Rothesay Bay

The soil is primarily formed from clay and Waitemata sandstone, which can be seen in the cliffs along the coast. During the 19th century, the area was dominated by mānuka shrubs.

Māori settlement of the Auckland Region began around the 13th or 14th centuries. The North Shore was settled by Tāmaki Māori, including people descended from the Tainui migratory canoe and ancestors of figures such as Taikehu and Peretū. Many of the Tāmaki Māori people of the North Shore identified as Ngā Oho. While the poor soils around the East Coast Bays hindered dense settlement,

The warrior Maki migrated from the Kāwhia Harbour to his ancestral home in the Auckland Region, likely sometime in the 17th century. Maki conquered and unified many the Tāmaki Māori tribes as Te Kawerau ā Maki, including those of the North Shore. After Maki's death, his sons settled different areas of his lands, creating new hapū. His younger son Maraeariki settled the North Shore and Hibiscus Coast, who based himself at the head of the Ōrewa River. Maraeariki's daughter Kahu succeeded him, and she is the namesake of the North Shore, Te Whenua Roa o Kahu ("The Greater Lands of Kahu"), Many of the iwi of the North Shore, including Ngāti Manuhiri, Ngāti Maraeariki, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Poataniwha, Ngāi Tai Ki Tāmaki and Ngāti Whātua, can trace their lineage to Kahu. By the 18th century, the Marutūāhu iwi Ngāti Paoa had expanded their influence to include the islands of the Hauraki Gulf and the North Shore. After periods of conflict, peace had been reached by the 1790s. The earliest contact with Europeans began in the late 18th century, which caused many Tāmaki Māori to die of rewharewha, respiratory diseases. During the early 1820s, most Māori of the North Shore fled for the Waikato or Northland due to the threat of war parties during the Musket Wars. Most people had returned by the late 1820s and 1830s.

In 1841, the Crown purchased the Mahurangi and Omaha blocks; an area that spanned from Takapuna to Te Ārai. The purchase involved some iwi with customary interests in the area, such as Ngāti Paoa, other Marutūāhu iwi and Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, but not others, such as Te Kawerau ā Maki or Ngāti Rango. The Crown spent until 1873 rectifying this sale, by making further deals with stakeholders. and the land was subdivided for sale in 1915 and 1916. While many historical sources describe Knight naming the subdivision after his hometown in Scotland, Knight did not come from Rothesay. The origin of the name is unknown, but it may have come from the Scottish song "Sweet Rothesay Bay", which was referenced in some of the advertising material for the suburb. A small settlement of holiday homes developed during the 1920s, but even into the 1950s the area was sparsely populated and rural. By 1945, ten families had permanently settled at Rothesay Bay, and a close knit community developed. The families used the Rothesay Bay beach as a common area to socialise. During World War II, a pillbox was installed at the Rothesay Bay Esplanade, and gun emplacements were constructed on the nearby cliffs.

From 1876 until 1954, the area was administered by the Waitemata County, a large rural county north and west of the city of Auckland. In 1954, the area split from the county, forming the East Coast Bays Borough Council, In 1989, the city was merged into the North Shore City. Within the Auckland Council, Rothesay Bay is a part of the Hibiscus and Bays local government area governed by the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board. It is a part of the Albany ward, which elects two councillors to the Auckland Council.

A popular public walkway passes through coastal Rothesay Bay, connecting Campbells Bay to Browns Bay in the north. The walkway passes sections of exposed Waitemata sandstone.

Chris Rankin who played Percy Weasley in the Harry Potter film series grew up in Rothesay Bay until he was 6 years old.