Kawau Island would be an interesting place to visit even without its history. And its history would be at least a bit interesting without Sir George Grey. But Grey is worth reading about, and the "Mansion House Tour" we went on is made much more interesting if you know about him. Worth googling for. My summary: failed explorer, autocratic governor at different times of South Australia, Cape Colony and New Zealand (twice). Retired to Kawau, had the mine manager's house made into a mansion, populated the island with zebras, monkeys, wallabies, etc., which left a formidable and still unresolved problem when he died.