Pōtatau Te Wherowhero (died 25 June 1860) was a
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 ...
warrior, leader of the
Waikato iwi (confederation of tribes), the first
Māori King
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 ...
and founder of the Te Wherowhero royal
dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
. He was first known just as ''Te Wherowhero'' and took the name ''Pōtatau'' after he became king in 1858. As disputes over land grew more severe Te Wherowhero found himself increasingly at odds with the Government and its policies.
Early life
Te Wherowhero was the eldest son of
Te Rau-angaanga, who belonged to the senior chiefly line of
Ngāti Mahuta
Ngāti Mahuta is a sub-tribe (or hapū) of the Waikato tribe (or iwi) of Māori in the North Island of New Zealand. The territory (rohe) of Ngāti Mahuta is the Kawhia and Huntly areas of the Waikato region.
History
Ngāti Mahuta is descended ...
and was a prominent war leader before and during the 1807–1845
Musket Wars
The Musket Wars were a series of as many as 3,000 battles and raids fought throughout New Zealand (including the Chatham Islands) among Māori between 1807 and 1837, after Māori first obtained muskets and then engaged in an intertribal arms ra ...
.
[ When Te Wherowhero was born near the end of the 18th century his father had just become the principal war chief of the Waikato tribes. Te Rau-angaanga defeated a much larger coastal Tainui and Taranaki force of about 7,000 warriors led by ]Ngāti Toa
Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Toarangatira or Ngāti Toa Rangatira, is a Māori '' iwi'' (tribe) based in the southern North Island and in the northern South Island of New Zealand. Its '' rohe'' (tribal area) extends from Whanganui in the north, Palmerston ...
chief Pikauterangi in the battle of Hingakaka
The Battle of Hingakākā (sometimes written ''Hiringakaka'') was fought between two Māori armies of the North Island, near Te Awamutu and Ohaupo in the Waikato in the late 18th or early 19th centuries, and was reputedly "the largest battle ev ...
near Ohaupo. Te Wherowhero's mother, Te Parengaope, was a daughter of a chief of Ngāti Koura, a ''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 op ...
'' (subtribe) of Waikato. Te Wherowhero was thus descended from the captains of both the Tainui
Tainui is a tribal waka confederation of New Zealand Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Raukawa and Waikato.
There are oth ...
and Te Arawa
Te Arawa is a confederation of Māori iwi and hapu (tribes and sub-tribes) of New Zealand who trace their ancestry to the Arawa migration canoe (''waka'').[waka
Waka may refer to:
Culture and language
* Waka (canoe), a Polynesian word for canoe; especially, canoes of the Māori of New Zealand
** Waka ama, a Polynesian outrigger canoe
** Waka hourua, a Polynesian ocean-going canoe
** Waka taua, a Māori w ...]
'' (canoes),[ which are said to have brought the Māori to ]New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
.
Te Wherowhero grew up in a period of relative peace for the Waikato tribes, following his father's victory over Ngāti Toa in the battle of Hingakaka. He was taught traditional lore, first by his father and then at Te Papa-o-Rotu, the Waikato ''whare wananga'' (school of knowledge) at Whatawhata. He lived at Kaitotehe pā on the western bank of the Waikato River
The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for through the North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake. It th ...
, at the base of the Hakarimata Range
Hakarimata Range is a range of hills on the western edge of Ngāruawāhia township, Retrieved 2016 in the Waikato region of New Zealand, overlooking the confluence of the Waikato and Waipā Rivers. The Hakarimata Range is separated from the Tau ...
and opposite Taupiri
Taupiri is a small town of about 500 people on the eastern bank of the Waikato River in the Waikato District of New Zealand. It is overlooked by Taupiri mountain, the sacred burial ground for the Waikato tribes of the Māori people, located ...
on the other bank.[ He had four wives, ]Whakaawi
Whakaawi ( Maori pronunciation: akaaːwi was a Māori woman of high birth in both the Ngāti Te Wehi tribe and Ngāti Mahuta tribe,''The King Country, Or, Explorations in New Zealand: A Narrative of 600 Miles of Travel'' by James Henry Kerry-Ni ...
