Cyprian Bridge arrived in Aotearoa in 1845 as a Major serving with the 58th Regiment of the British Army. He commanded the British forces in the Bay of Islands during the Northern War of 1845–46. With John Williams, he documented events of the war in sketches. A volume titled Māori War Sketches is in the National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa (https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22502350).
He took part in the battle at Puketutu, Lake Ōmāpere, and the destruction of the Kapotai pā, Waikare Inlet, in May 1845; the battle at Ōhaeawai in July 1845; and the battle at Ruapekapeka in January 1846. He was Resident Magistrate at Kororāreka Russell from October 1847 to January 1850 and Deputy Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages in 1848. He left New Zealand in 1850.
