Hundreds have gathered near the Ruapekapeka Pā site in the Far North today to remember those on both sides of the historic conflict 175 years on.
The battle was one of the first few major clashes since the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, following a series of protests in the north by Māori demanding the Crown honour its promises.
In early January, 1846, a force of more than 1000 armed British Troops bombarded the small settlement as a response to the growing division, while Northern chief Te Ruki Kawiti and his people hid inside underground bunkers.
Remarkably, most of them survived the attack and escaped unharmed.
OPINION: I had the recent privilege of attending part of the three-day celebration to commemorate 175 years since the battle of Ruapekapeka. My prior knowledge of the battle and the context in which it was fought is sadly lacking, despite being descended from many of its participants. Attending a wananga on the battle at Kawiti Marae in Waiōmio, near Kawakawa, home of the battle’s instigator Te Ruki Kawiti, brought home how little I knew of the motivations, context and relevance of the battle in our early colonial period. The benefit of studying our own history is that we can literally walk the whenua on which it occurred – at Waiōmio we saw Kawiti’s weapons on display; at the battle site we investigated the holes of the “bat’s nest” and saw his cannon damaged by return fire from the British.
Te Ruapekapeka commemoration chance for wider reflection 11 Jan 2021 08:51 AM Photo: Radio Waatea Image Database.
More Related Stories
Related Podcast
As hapū involved in the 1846 battle at Te Ruapekapeka welcome manuhiri to a three-day commemoration, Associate Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Kiri Allan says it’s a chance for all New Zealanders to reflect on the role such conflicts had in creating the nation.
She says the Battle at Te Ruapekapeka Pā, which took place on January 10 and 11 1846, marked the end of the Northern War and was the culmination of the first of a series of conflicts signifying the beginning of the New Zealand Wars.