, Raharaha, Waiata and Ngawaero.[ His children included Matutaera Tāwhiao, Te Paea Tiaho, Makareta Te Otaota and Tiria (these last two may be the same person).]
When his fellow Ngāti Mahuta chief and relative Te Uira killed a Ngāti Toa man, and was in return killed by a war party led by Ngāti Toa chief Te Rauparaha
Te Rauparaha (c.1768 – 27 November 1849) was a Māori rangatira (chief) and war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe who took a leading part in the Musket Wars, receiving the nickname "the Napoleon of the South". He was influential in the origina ...
, Te Wherowhero joined his father in attacks on Ngāti Toa at Kāwhia.[
When Marore, a wife of Te Rauparaha, was visiting relatives in Waikato for a '']tangihanga
''Tangihanga'', or more commonly, ''tangi'', is a traditional Māori funeral rite held on a marae. While still widely practised, it is not universally observed in modern times.
Each iwi (tribe/nation) differs on how they honour those who pass. '' ...
'' in about 1820, Te Wherowhero instigated her murder by Te Rangi-moe-waka.[ After a series of revenge killings, Te Wherowhero led 3,000 Waikato and ]Ngāti Maniapoto
Ngāti Maniapoto is an iwi (tribe) based in the Waikato-Waitomo region of New Zealand's North Island. It is part of the Tainui confederation, the members of which trace their whakapapa (genealogy) back to people who arrived in New Zealand on th ...
warriors on an overland attack on Kāwhia, while 1,500 of their allies from Whaingaroa (Raglan) attacked by a sea route. Together they defeated Ngāti Toa at Te Kakara, near Lake Taharoa, and Waikawau, south of Tirua Point.[ Te Rauparaha and Ngāti Toa were then besieged at Te Arawi, near Kāwhia Harbour. Some of the Waikato and Maniapoto besiegers did not want to see Ngāti Toa exterminated, so they were permitted to give up their territory at Kāwhia and migrate to northern ]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 D ...
.[
Te Wherowhero led a large army to Taranaki, partly to pursue Ngāti Toa and partly to rescue Peehi Tukorehu, a Ngāti Maniapoto chief, whose war party was besieged by Taranaki tribes at Pukerangiora, on the ]Waitara River
The source of the Waitara River lies in the very steep hill country to the east of Mount Taranaki/Egmont, near Tahora. After proceeding in a southwesterly direction toward Central Taranaki, the river abruptly turns to flow in a northwesterly dire ...
.[ Although never forced to retreat, he incurred large costs in human life in sieges which were sometimes unsuccessful.][ Early in 1822 the Waikato forces suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Ngāti Toa and their allies at ]Motunui
Motunui (''large island'' in Māori, from ''Motu Nui'') is a settlement in northern Taranaki, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 3 close to the shore of the North Taranaki Bight, six kilometres east of Waitara.
...
in north 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 D ...
. Te Wherowhero was almost killed when he refused to retreat and abandon the body of a slain Waikato chief. The intervention of Te Rauparaha saved him, but subsequently he had to engage a number of enemy chiefs in single combat, armed with only a digging implement.[ Eventually his own people returned and a negotiated truce ensued.
Te Wherowhero returned to the Waikato that year in time to take command in an unsuccessful defence of his tribe at Matakitaki (]Pirongia
Pirongia is a small town in the Waipa District of the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. It is 12 kilometres to the west of Te Awamutu, on the banks of the Waipā River, close to the foot of the 962 metre Mount Pirongia, which lies i ...
) against 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, ...
, armed with muskets and led by Hongi Hika
Hongi Hika ( – 6 March 1828) was a New Zealand Māori rangatira (chief) and war leader of the iwi of Ngāpuhi. He was a pivotal figure in the early years of regular European contact and settlement in New Zealand. As one of the first Māor ...
on their great rampage through the North Island of 1818 to 1823. The Waikato people settled further south than their usual territory for several years, in fear of further attacks by Ngāpuhi. Te Wherowhero lived at Orongokoekoea on the upper Mokau River, where his wife Whakaawi gave birth to their son Tāwhiao. Peace was made with Ngāpuhi in 1823 and the Waikato re-established themselves on their tribal land.[ By the time Ngāpuhi re-appeared in the area some ten years later the Waikato had also acquired muskets and could therefore defend themselves successfully.
