Wellington (Civ5)/Civilopedia

According to Maori legend, the Hawaiki chief Kupe arrived on the North Island of New Zealand around 925 AD after having sailed there by canoe, besting numerous sea monsters and demons to reach this promised land. Whatever the truth of that may be, in September 1839 an expedition of the London-based New Zealand Company arrived and established a landing on a flat area at the mouth of the Hutt River. The next year, the ship Aurora arrived with 150 settlers from England. The initial site proving too swampy and prone to flooding, the newcomers relocated their settlement plans across the sheltered bay and the company directors named the town Wellington (the town of Petone now sits on the site of the original landing). In 1865, the city was declared the new capital of the colony, replacing Auckland which had been made the seat of the nascent government in 1841. It was argued by the colonial administration that Wellington, with its magnificent harbor and more central location, would serve that purpose better. 
Wellington lies on the Cook Strait, on hills to the southwest of the bay. On his first voyage of exploration, Royal Navy Captain James Cook, searching for the rumored continent of Terra Australis, reached the islands of New Zealand in 1770 AD. He circumnavigated and mapped the entire coastline, and made special note of the sheltered natural harbor where the New Zealand Company would establish Wellington. For most of its history, the 27 square-mile anchorage was known as Port Nicholson. After the capital was established, Wellington Harbour quickly became the most important port on the islands, serving the needs of both British naval and commercial vessels. It is today the largest container port in the region, and a tanker terminus was constructed at the industrial suburb of Seaview. In 1895 the Union Steamship Company established regular service to and from the port, and for more than a century Wellington has been the primary terminal for ferry service between the nation’s islands and beyond.