Arise and awaken, Sir Ngatata

PRIVILEGED AND HUMBLED: Sir Ngatata Love at Buckingham Palace, where he received his knighthood from Prince Charles on Tuesday.

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A trip to London and a sword symbolically lowered to his shoulder have "awakened" Ngatata Love.

The leading Maori academic, educator and Waitangi Treaty negotiator was officially knighted by Prince Charles in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.

A staunch republican who grew up witnessing Maori deprivation and dedicated his working life to overcoming it, Sir Ngatata said the visit to London had changed his view of Britain.

He felt privileged to be able to accept his knighthood and was humbled by the event.

But the real impact came when he saw how the British had honoured Kiwi air force commander Sir Keith Park with a Remembrance Day statue.

"[It] set me to thinking about our history with, and links to, Britain. It has caused an awakening in me," Sir Ngatata said.

"Even though I am an avowed republican, we must never abandon the history we share with Britain. Particularly at times of conflict."

Sir Ngatata's uncle, Colonel ETW Love, was the first  Maori commander of the Maori Battalion during World War II.

"He died on the front line at El Alamein. That pretty much says it all to me."

Sir Ngatata is one of 85 prominent New Zealanders retrospectively entitled to a knighthood after Prime Minister John Key reintroduced the honours in March.

The Labour government scrapped knighthoods in 2000, replacing them with other awards.

Sir Ngatata was made a Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit last year.