The Battle of Orakau.

Huntly Press and District Gazette, Volume 3, Issue 6, 20 March 1914, Page 1

The Battle of Orakau.

j In connection with the unj veiling of the monument to cele- | brate the Battle of Orakau, Mi J. W. Ellis lias issued the fol- | lowing circular to the Maori tribes who fought against the British in the Waikato War. FRIENDS. —A committee representing the whole of the Waikato District has been set up to fittingly celebrate the great fight at Orakau, and more particular] j the fifty years of peace we have all enjoyed since. I have been appointed by this committee to inform the tribes who were then in arms a. ainst us of what is proposed, and to ask them to join with us in celebrating these great events. The Europeans will attend to their side of the celebration, and I am to ask the Maori Tribes to organise their side, so that they will be suitably represented at Orakau on the Ist April, 1914. The Battle of Orakau was ought on the 31st March, and the Ist and 2nd April, 1864. The European Committee have unanimously selected the Ist April, the middle day of this glorious fight, in preference to the 2nd April when Orakau fell, as a tribute to a brave and gallant foe, and to show that it is not the fall of Orakau that they want to celebrate, but the -splendid defence made by the Maoris. The Government have erected a monument on the site at Orakau, but it has not yet been unveiled, (a ceremony always carried out by Europeans with monuments erected to celebrate great occasions). The Governor, as representative of our King, has agreed to do this unveiling, and besides the general public, there will be present Ministers of the Government, and a large body of troops under General Godley, the commanding Officer. The Government have been asked to put on one side of the monument the name of the British Commander in this fight, General Carey, and on the other side the name of Rewi Matiiapoto, your great commander. The Waikato Regiment have adopted Rewi’s brave words when he was asked to surrender as their ntotto, which are now imprinted on their colour*, and the second great ceremony of this gathering will be the presentation of these colours to the 16th Waikato Regiment, in which our sons, and your sons are serving side by side. We Europeans have always considered that the defence of Orakau was the grandest fight made by the Maoris, and Rewi’s brave words, “ Ka whawhai tonu luatou, Ake! Ake! Ake!” (We will fight on for ever and ever) spoken on the last day of the fight, will never be forgotten, and will be valued as our common possession as long as our country lasts. We Europeans are trying to make the unveiling of the Orakau monument 011 the jubilee of Ibis grand fight worthy of this grand occasion, and we want you Maoris to worthily represent the brave men who fought and died there, as you have every reason to he proud of what your fathers did at Orakau. That we Europeans are always ready to appreciate a gallant foe, is shown from the following extract from General Cameron’s despatch re (the Orakan Battle, at which he was present, but did not take command:— “ It is impossible not to admire the heroic courage and devotion of the Maoris in defending themselves so long against overwhelming numbers. Surrounded on all sides, cut off from their supply of water, and deprived of all hope of succour, they resolutely held their ground for more than two days, and did not abandon the position until the sap had reached the last entrenchment. They had probably not less than 150 killed out of a garrison not exceeding 300.” These are words for you to be proudbf, and I hope they will be an incentive to you to show|that you can still stand shoulder to shoulder with the European in the activities of the present day. As already mentioned, the Committee wish you to clearly understand that they are leaving the question of Maori representation at Orakau entirely in your hands, also the question of transport and provisioning ; but this Committee will be only too pleased to work with any committee that you may appoint, and for any of your representatives to attend the committee meetings in Hamilton if you so desire. The time is short, and I ask you to go straight to work and make the Maori side of this great celebration worthy of your ancestors and yourselves.