In 1831 Te Wherowhero led an immense war party against the Taranaki Māori and killed many hundreds of the Ngatiawa tribe, whose lands more than ten years later he claimed by right of conquest.][
By 1836 Te Wherowhero made peace with the Taranaki tribes.][ This occurred at a time when missionaries were having a greater impact upon iwi in the Waikato. Te Wherowhero himself regularly attended services, but was never baptised.][
Waikato's (or more specifically Ngāti Maniapoto's) involvement in the Taranaki war against the Government forces in the 1860s can be traced back to Te Wherowhero's long series of attacks against the Taranaki iwi ]Te Āti Awa
Te Āti Awa is a Māori iwi with traditional bases in the Taranaki and Wellington regions of New Zealand. Approximately 17,000 people registered their affiliation to Te Āti Awa in 2001, with around 10,000 in Taranaki, 2,000 in Wellington and arou ...
. Te Wherowhero at one stage claimed Te Āti Awa were slaves who lived there only on his sufferance, but he was prepared to end all interest in the land when he was paid 250 pounds. Keenan argues that Te Wherowhero never occupied Te Āti Awa's land long enough to constitute possession according to Māori customary lore. Nor did Te Āti Awa ever entirely abandon their land thereby maintaining their occupation rights. During the latter stages of the war in Taranaki it was the involvement of Waikato warriors in bringing food and war materials (lead and powder) that enabled the Taranaki warriors to keep fighting in the infertile, wet and inhospitable uplands.
Treaty and influence with Grey
In March 1840 Te Wherowhero was living at Awhitu in the western Manukau
Manukau (), or Manukau Central, is a suburb of South Auckland, New Zealand, centred on the Manukau City Centre business district. It is located 23 kilometres south of the Auckland Central Business District, west of the Southern Motorway, so ...
. Captain William Symonds brought a copy of the Treaty of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the History of New Zealand, history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in ...
to Manukau for chiefs to sign, but Te Wherowhero refused.[ However he was friendly towards the colonial government and not opposed to ]Pākehā
Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non-Māori New Ze ...
presence in areas he controlled. Initially Te Wherowhero favoured the Pākehā arrivals in his territory: his daughter, Tiria, married the trader John Kent.
In May 1844 Te Wherowhero hosted a large intertribal gathering at Remuera
Remuera is an affluent inner city suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located four kilometres southeast of the city centre. Remuera is characterised by many large houses, often Edwardian or mid 20th century. A prime example of a "leafy" sub ...
, near Auckland, with the view mainly of impressing Governor Robert FitzRoy
Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy (5 July 1805 – 30 April 1865) was an English officer of the Royal Navy and a scientist. He achieved lasting fame as the captain of during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, FitzRoy's second expedition to Tierra de ...
with the power of Northern Māori. He was subsequently received at Government House, Auckland, and treated with great distinction by Fitzroy.[ Te Wherowhero built a house at Pukekawa (in today's ]Auckland Domain
The Auckland Domain, also known as Pukekawa / Auckland Domain, is a large park in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the oldest park in the city, and at is one of the largest. Located in the central suburb of Grafton, the park land is the remains o ...
) and it witnessed many discussions and negotiations concerning the implementation of the Treaty.[
The Waikato tribes sold land initially; Te Wherowhero sold some tribal land around Manukau. However in 1846 he protested vehemently to Queen Victoria about an edict that land not actually occupied or cultivated by Māori was to be considered Crown property.][
Between 1847 and 1852 Governor Grey arranged for 861 retired British soldiers called fencibles and their families to establish a number of military villages at Howick, Panmure, Otahuhu and Onehunga. In April 1849 Te Wherowhero signed an agreement with Governor ]George Grey
Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Go ...
to provide Auckland
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
with military protection on the same basis as the fencibles. 121 Ngati Mahuta -originally from Tamahere, now on the southern outskirts of Hamilton, had British officers but supplied their own weapons. The land they were given by Grey was 80 one acre lots and 80 five acre lots at Māngere
Māngere () or Mangere is one of the largest suburbs in Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located on mainly flat land on the northeastern shore of the Manukau Harbour, to the northwest of Manukau City Centre and 15 kilometres south of ...
