I whānau a Tiramōrehu i Kaiapoi pā. Ko te whakaaro ko ngā tau tino tōmua tonu o te rau tau 1800–1899 te wā i whānau ai a ia ki roto ki tētahi whānau kauwhau rangatira. Ko tōna, he hapū ahurei nō Ngāi Tahu e kīia nei ko Ngāi Tūāhuriri. Ko Kāraki tōna pāpā, ā, ko Hinerukutai o Ngāti Māmoe tōna kōkā. He uri a Tiramōrehu nō Tūrākautahi, nāna rā i pou a Kaiapoi. Na, ko Tūrākautahi he uri nō Tūāhuriri.
I te pāhuatanga o Kaiapoi e Te Rauparaha me Ngāti Toa i 1831, ko Kāraki tonu tētahi o ngā kaiwhakataki o ngā tuki rautipu a Ngāi Tahu. E ai ki ngā kōrero, i te taha a Tiramōrehu i tōna pāpā i taua whawhai, ā, i taotū a ia. I te tau 1837, i te wā kāore anō kia parekuratia te riri nei, ka ārahina whakatongahia e Tiramōrehu he heke kahupapa nō te iwi o Kaiapoi ki Moeraki. I tētahi wāhi e pātata ana ki te teihana patu tohorā a John Hughes i Moeraki, ka poua he kāinga mō rātou. Ko ana mahi katoa ki ngā Pākehā o Moeraki i whakahaeretia i runga i te ngākau whakahoahoa me ngā ritenga amaru hoki. I kauparetia e tōna iwi ngā tūmomo mahi kino e kīia ana he mahi kaingākau nā ngā kaipatu tohorā.
I te 16 o Mei 1840, ka poua e te mihingare Wēteriana rā, e Te Wātikena (James Watkin), te mīhana Karaitiana tuatahi ki te tonga o Moeraki, arā, ki Waikouaiti. I te Tīhema o 1840, i kauhau te Pīhopa Katorika rā, a Pomaparie (J. B. F. Pompallier), i Moeraki. Ko Tāmihana, te tama a Te Rauparaha, i kauhau i reira mō te mīhana Mihingare i 1843. I whiwhi apataki ngātahi rāua, heoti, i te 30 o Hūrae 1843 ka ārahina e Tiramōrehu tōna apataki ki raro i te maru o te Hāhi Wēteriana. Nā Te Wātikena a ia i iriiri i Waikouaiti, ā, ka tangohia e Tiramōrehu a Matiaha (Matthias) hei īngoa mōna. Ka noho rātou ko ngā manu-kura nei a Horomona Pōhio, a Natanahira Waruwarutū, a Rāwiri Te Maire, a Merekihereka Hape, hei kaitautoko ngākau nui, ā, hei kaiwhakaako reimana hoki mō te mīhana Wēteriana o Waikouaiti.
I akona a Tiramōrehu ki ngā kōrero tīpuna tuku iho a tōna iwi. I te torotoronga atu o Te Hōtereni (Edward Shortland) i Moeraki i 1844, ka whakamīharo a ia ki te mōhio o Tiramōrehu ki ngā kōrero tīpuna, ēngari hei ngā Rātapu e kore aua kōrero e puta i a ia. I tuhi pēnei a Te Wātikena mō Tiramōrehu, 'tērā pea kāore ōna ritenga e pā ana ki ngā whakapapa o nehe rā'. E ai ki a J. W. Stack, kāore he kanoi i kō atu i a Tiramōrehu mō ngā kōrero tīpuna Māori o Te Waipounamu. Atu i 1868, he whare wānanga tōna i Moeraki, ā, i reira ka tohutohua ngā whanaketanga ki ngā akoranga tuku iho e pā ana ki ngā kōrero tīpuna.
