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I'm not sure if NZ declared war on their own or not.

I'm sure, (I'm a Kiwi). New Zealand declared war on Germany, and there has always been this legend that we actually declared war before Britain, which would have been embarrassing if they'd backed out, but no

Yes, New Zealand does have riots, though big ones are very rare, two famous ones both happened in Queen Street, Auckland.

http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/queen-street-riots-1984

http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/queen-st-riot-auckland

Yes, New Zealand does have riots, though big ones are very rare, two famous ones both happened in Queen Street, Auckland.

http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/queen-street-riots-1984

http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/queen-st-riot-auckland

The Pearse-is-first is a myth. Pearse himself said that he didn't beat the Wright Brothers and didn't fly until 1904, despite the (mutually exclusive) claims that he flew March 31, 1902 or March 31st, 1903.

Heres some more stuff:

Richard Pearse - Features some really cool pics of his aeroplane
Richard Pearse, Aviator - Features a cool VRML 3d model of his flying machine. Remember VRML? Also has some dimensioned drafts.
Richard Pearse - New Zealand Pioneer Aviator - IT's got soem schematics and descriptions of the engine he used.

Lots more cool stuff available out there if you feel like looking.

What about Richard Pearse?

1902 was the year that Pearse began his flight experiments: - His first aircraft was built over a number of years and flight-tested from 1902

The letter you refer to is one in which he said that the Wright Brothers will get the credit for flying first.....

On this page referrence to the two letters is made. But there is a large amount of ambiguity about what he acheived in 1902.

Pearse's definition of 'flight' was far more rigorous than the Wright brothers'.

By that same definition the Wright brothers never 'flew' in 1903. They never got out of ground effect, and never for more than few seconds. People have long argued that Pearse's definition of flight is more complete than the Wrights' and so when he said that he never flew in 1902 - he meant it.... but by the same definition the Wrights didn't either.

So if flying in ground effect counts as first flight - Pearse's hops and short flights perhaps count too - from 1902.

When people look at the Wright flyer - it looks archaic..... but at the same time Pearse's aircraft was more sophistocated... his first aircraft was a remarkable invention embodying several far-sighted concepts: a monoplane configuration, wing flaps and rear elevator, tricycle undercarriage with steerable nosewheel, and a propeller with variable-pitch blades driven by a unique double-acting horizontally opposed petrol engine.

At the same time that the Wright Brother's were 'flying' in an oversized box kite Pearse was flying a machine that bears a remarkable similarity to modern day ultra-lights.

Whether or not the Wrights or Pearse flew first there is another who was flying around the same time Gustave Whitehead

"In the early morning hours of 14 August 1901, near Bridgeport, Connecticut, a small graceful monoplane took to the air with its inventor and builder, Gustave Whitehead at the controls,carrying him for half a mile before landing undamaged."

So probably the only thing you can claim about the Wright brothers is that they were masters of publicity well before their time.

1902 was the year that Pearse began his flight experiments: - His first aircraft was built over a number of years and flight-tested from 1902

On this page referrence to two letters is made. And there is a large amount of ambiguity about what he acheived in 1902. The letters reveal that he said that the Wright Brothers will get the credit for flying first..... but whether they did or not is another matter. It's a all in the definition.

Pearse's definition of 'flight' was far more rigorous than the Wright brothers'.

By that same definition the Wright brothers never 'flew' in 1903. They never got out of ground effect, and never for more than few seconds. People have long argued that Pearse's definition of flight is more complete than the Wrights' and so when he said that he never flew in 1902 - he meant it.... but by the same definition the Wrights didn't either.

So if flying in ground effect counts as first flight - Pearse's hops and short flights perhaps count too - from 1902.

When people look at the Wright flyer - it looks archaic..... but at the same time Pearse's aircraft was more sophistocated... his first aircraft was a remarkable invention embodying several far-sighted concepts: a monoplane configuration, wing flaps and rear elevator, tricycle undercarriage with steerable nosewheel, and a propeller with variable-pitch blades driven by a unique double-acting horizontally opposed petrol engine.

At the same time that the Wright Brother's were 'flying' in an oversized box kite Pearse was flying a machine that bears a remarkable similarity to modern day ultra-lights.

Whether or not the Wrights or Pearse flew first there is another who was flying around the same time Gustave Whitehead

"In the early morning hours of 14 August 1901, near Bridgeport, Connecticut, a small graceful monoplane took to the air with its inventor and builder, Gustave Whitehead at the controls,carrying him for half a mile before landing undamaged."

So probably the only thing you can claim about the Wright brothers is that they were masters of publicity well before their time let's celebrate that!

Some folks, mainly from New Zealand, make a strong case that Richard Pearse made the first powered flight. Pearse belives it was in March, 1904, but others claim March, 1903 or even 1902. Even if he wasn't first, his design is surprising modern: " a monoplane configuration, wing flaps and rear elevator, tricycle undercarriage with steerable nosewheel, and a propeller with variable-pitch blades driven by a unique double-acting horizontally opposed petrol engine."