Image galleries

On 25 January 2012, the Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, travelled to Rātana Pā to mark the birthday of the Rātana Church's founder, Tahupotiki Wiremu Rātana

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, hosted a ceremony to confirm the House of Representatives' choice of Speaker at Government House on Tuesday 20 December 2011.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted the 2011 Realise the Dream Awards Ceremony on 9 December 2011 at Government House in Wellington.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, awarded Royal New Zealand Gallantry Awards to three members of the New Zealand Defence Force at an investiture ceremony at Government House on 6 December 2011.  The three members of the New Zealand Army received their awards for their actions when the patrol they were part of in Bamyan province, Afghanistan, came under fire from insurgents on 3 August 2010.  The attack claimed the life of their commander, Lt Tim O'Donnell DSD.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted a reception for the Young Enterprise Scheme (YES) Alumni on 30 November 2011, at Government House in Wellington.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae, attended the opening of Pulman Lodge in Takanini, Auckland, on 25 November 2011.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, as Patron of the New Zealand AIDS Foundation, participated in the organisation's annual street appeal in central Auckland on 25 November 2011 in the lead up to World AIDS Day on 1 December.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted the Asthma Foundation 2011 Supreme Achiever's Awards at Government House in Wellington on 22 November 2011.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae, attended the memorial service at Greymouth on 19 November 2011 to mark the 1st anniversary of the Pike River Mine Disaster.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, addressed the 95th National Council Meeting of the Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association at the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington on 14 November 2011.  Photos: RNZRSA

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, presided at an Executive Council meeting at Government House on 3 November 2011.  It was the first time the Council has met for a regular meeting at Government House in many years.   The meeting was held in the Council Room, where meetings of the Executive Council were held until the mid-1970s.  To find out more about the Executive Council, click here.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, travelled to Australia at the end of October, meeting the Governor-General of Australia, Mrs Quentin Bryce AC, and attending the deciding Constellation Cup netball test match between the Australian Diamonds and the Silver Ferns.  Photos: Government House Australia

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, hosted the Rhodes Scholarship Selection Meeting on 20 October 2011 at Government House in Wellington.

The Governor-General and Commander-in-Chief of the New Zealand Defence Force, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, reviewed the fleet of Royal New Zealand Navy ships anchored in Wellington Harbour on 2 October 2011 as part of the 70th Anniversary celebrations.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted a reception at Government House in Wellington attended by members of the Royal New Zealand Navy, in celebration of the Service's 70th Anniversary.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, unveiled a Waharoa at the entrance to ANZAC Park in Nelson at a dawn service on 24 September 2011 to mark the service of the 28 (Māori) Battalion.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae, visited Montecillo Veteran's Home and Hospital in Dunedin on 16 September 2011.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted their first credentials ceremony at Government House in Wellington on 15 September 2011.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted a dinner in honour of HE Kgalema Motlanthe, Deputy President of South Africa, Rt Hon Carwyn Jones, First Minister of Wales, and Jeremy Brown, Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (UK), at Government House in Wellington, after which they attended the South Africa v. Wales Rugby World Cup Match at the Wellington Regional Stadium on 11 September 2011.

The Governor-General, Lt Gen The Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae hosted a dinner in honour of Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations and Kamalesh Sharma, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, on 6 September 2011 at Government House in Auckland.

The Governor-General, Sir Jerry Mateparae, and Lady Janine Mateparae, received a call by His Excellency Kamalesh Sharma, Commonwealth Secretary-General and Mrs Sharma, on 6 September 2011 at Government House in Auckland.

The Swearing-In of Lieutenant General The Right Honourable Sir Jerry Mateparae, GNZM QSO, as Governor-General and Commander-in-Chief of the Realm of New Zealand took place on 31 August at Parliament.

Official photographs of Their Excellencies, Lt Gen Rt Hon Sir Jerry Mateparae, Governor-General of New Zealand, and Lady Janine Mateparae.

Government House Auckland is much smaller than Government House Wellington, having been originally built as a family home. Sir Frank and Lady Mappin bought the property in 1921 and spent the next 45 years, after building the residence, developing and landscaping the grounds. They gifted it to the Queen to be the Governor-General's official residence in Auckland in 1962.