Nā Tiramōrehu i whakahau tana iwi kia tahuri ki ngā momo mahi pāmu a te Pākehā. Ko tana hiahia kia tōnui rātou ā tōna wā ki te mahi pāmu me ngā mahi hēpara. I mau tonu ki a rātou te mana ahikā ki ō rātou whenua i te rohe o Kaiapoi. He wāhanga whenua tēnei i whakaurua atu e Kāwana Hōri Kerei (George Grey) ki roto ki te hokonga o te whenua o Te Wairau mai i a Ngāti Toa i Maehe o 1847. I Akaroa a Tiramōrehu i Pēpuere o 1848 e hui ana me Kerei ki te kōrerorero mō te hoko wāhi hei nohonga mō ngā tāngata whai o Ngā Pākihi-whakatekateka-a-Waitaha (Canterbury). I reira ka puta ngā kōrero whakahē a Ngāi Tahu mō te hokonga o Te Wairau. I muri mai ka kī a Tiramōrehu, nā Kerei i whakapōhēhē ngā amorangi ki te whakaaro ka aro mai te kāwanatanga ki tā rātou tohe, arā, kāore he mana o te kokoraho a Ngāti Toa ki Kaiapoi. Ko Akaroa te wāhi, ko Hune o 1848 te wā, i whakaritea ai e Te Keepa (Henry Tacy Kemp) te hokonga o ngā whenua mai i Maungatere (Mt Grey) i te raki, ki Maunga-atua (Maungatua) i te tonga, ka huri ki ngā taketake, ki ngā tihi rānei o Ngā Puke-māeroero (Southern Alps), e kīia nei ko 'te hokonga a Te Keepa', ā, ka hainatia e Tiramōrehu te whakaaetanga ā-pukapuka ki tana īngoa, ki a Matiaha. Ko tēnei anake te whakaaetanga ā-pukapuka o ōna whenua ā-iwi nāna i haina.
I te tata paunga o 1848, ka tonoa a Te Tipa (Walter Mantell) ki te tohatoha whenua tāpui i raro i te mana o te whakaaetanga ā-pukapuka a Te Keepa. I whakamanuhiritia a ia e Tiramōrehu i Moeraki. Ahakoa nāna a Te Tipa i manaaki, ka whakahē tonu a ia ki te iti o ngā whenua tāpui e tohaina ana. I amuamu anō hoki a ia mō te tukutanga a Te Keepa i te hāwhe o ngā moni o tāna hokonga mā tētahi tokorua e tiritiri ki te iwi. Ko te mutunga, ki tāna, 'i tipu parirau ngā moni, ka rere.' I whakarongo a Mantell ki te whakamāherehere a Tiramōrehu ko ēhea amorangi e tika ana ki te tohatoha i te toenga o ngā wāhanga moni hei utunga.
Ko Tiramōrehu tētahi o ngā kaiārahi i ngā tohetohe me ngā whakapae, arā, kua takahia ngā whakaritenga a Te Keepa. I Ākuhata o 1848 ko ia tētahi o te pahī o Ngāi Tahu i haere kia kite i a E. J. Eyre, i te rūtene kāwana o New Munster i Akaroa. Ko te kaupapa he inoi kia tini tonu ngā whenua tāpui e tukuna mō Ngāi Tahu. Nā tana matatau ki te reo Pākehā ka tino mārama ki a ia te tikanga o ngā whakahoki parori a Eyre. Tērā pea i mau i a ia ētahi kōrero makere a Eyre rāua ko Te Tipa, ko te tikanga mō ō rāua taringa anake. Ko tana reta o te 22 o Oketopa 1840 ki a Eyre te kupu amaru tuatahi a Ngāi Tahu e whakahē ana i ngā hokonga o Te Waipounamu. Ahakoa i kī taurangitia e Te Keepa ka tuwhene ngā whenua tāpui ka tukuna ki a Ngāi Tahu, 10 eka noa iho te āhua ōritetanga o ngā wāhanga whenua tāpui i whakaratoa e Te Tipa mō ia tangata o rātou. I Waikouaiti ka whakawhiwhia e Te Tipa ki te Pākehā kotahi, ki a Johnny Jones, e 2,560 eka. I kō tata atu, i Moeraki, e 500 eka noa iho i tukuna e ia mō ngā Māori e 87. Ko tēnei tētahi o ngā whakataunga tino iti rawa atu i whakawhiwhia ki a Ngāi Tahu, mehemea ka tirohia ana te rahi o te whenua i whakaratoa ki te rahi o te hunga i whakawhiwhia. E ngoto ana te reta wahapū whakahē a Tiramōrehu. I tuhi pēnei a ia, 'Ko te tīmatanga noa iho tēnei o tā mātou mahi amuamu ki a koe. Ka amuamu anō hoki mātou ki ngā Pākehā ka haere mai ā muri ake nei; e kore e mutu!' I tohea e Tiramōrehu kia whakatinanatia ngā wharekura me ngā hōhipera i kī taurangitia i ngā whakaritenga o te hokonga a Te Keepa. I ātete a ia kia kaua e utu ngā Māori o Moeraki mō te haere ki te kura. Ko tōna tikanga hoki ia kia kuraina rātou mō te kore noa iho.
