Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand. It has a population of just under a million people and is located on North Island. This seaside city is an improtant center for business and industry. It is also themost exciting city in New Zealand with people of many different cultures living there. The history of the city goes back 650 years, when the Maoris settled in the area. European settlement began in 1840 when the British arrived. Auckland was the capital of New Zealand for some time. Later,the captial moved to Wellington, because it was more central. Since 1945,the city of Auckland had grown and it now has large modern suburbs. In 1985,the New Zealand government made the whole country a nuclear-free zone, and since then, Auckland has been a center for protest against nuclear testing in Asia pacific.