Walk #90 26th August 2022
This is the site of a battleground. There’s views as well as history. First we walked to the view point at the top of the ridge overlooking the Waitara River. It’s a beautiful, peaceful spot which belies its history of conflict in the Maori Musket Wars and Taranaki Land Wars.
The pa was besieged twice during the Musket Wars. The first battle was between Te Ātiawa and Ngati Maniapoto. The second battle was between Te Ātiawa and Waikato.
In 1830 many Te Atiawa women sheltering at the pa threw themselves and their children off the 100 metre cliff rather than be killed and eaten.
Thirty years later the site again became a battleground, this time against the British in the Taranaki Land Wars of the 1860s.
After looking at the view point we looked at Pratt’s Sap, built in 1861. It’s a long zig zag trench by the side of the road.
In ‘Pratt’s Sap’, forces under Major-General T.S. Pratt tunnelled laboriously up the slopes towards a new pā, Te Arei (‘the barrier’), erected in front of freshly strengthened Pukerangiora. Te Ātiawa chief Hapurona commanded both. Pratt built eight redoubts and dug two stretches of sap (covered trench). Maori counter-attacked, most famously against number three redoubt on the night of 23 January, suffering heavy casualties in the crossfire between the redoubts. Working under cover of large sap rollers and supported by artillery fire, the British advanced. By March 1861 number eight redoubt was just 75 m from Te Arei pā, which was taking a heavy pounding. Hapurona wisely sought a truce. In a ‘settlement’ disliked by both sides, the Waikato and southern Taranaki tribes withdrew. An uneasy peace descended on Taranaki.
NZ History, Pukerangiora Pā Historic Reserve
Unfortunately my camera malfunctioned so there’s no photos or video so I’ll have to use other people’s videos. This one is by Real New Zealand Adventures.
And here’s a video about the history of the pa by Roadside Stories.
The Maori Musket Wars
1821
In 1821 a taua led by Tūkorehu of Ngāti Maniapoto was besieged here for seven months by Te Ātiawa, who surrounded it with earthworks and palisading, adding insult to injury by dubbing the siege ‘Raihe Poaka’ (the penned-up pigs).
1831
Blood flowed here again a decade later. Te Ātiawa, weakened by recent emigration to join Te Rauparaha in the Cook Strait area, holed up at Pukerangiora after a large Waikato taua descended on North Taranaki. When the pā fell after a three-month siege, as many as 1200 may have died.
NZ History, Pukerangiora Pā Historic Reserve
The Taranaki Land Wars of the 1860s
Ironically, Pukerangiora is probably better known for its role in the First (1860-61) and Second (1863-66) Taranaki Wars.
The first war was the major fight which happened after the settlement of Tataraimaka (twelve miles south of New Plymouth) was attacked and taken possession of by right of conquest from the Europeans, who had all been driven off. Many settlers were murdered, some killed in war, a large number died through disease and exposure, and the district was held since 1860 by the rebel tribes.
If you want a full history head over to my page on the The North Taranaki War where I sum up an eye witness account of events from 1863 by the Rev Samuel Ironside who succeeded in preventing one incident of bloodshed in Taranaki.
Walk: Taranaki 4
Links
DOC – Pukerangiora Pa
Pukerangiora Pā Historic Reserve
The History of Te Ātiawa and the Migration to Te Tau Ihu
NZ Wars: Stories of Waitara | Documentary | RNZ
The Musket War 1830
Head chief of the Ngatuwahanga and Ngatihourua tribes of Raglan and Waipa Waikato. He was a famous general and warrior; he took part in the Waikato war with the Taranaki tribes in 1830 and assisted in the siege of the Pukerangiora pa (subsequently the site of General Pratts celebrated sap in 1861) when the starved out holders of the pah attempted to escape they were captured in hundreds and brought to Te Wherowhero (afterwards King Potatau 1st) and Te Awaitaia to be killed; their worthies then proceeded to club the unfortunate prisoners with their greenstone “meres”.
Wiremu Nera Te AwaitaiaWiremu Nera Te Awaitaia
NZShortWalks 