[5] She completed her PhD in 1984, also at the University of Auckland, and the title of this doctoral thesis was The Treaty of Waitangi: a study of its making, interpretation and role in New Zealand history.

Late in 2003 she became director of history and Pacific cultures at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa in Wellington.

[citation needed] Several shorter versions of the book have been published for young and non-academic audiences, and a revised edition was released in 2011.

In the 1993 New Year Honours, Orange was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for services to historical research.

[10] She was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, also for services to historical research, in the 2009 New Year Honours.