I muri iho i tēnei tohatohanga ihupuku o ngā whenua tāpui o Te Waipounamu, ka kihirua ngā whakaaro o Te Tipa, ā, ka rika ki te āwhina i a Ngāi Tahu. I tōna wehenga atu ki Ingarangi i 1855, ka tukuna e ia he utanga pukapuka kura i te reo Māori ki a Tiramōrehu. I Hānuere o 1856 ka tono a Tiramōrehu me ōna hoa rangatira ki a Kāwana Thomas Gore Browne i Ōtākou (Otago) kia whakanohoia ko Te Tipa hei kāwana mō Te Waipounamu. He pēnei anō te reta i tukuna e rātou ki te Kuini i Hepetema o 1857.
I Kaiapoi, i Pēpuere o 1857, ka hokona mai e W. J. W. Hamilton te wā whenua o raro i Kaiapoi mō te Karauna. I hōnea a Tiramōrehu nō te mea e māuiuitia ana. Taro ake ka haku a ia i takahia te mana o tōna iwi o Moeraki. Kia pahure rā anō te tekau tau, kātahi anō ka utua e £200 hei whakaea i taua takahanga. I te 7 o Hepetema 1860 ka whakaritea ko Tiramōrehu tētahi o ngā āteha Māori tokorua mō Ōtākou. He kaiwhakawā tētahi o ngā mahi o tēnei tūranga. Tekau pāuna te utu-ā-tau mō aua mahi. Tae rawa atu ki 1866 kua makere kē mai a ia i taua tūranga, ēngari i 1869 i a ia anō taua tūranga.
I tōna koroheketanga ka whakamōhoutia e Tiramōrehu tōna kaha ki te kaitaonga whenua tāpiri mō Ngāi Tahu. Hei whakapakari i tā rātou kokoraho whenua, ka noho ko ia tonu tētahi o ngā manu-kura ki te whakatū hui ki Ōtākou me Kaiapoi i 1874, ā, ki Arowhenua hoki i 1875. E 30 tau a ia e tuhituhi ana ki a Te Tipa; he mema mai i 1866 nō te Kaunihera Ture (Legislative Council). I whakatūria he Kōmihana Hoko Whenua Māori mō Te Waipounamu (Commission on Middle Island Native Land Purchases), arā te Kōmihana a Smith rāua ko Nairn, ki te āta titiro ki ngā pāmamaetanga o Ngāi Tahu. He kaiwhakaatu a ia i te aroaro o te Kōmihana i ngā tau 1879–80. He mōhiotanga whakahirahira kei ana kupu oati e mau ana mō te mana ahikā o Ngāi Tahu ki Te Waipounamu i mua i te taenga mai o ngā tāngata whai Pākehā.
I te 6 o Oketopa 1849, ka whakamoea e Karira (Charles Creed) a Tiramōrehu rāua ko Pirihira (Priscilla) Pī o Ngāi Tūrākautahi. Nā Matiaha Tiramōrehu tonu i āta tuhi tōna īngoa ki te pukapuka rēhita. Ahakoa ko tēnei anake tana moenga i rēhitatia, tērā atu ētahi wāhine tokorua i moea e ia ēngari kāore ngā īngoa i mau. Tokorua ngā tamāhine a Tiramōrehu rāua ko Pirihira. E kōhungahunga tonu ana ka mate.
I mate a Tiramōrehu ki Moeraki i te 7 o Āperira 1881. E ai ki ngā kōrero, neke atu i te 80 ōna tau. Nō ētahi tau i mua atu i tōna hinganga te matenga o Pirihira. He whare ngaro te hekenga mai i a ia. Kotahi wiki e tangihia ana, ā, e 500 te katoa i whakaeke. Ko te tohu whakamaharatanga mōna he matapihi ōpure kei te whare karakia Māori o Moeraki.