Story: Ngā pakanga ki tāwāhi – Māori and overseas wars

Ngāti Tūwharetoa soldiers at Ōpaea, Taihape

Ngāti Tūwharetoa soldiers at Ōpaea, Taihape

A group of Ngāti Tūwharetoa soldiers pose for the camera at Ōpaea marae, Taihape. They were under the command of Lieutenant K. H. Hakopa. The figure in the suit seated on the left appears to be Tūreiti Te Heuheu Tūkino, the paramount chief of Ngāti Tūwharetoa. Te Heuheu was active throughout the war in recruiting campaigns. He argued that conscription should be extended to cover Māori, who were initially exempt. His views brought him into conflict with the Kīngitanga (Māori King movement) and tribes such as those of Taranaki, who opposed fighting for the British Empire while the grievances of the past remained unresolved. Te Heuheu believed that such issues should be temporarily put aside in the empire's hour of need.

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New Zealand Electronic Text Collection
Reference: James Cowan, The Maoris in the Great War: a history of the New Zealand Native Contingent and Pioneer Battalion, Gallipoli, 1915, France and Flanders, 1916–1918. Auckland: Maori Regiment Committee, 1926, p. 20

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How to cite this page:

Monty Soutar, 'Ngā pakanga ki tāwāhi – Māori and overseas wars - Māori and the First World War', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/36678/ngati-tuwharetoa-soldiers-at-opaea-taihape (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Monty Soutar, published 20 Jun 2012, updated 1 May 2016