Te Kooti Centenary Observance at Te Porere

Te Ao Hou, 1971, Page 24

Te Kooti Centenary Observance at Te Porere by E. E. Bush The centenary of the final battle between the followers of the rebel leader Te Kooti Rikirangi and the British was observed exactly 100 years to the day. The occasion was marked by speeches and a Church Service on the actual site of Te Kooti,s redoubt, still in a good state of preservation. Arrangements for the occasion were initiated by the National Historic Places Trust, whose chairman, Mr Ormond Wilson, and vice-chairman, Professor James Beaglehole, travelled from Wellington. A number of Maori visitors attended. This included a large representation from the Bay of Plenty. The ceremony was timed for 11 a.m., for it was between 11 a.m. and noon that the engagement took place. In welcoming the visitors, Mr Wilson outlined the course of the engagement in which the 200 rebels were attacked by a force of over 500. The attacking force, under the command of Lt-Col. G. McDonnell, consisted of some 450 loyalist Maoris of Arawa, Kahungungu, and Wanganui tribes, with about 100 Europeans. Inside the redoubt were about 100, which would include women followers, while another 100 Maoris would be skirmishing. A few were in a low outpost. Mr Wilson commented that the gathering was not arranged to commemorate a victory or a defeat — the purpose of the engagement had been to capture Te Kooti. This had not been achieved, but at the same time, it did mark the end of the opposition of the rebel leader, and of his pursuit by the authorities. The speaker went on to emphasise that the occasion was rather a reminder that the wars of the sixties produced heroic deeds and great leaders — and without doubt the greatest of these was Te Kooti Rikirangi. The wars were the outcome of Pakeha greed for land, of misunderstandings and injustices, and confusion of rights and wrongs. In part, they were tribal, with Maori fighting against Maori. But they produced great men — partly by accident. It was in that way that Te Kooti became a war leader, and later a leader of the Church he founded. This latter leadership gave him a task which was his greater life. Guest speaker for the occasion was Col. C. M. Bennett, a former commander of the Maori Battalion and himself an Arawa. For him the day was full of meaning, for it reminded one of the links in our history, and was part and parcel of the growth in the relations between the two races. He hoped the outcome of that growth would be two races who were one people. Col. Bennett believed Te Kooti to be one of the great men of New Zealand history, but he was much misunderstood and overmaligned. Even Sir Apirana Ngata spoke harshly of him. But his history showed that events were forced upon him. He hadn't wanted to fight. At Waerenga-a-hika he had fought on the side of the British, but for some reason was arrested and deported without trial to the Chatham Islands, along with the captured Hau Haus. His escape showed his make-up. Only one casualty resulted, while the crew of the Rifleman was allowed to go free once the escapers had been landed in New Zealand. Te Kooti was not a soldier of the ilk of Te Rauparaha, but proved himself to be a very successful guerilla fighter, depending largely on his knowledge of bushcraft, and his ‘hit and run’ tactics. He was less successful in his two pitched battles from defended positions. The speaker referred to the fact that the composition of the attacking party was in the proportion of four Maori warriors to each Pakeha soldier — a ratio that has remained steady through the twentieth century, when New Zealand has put troops

into the field. The listeners were reminded of the central posiiton of Te Porere, whose attackers from east and west and north and south could concentrate on their common enemy. But it was not as a man of war that the rebel leader should be remembered, but as a man of peace. The Church of the upraised Hand bore testimony to his peaceful intentions, and it was in the bosom of this Church that he died in 1893, pardoned by the Government, and loved by his followers. He is still much revered by his descendants and by all the adherents of Ringatu. It was significant that one whole company of the Maori Battalion was composed entirely of his descendants and followers. The ceremony at the redoubt, under the shadow of Ngauruhoe, concluded with a service conducted by the President of the Ringatu Church, Mr P. Delamere, and elders from the Bay of Plenty. The scripture lesson was read by Canon Taepa, who chose the passage from the Book of Exodus upon which is based the Church's custom of raising the hand, and from which it derives its name. Eruera Manuera of Te Teko chatting with Mr and Mrs Einhorn, members of the National Historic Places Trust. BELOW: Canon Hepa Taepa and members of the Ringatu Church after the Memorial Service. Behind them on the parapet are Col. C. M. Bennett, guest sepaker, and Mr Ormond Wilson, Chairman of the National Historic Places Trust.