Auckland was the military and administrative capital of New Zealand during the early colonial period (1841-1865), and had a permanent garrison of British soldiers from 1840 to 1870. The earliest barracks were at Fort Britomart, overlooking the harbour to the east of the town, where there was accommodation for roughly 200 men. During the First New Zealand - or Northern - War (1845-1846), many of the troops were removed to the Bay of Islands, causing disquiet among Auckland settlers, who feared a Maori attack. Immediately after the war the Governor, Sir George Grey (1812-1898), took action to reassure the local population by asking the British government to fund the construction of a large stone fortification housing at least 900 troops. He considered that it would protect the wealthiest, and most densely populated portion of the town, and afford a place of refuge for its inhabitants and their property. At this time, roughly 3,600 people lived in Auckland. The site chosen for the barracks lay immediately behind the first Government House, Grey's own residence, on a prominent ridge to the southeast of the town. The ridge was known as Rangipuke, and may have been used for settlement by local Maori. The new fortification - known as Albert Barracks - was designed by military engineers brought out from Britain, and mostly erected by a Maori workforce under the supervision of George Graham, clerk of works for the Royal Engineers. The employment of Maori was an experimental measure, partly caused by a shortage of Pakeha labour, but also because of a belief that indigenous unrest was linked to contemporary notions of 'idleness'. The men received training in quarrying, well-digging and stonemasonry; their skills were praised by local officials and settlers. The barracks was the largest early colonial military fortification built in New Zealand. Work on its defensive perimeter probably began in late 1846 and continued until at least 1850, although permanent gates were not fitted until 1852. The wall enclosed an area of at least 9 hectares, or 22 acres, and was roughly octagonal in plan, with flanking angles. It contained loopholes and a raised banquette for soldiers to stand on when firing, and also held three gates, the northernmost having an inscription - of unknown wording - in Maori. Buildings enclosed within the wall included a hospital, armoury, magazine for the storage of ammunition, offices and accommodation for officers and men. The barracks housed a permanent garrison for nearly 25 years, during which time it retained a prominent martial role. It was also vital to the economy of the town, and the development of its civic life. Buildings inside the barracks were used for prominent events, such as a ball held on Queen Victoria's birthday in 1848, attended by the Maori leader and later king, Potatau Te Wherowhero (?-1860), and Governor George Grey. Similarly, the parade ground was used for some of the earliest cricket matches in the settlement, such as that between military personnel and civilians in 1856. The regular pay of the soldiers was an important stimulus to the economy and when the 58th Regiment departed in 1858 after a dozen years in the barracks, it was claimed that one-seventh of the provincial population of Auckland was drawn from its ranks. During the third New Zealand - or Waikato - War of 1863-1864, the Albert Barracks parade ground was used extensively for the training of local militia. After the colonists' takeover of the Waikato, the British government withdrew its troops and the 18th Regiment finally left the barracks in early 1870. Demolition of much of the wall and internal buildings was carried out in 1873-1875, although it was originally intended that the northern gate, with its Maori inscription, should remain as a memorial. After vigorous public protest, part of the land was set aside for recreation as Albert Park, while the rest was subdivided and sold, largely to wealthy merchants. Only the northeastern stretch of barracks wall survived, probably because it formed the western boundary of Government House. By the First World War, the wall had developed a symbolic meaning, and a plaque was erected during that conflict linking its construction to the collective effort of all New Zealanders in Europe: 'To Commemorate / The Union & Comradeship / of PAKEHA & MAORI / During the Great European War / This Tablet was Fixed by the / AUCKLAND CIVIC LEAGUE / Sept 1915. / On the Remnant of the / BARRACK WALL / Built by Friendly Maoris / in 1848 / After the Burning of Kororareka.' Nevertheless, a further length was demolished in 1922 to allow construction of a new Arts Building for the University of Auckland, while at least two breaches in the surviving stretch were created in 1914-1918 and 1968 for pedestrian access. Disagreements about the sentiments expressed on the First World War plaque led to it being defaced during the land rights protests of the 1970s and 1980s, due to which it was removed. Another plaque, commemorating the barracks as a refuge was erected after 1973, as requested by the University of Auckland Senate and New Zealand Historic Places Trust/Pouhere Taonga. The university, who now owned all the surrounding land, undertook a restoration programme in 1984, rebuilding one breached element of the wall and unblocking a previously bricked up breach.

The wall is located to the east of the general library of the University of Auckland, which fronts onto Alfred Street. It is roughly 85 m long, and consists of two straight lengths of masonry with a connecting flanking angle 4.7 m long. The stub of another flanking angle survives at its southern end. The wall survives to its full original height, which is up to 3.4 m above ground level on its external side, and is capped with rounded stone coping. Offset footings are visible towards its southern end, suggesting that the external ground in this area was lowered when the Choral Hall was extended in 1919, while the ground surface to the west of the wall is significantly higher throughout. Apart from its footings, the wall is the same width from top to base at 630-660 mm across. A physical examination of the masonry indicates that the surviving stretch may have been built in at least two phases, with the southern portion and lower part of the flanking angle constructed first. The earliest section is rougher in build, with coursing that varies from 540 to 970 mm in height, while the upper part of the flanking angle and northern stretch are significantly more regular, with courses 560 mm and 620 mm high. Differences extend to the disposition of a series of gun loops, which are generally centred about 5.75 m apart in the earlier work, but less than 5.4 m further north. Such variations suggest that the wall was constructed in segments, perhaps by different gangs or seasonally, with improving techniques and different specifications. It may reflect the gathering of expertise by its Maori builders. The gun loops were evidently designed for rifle fire, having a flat base with a sloping top and sides to create narrow, rectangular openings on the external face of the wall. Five loops only about 750 mm apart in the flanking masonry allowed more concentrated fire to be directed along the face of the perimeter wall, while the angle of the flank - at more than 90 degrees - enabled cover to extend as far as the southeastern corner of the fortification. There is no trace of an internal banquette currently visible above ground level. Modifications that reflect later activities include the blocking up of twentieth-century breaches, which have restored the wall to its original appearance apart from one small doorway. Similarly, some discolouration on the external face of the wall at its northern end may be the result of burning from garden activity in the grounds of Government House. There are a number of metal fixtures, including spikes and loops, which are likely to be of various dates and function. Buried features other than the wall foundations are not covered by the registration, but are protected archaeological deposits. They are likely to include a military well and drain immediately to the west of the wall, as well as occupation layers linked to a row of timber barracks, positioned at right angles to the perimeter. Although the ground to the east lay outside the barracks, in a military reserve beside the garden of the former Government House, it may also include material contemporary with the use of the fortification. It is unclear if evidence of earlier, Maori occupation survives, none having been found so far in excavations on the barracks site.