Maihi Paraone Kawiti (1807–21 May 1889) was a New Zealand tribal leader. Of

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

descent, he identified with the

Ngāti Hine Ngāti Hine is an iwi with a rohe in Northland, New Zealand. It is part of the wider Ngāpuhi iwi. Its rohe (tribal area) covers the areas of Waiomio, Kawakawa, Taumarere, Moerewa, Ruapekapeka, Motatau, Waimahae, Towai, Akeramaa, Pakara ...

hapū In Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief and normally opera ...

of the

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165, ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

. He was born in Waiomio, Northland, New Zealand in 1807. His father was

Te Ruki Kawiti Te Ruki Kawiti (1770s – 5 May 1854) was a prominent Māori rangatira (chief). He and Hōne Heke successfully fought the British in the Flagstaff War in 1845–46. Belich, James. ''The New Zealand Wars''. (Penguin Books, 1986) He traced descent ...

. One of his sons was

Kirihi Te Riri Maihi Kawiti Kirihi Te Riri Maihi Kawiti (17 April 1877 – 20 February 1964) was a New Zealand tribal leader, farmer and genealogist. Of Māori descent, he identified with the Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Hine iwi. He was born in Waiomio, Northland, New Zealan ...

. Prior to succeeding his father as leader of the Ngāti Hine hapū, Maihi Paraone was missionary teacher at Mangakahia;Rogers, Lawrence M., (1973) ''Te Wiremu: A Biography of Henry Williams'', Pegasus Press, pp. 296-7 he was a supporter of te ture (the law) and te whakapona (the gospel).

Leadership of the Ngāti Hine hapū

As the leader of the Ngāti Hine hapū, deputations came to Maihi Paraone Kawiti from the

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

and

Waikato Waikato () is a Regions of New Zealand, local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton City ...

iwi asking the Ngāpuhi to join the

Māori King Movement The Māori King Movement, called the in Māori, is a movement that arose among some of the Māori (tribes) of New Zealand in the central North Island in the 1850s, to establish a role similar in status to that of the monarch of the British c ...

; the reply from Maihi Paraone Kawiti was that the Ngāpuhi had no desire for a "Māori Kingi" as " Kuini Wikitoria" was their "Kingi". Maihi Paraone Kawiti arranged for the fifth flagpole to be erected at

Kororareka Russell, known as Kororāreka in the early 19th century, was the first permanent European settlement and seaport in New Zealand. It is situated in the Bay of Islands, in the far north of the North Island. History and culture Māori settle ...

at the site where the flagpoles had been cut down during the

Flagstaff War The Flagstaff War, also known as Heke's War, Hōne Heke's Rebellion and the Northern War, was fought between 11 March 1845 and 11 January 1846 in and around the Bay of Islands, New Zealand. The conflict is best remembered for the actions of Hō ...

; this occurred in January 1858, with the flag being named Whakakotahitanga, "being at one with the Queen". As a further symbolic act the 400 Ngāpuhi warriors involved in preparing and erecting the flagpole were selected from the ‘rebel’ forces of

and

Hone Heke Honing is a kind of metalworking. Hone may also refer to: * Hone (name) (incl. Hōne), a list of people with the surname, given name or nickname * Hõne language Hõne is a Jukunoid language spoken in Gombe State and Taraba State, Nigeria ...

– that is, Ngāpuhi from the hapū of

Tāmati Wāka Nene Tāmati Wāka Nene (1780s – 4 August 1871) was a Māori rangatira (chief) of the Ngāpuhi iwi (tribe) who fought as an ally of the British in the Flagstaff War of 1845–46. Origin and mana Tāmati Wāka Nene from the ''Dictionary of New Zea ...

(who had fought as allies of the British forces during the Flagstaff War) observed, but did not participate in the erection of the fifth flagpole. The restoration of the flagpole was presented by Maihi Paraone Kawiti as a voluntary act on the part of the Ngāpuhi that had cut it down in 1845, and they would not allow any other to render any assistance in this work.

References

1807 births 1889 deaths Ngāti Hine people Ngāpuhi people People from the Northland Region {{Māori-bio-stub