Ruhe (? - 1865) 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 ...

chief 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 ...

(tribe) in northern

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 ...

. He lived at

Kaikohe Kaikohe is the seat of the Far North District of New Zealand, situated on State Highway 12 about 260 km from Auckland. It is the largest inland town and highest community above sea level in the Northland Region. With a population of over ...

. At the first signing of the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

on 6 February 1840, Ruhe gave a concerted physical display and speech against the treaty. He would go on to sign the Treaty of Waitangi later that day. Next to his name was the statement in

"''Te Tohu o Ruhe te tamaiti o Kopiri''", meaning "The mark of Ruhe the son of Kōpiri". In 1841, Ruhe's son Maketū Wharetotara was accused of the murder of five people on

Motuarohia Island Motuarohia Island (Roberton Island) is a small island in the Bay of Islands of New Zealand, located about northeast of Russell. The island stretches for east-west, with the south coast offering two bays backed by sandy beaches. The north co ...

. After being found guilty, Maketū Wharetotara became the first person executed under British law in New Zealand. It was said that Ruhe suffered severe grief after his son died. Ruhe committed suicide in 1865 by shooting himself.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruhe 1865 deaths Signatories of the Treaty of Waitangi Ngāpuhi people Suicides by firearm in New Zealand