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I tapaia a Te Rauparaha nā te tipu, arā ko Rauparaha. I tōna tamarikitanga i patua tētahi o ōna whanaunga e tētahi tāne nō Waikato, ā i kainga te whanaunga i te rau o rauparaha. I huria te wero ki te pēpi, nā reira i tapaia te tama ko Te Rauparaha hei katakata i tēnei wero. Nō reira, kua tīmata te korero o tēnei tāne whakahirahira, tēnei toa, ko Te Rauparaha....
"His name is derived from an edible plant called Rauparaha. Soon after he was born a Waikato warrior who had killed and eaten a relation of his threatened to eat the child as well, roasted with Rauparaha leaves; the child was called Te Rauparaha in defiance of this threat." (Orange, C. 1990)
And so began the story of Te Rauparaha - the warrior, the businessman. Te Rauparaha was a mighty chief and a fierce adversary. From the late 18th century Te Rauparaha and his tribe, Ngāti Toa, were constantly at war. They made many conquests across the North Island of Aotearoa before their interest shifted south to Wairau. On June 17th 1843, a group of European settlers representing The New Zealand Company came to Wairau to 'clear Māori off the land and arrest Ngāti Toa chiefs Te Rauparaha and Te Rangihaeata'. They held a (most probably fraudulent) deed to land in the area.
In months prior, surveying work had begun in the area. After seeking support from the 'Land Commissioner' regarding the unjust occupation of the land and action not being taken in a timely fashion, Te Rauparaha led a party to burn and destroy the shelters and surveying equipment of the workmen. They then herded the men unharmed back to Nelson. And so was issued a warrant for the arrest for arson of Te Rauparaha and Te Rangiheata.
Captain Arthur Wakefield, on behalf of the New Zealand Company, formed an army of 'special constables' and more than 50 men travelled to Wairau to see to the "travelling bullies". Te Rauparaha and his people were met by the Europeans on opposing sides of a stream (GZ for this Virtual Cache). The Europeans were armed with cutlasses, bayonets, pistols and muskets. Te Rauparaha invited Augustus Thompson forward and, after refusing Te Rauparaha's hand shake, Thompson informed him that he was under arrest for the burning of the surveyors huts. Te Rauparaha advised him that the huts were made from materials taken from his land and thus, he was merely burning his own property. Thompson insisted on arresting Te Rauparaha and ordered his men to advance. As they crossed the stream a shot was fired, apparently by accident, and this shot killed Te Rongo - the wife of Te Rangihaeata and the daughter of Te Rauparaha.
A fierce battle ensued and ultimately, a number of the Europeans fled and those that remained were captured and quickly surrendered. Te Rangiheata demanded utu (revenge) for the death of his wife and, for this reason, the Māori killed all the remaining captives. The Wairau Affray led to the death of 22 British settlers and 4 Māori.
In 1844, Governor Robert FitzRoy was called upon to investigate the Wairau Affray and to determine who was at fault. His position on the incident was as follows;
"In the first place, the white men were in the wrong. They had no right to survey the land ... they had no right to build the houses on the land. As they were, then, first in the wrong, I will not avenge their deaths."
He went on to address Te Rauparaha and Te Rangihaeata, he told them that they had committed "a horrible crime, in murdering men who had surrendered themselves in reliance on your honour as chiefs. White men never kill their prisoners" (Moon, 2000 p 131). But ultimately the pair were exonerated from all accusations made against them. A land claims commission investigation determined that the Wairau Valley had not been legally sold. The government was to pay compensation to the Rangitāne iwi, determined to be the original owners.
Historian Michael Belgrave described the British attempt to survey the land as illegal, inopportune and ultimately disastrous. Te Rauparaha left Wairau after the massacre and never returned. Te Rauparaha died on 27th November 1849. He had had 8 wives in the course of his life, and 14 children, some of whom survived him. He is believed to have been reinterred on Kāpiti Island.
To log this Virtual Cache you will need to visit 3 different locations beginning at the posted co-ordinates and then moving to waypoints 1 and 2. You will need to answer the following questions and send your answers to the CO.
First stop - Posted Co-ordinates - The Wairau Affray:
1) In 'Site Plan' on information board - ____ Railway to Blenheim?
2) What is the scientific name of the tree at the centre of this battle?
WP 1 - Tua Marina Cemetery (on the monument):
3) Number of Williams + Number of Thomas' = ?
4) S__V_N__ - Fill in the gaps.
WP 2 - Port Underwood Road
5) Please send a photo from this point. A patch worth fighting for!
Please await confirmation from the CO before posting a 'Found' log. Thank you.
For more information about Te Rauparaha - https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/1t74/te-rauparaha
For more information about the Wairau Affray - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wairau_Affray
Moon, Paul (2000). FitzRoy : Governor in Crisis 1843–1845. David Ling Publishing.
Orange, Claudia (1990). Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.