. Other chiefs who made the agreement were Kati, Nopora, Kahawai, Ponku, Te Tauke, Rewaite, Hankapanga, Te Katea and Rameka Kiaki (sic). They could be called upon for defence should it become necessary after the violent uprising of Māori under Hōne Heke
Hōne Wiremu Heke Pōkai ( 1807/1808 – 7 August 1850), born Heke Pōkai and later often referred to as Hōne Heke, was a highly influential Māori rangatira (chief) of the Ngāpuhi iwi (tribe) and a war leader in northern New Zealand; he w ...
and 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 desce ...
. Grey had learnt the importance of having the support of kūpapa, Māori who sided with the Crown, during that campaign to restore law and order and assert government authority. During the 1851 attack on Auckland by about 350-450 Ngati Paoa a British regiment, the Onehunga fencibles and HMS Fry defended Auckland at Mechanics Bay with Ngati Mahuta playing no part.[The Royal New Zealand Fencibles 1847–1852 .R Alexander. G Gibson. A. LaRoche. Deed . Waiuku. 1997.p108]
Although he never ceded sovereignty to the British Crown
The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...
, he did have good rapport with early New Zealand governors, especially George Grey.
As more settlers came to New Zealand, from the early 1850s Te Wherowhero became less friendly to the Pākehā. This was at least partially due to the nature of these arrivals in the Waikato lands, who often encroached on Māori tribal lands with no formal jurisdiction or consensual purchasing or gifting of the land.
Māori King
In the early 1850s, a movement to establish a Māori King developed. This aimed to unite the Māori people and to act as a counterbalance to Queen Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
. But above all the King Movement wanted to halt the sale and alienation of Māori land by the Pākehā Government.
Mātene Te Whiwhi travelled throughout New Zealand seeking a chief of high standing who was willing to be king. Iwikau Te Heuheu Tūkino III of Ngāti Tūwharetoa suggested that Te Wherowhero should be approached, and his choice was supported by Wiremu Tāmihana of Ngāti Hauā.[ Pōtatau, then elderly, expressed initial reluctance, but agreed in April 1857 at Rangiriri.][ He was installed as king at ]Ngāruawāhia
Ngāruawāhia () is a town in the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located north-west of Hamilton at the confluence of the Waikato and Waipā Rivers, adjacent to the Hakarimata Range. Ngāruawāhia is in the Hamilton Ur ...
in June 1858.
Pōtatau himself wished to continue to work in co-operation with the British Government, but many of his followers adopted a much more independent position. Gradually the two sides polarised and grew apart, culminating five years later in warfare (see Invasion of the Waikato
The Invasion of the Waikato became the largest and most important campaign of the 19th-century New Zealand Wars. Hostilities took place in the North Island of New Zealand between the military forces of the colonial government and a federatio ...
and New Zealand Wars
The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the ...
).
Death
Pōtatau died at Ngāruawāhia on 25 June 1860 and is buried on Mount Taupiri
Mount Taupiri is a hill at the southern end of the Taupiri Range in the Waikato. The highest peak in the range, it rises to 288 metres above sea level and overlooks Taupiri township immediately to its south. It is separated from the Hakarimata Ra ...
, a mountain close to his royal residence in Ngāruawāhia. His son Matutaera Tāwhiao succeeded him.[
]
See also
* 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 ...
* Treaty of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the History of New Zealand, history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in ...
* Waikato (iwi)
Waikato Tainui, Waikato or Tainui is a group of Māori '' iwi'' based in Waikato Region, in the western central region of New Zealand's North Island. It is part of the larger Tainui confederation of Polynesian settlers who arrived to New Zealan ...
Notes
References
*
External links
University of Queensland - Maori Kingitanga
Kingitanga - The Maori King Movement (NZHistory.net.nz)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Potatau Te Wherowhero
18th-century births
1860 deaths
Māori monarchs
People from Te Awamutu
Musket Wars
Ngāti Mahuta people
Waikato Tainui people
Year of birth uncertain
New Zealand Māori men