Law'' by [[Kenneth Roberts-Wray]], London, Stevens, 1966. p. 897</ref> After expressing anxiety lest some other nation should take possession of the island, the letter continued: "We leave it with you to do as seems best to you. If you send the flag of Britain that is well; or if you send a Commissioner to reside among us, that will be well".<ref name="Colonial Law' 1966. P. 897"/> The British did not initially take up the offer. In 1900 a petition by the Cook Islanders asking for annexation included Niue "if possible".<ref name="Colonial Law' 1966. P. 897"/>

In a document dated 19 October 1900, the "King" and Chiefs of Niue consented to "Queen Victoria taking possession of this island". A despatch to the [[Secretary of State for the Colonies]] from the [[Governor of New Zealand]] referred to the views expressed by the Chiefs in favour of "annexation" and to this document as "the deed of cession". A British Protectorate was declared, but it remained short-lived. Niue was brought within the boundaries of New Zealand on 11 June 1901 by the same Order and Proclamation as the Cook Islands. The Order limited the islands to which it related by reference to an area in the Pacific described by co-ordinates, and Niue, at 19.02 S., 169.55 W, lies within that area.<ref name="Colonial Law' 1966. P. 897"/>