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Taipari, Nuka

by Steven Oliver

Biography

Ko Nuka Taipari nō Ngāti Hē, hapū o Ngāi Te Rangi ki Tauranga. Ko ia te rangatira o te pā o Maungatapu i ngā tau 1830–1850. Ko te nuinga o ngā kōrero mōna ikawea mai i ngā pukapuka a ngā mīhana me te pukapukaa tētahi hōia, The journal of Ensign Best, ēngari kīhai he kōrero i tuhia ko wai ōna mātua. He maha hoki āna wāhine, ko tētahi nō Te Arawa, ēngari kīhai e mōhiotia ana ko wai ō rātou īngoa.

Kua tangata kē a Nuka i te tau 1823, ko tēnei hoki te tau i whirinaki atu ai a ia me ētahi atu anō o ngā rangatira o Ngāi Te Rangi ki a Hongi Hika me tōna ope taua ki a Te Arawa ki Rotorua. Nō muri mai i te tau 1828, ka tau atu ki Tauranga te mihinare rā a Te Karu Whā (Henry Williams) o te Rōpū Hāhi Mihinare (Church Missionary Society), ka puta atu a Nuka i runga i tōna waka ki te pōwhiri i a ia. Ko te kōrero a Te Karu Whā mō Nuka he tangata hūmarie, he tino rangatira. Nō muri tonu iho i tēnei tūtakinga ka tau atu ki Maungatapu te ope taua a Te Rohu o Ngāti Maru ki Hauraki ēngari kīhai i hinga te pā o Maungatapu; huri kē ana te ope taua rā, ka patua kētia ko te pā o Ngāi Te Rangi e tū rā ki Te Papa. I te tau 1830 ka tau atu ki Maungatapu a Mangō rāua ko Kākaho me ō rāua ope taua o Ngāpuhi, ēngari kāhore tonu i hinga te pā i a rātou. I hoki atu ngā ope taua o Ngāpuhi i te tau 1831 ki te pakanga, ēngari ka patua anō rātou e Ngāi Te Rangi i Mōtītī; nō tēnei wā ka āwhinatia a Ngāi Te Rangi e Te Waharoa me tōna iwi, a Ngāti Hauā o Waikato. Ko ēnei ngā iwi i honohono i a rāua mō ngā pakanga nui i pakangatia i ngā tau mai i 1835 tae noa ki te tau 1845.

I te tau 1835 ka mate a Te Hunga, he whanaunga nō Te Waharoa. Ko te rongo nā Haerehuka o Te Arawa i patu. Ka tukuna e Nuka tā rāua kōrero ko Tūtae, he rangatira anō nō Ngāi Te Rangi, ki a Te Waharoa, arā, e āhei ana rāua ki te āwhina i a Te Waharoa ki te whakaeke ope taua hei ngaki i te matenga o Te Hunga. Ka hoki atu te kōrero a Te Waharoa kia patua e ia te ope manuhiri a Nuka o Tapuika, he iwi nō Te Arawa. Kāhore a Nuka i patu i tana manuhiri, ēngari ka whakaatutia e ia ki a Te Waharoa te wā e wehe ana te iwi rā me tō rātou ara hokianga. Ka mau i a Te Waharoa te ope rā, ka patua. He tino maha te ope taua a Te Waharoa ki Tauranga i taua wā, ka kōrerotia atu e Nuka kua hoki kē te nuinga o Te Arawa ki Rotorua. Nō reira ka heke a Te Waharoa ki Maketū ko tēnei hoki te tauranga hokohoko taonga a Te Arawa ki a tauiwi. Ka hinga a Maketū i a Te Waharoa. Ka hoki atu ngā ope taua o Te Arawa, nō te 5 o Mei 1836 ka patua e rātou a Ngāi Te Rangi i tō rātou pā ki Te Tūmū. Tokoiti noa ngā rangatira o Ngāi Te Rangi i oma, kīhai i mau i a Te Arawa. Ko Nuka tētahi. Mai i te tau 1836 ka haere ngā mahi pakanga, haupapa atu a ngā iwi rā tae noa ki te tau 1845.

I te tau 1840 ka heke te ope taua a Te Arawa, e 600 te tokomaha, ki Tauranga. Ka pokea e rātou ētahi o taua iwi rā, ka murua hoki ngā māra kai. Nō muri ka tukuna he kōrero, tērā pea me mau te rangimārie ki waenganui i a rātou. Kīhai a Nuka i whakaae, nō te mea e māharahara ana a ia, ki te mau te rongo ki a Te Arawa kua huri mai a Waikato ki te pakanga ki a ia me tōna iwi. Otirā i te tau 1843, kua takeo a Nuka ki aua āhuatanga, e hiahia ana a ia me whakamutu. Ko tāna kōrero ki a te āpiha ākonga, a A. D. W. Best: 'Kua maha ngā tau mai i te tīmatanga o ēnei tautohe ki ēnei rohe, ki tāku titiro kei te wheroku haere kē tērā hunga, ēngari ko ahau kei te pakari kē atu; kīhai ngā tamariki o tōku pā e mate kōhurutia ana i a rātou e taitama ana, ēngari kei te tipu hei tangata. E taea ana e ahau te whakaemi tāngata toa hei ope taua tēnā i ētahi katoa atu o ngā rangatira o Tauranga; pai kē atu pea me tuku kē ōku kaha ki te whai i te rangimārie'. I taua tau anō hoki ka mātakitaki a Best i a Nuka e arataki ana i tōna ope hī ika, e 250 te tokomaha o ngā tāngata, 14 ō rātou waka.

He tohunga rongonui a Nuka Taipari, he tangata hāpai i ngā tikanga o te ao tawhito. I te tau 1842 ka hahua ake e ia ngā kōiwi o ētahi o ōna hoa wāhine, arā, ka horohoroitia, ka tanumia anō. I whakahoahoa atu hoki ki te Hāhi Katorika, nāna nei i pōwhiri atu ngā mihinare o taua Hāhi kia whakatūria he kāinga mō rātou ki Tauranga, arā, ka tatū tēnei i te tau 1840. Ahakoa tana whakahāwea ki ngā whakarite o te hāhi Karaitiana, ko ia tonu i haere ki te whitiwhiti kōrero ki a Parāone (A. N. Brown), ki te mihinare o te Rōpū Hāhi Mihinare, i ū ki Tauranga i te tau 1838. Nō muri mai, i ngā marama whakamutunga o te tau 1843 ka tūkinotia e Nuka ngā Karaitiana Māori o Tauranga, ka murua e ia ngā hua o ā rātou māra kai, ka tāhaetia hoki e ia ō rātou waka. Kīhai a Parāone i whakahua ake i te kaupapa mō ēnei tinihanga, ko te āhua nei nō mua noa atu i te taenga atu o te hāhi Karaitiana ki Tauranga, nō reira kāhore a Parāone i aro ki te whakamomori atu. Ohorere ana hoki a Parāone i te 1 o Hānuere 1844 i te taenga atu o te pōwhiri a Nuka ki a ia kia haere atu ki te kōrero. Ka kī atu a Nuka ki a ia kua tatū ōna whakaaro ki te aukati i ngā tikanga Māori, arā, ko tōna hiahia ko te hāpai i ngā tikanga a ngā Māori kua hono atu ki te hāhi Karaitiana. Nō reira ka haere tuatahi atu rāua ko tōna hoa wahine ki te hui karakia a Parāone i tū i te Rātapu te 7 o Hānuere 1844. Nō te Rātapu o muri mai ka tae atu anō a Nuka me ētahi atu anō o ngā rangatira kaumātua o tōna iwi. Nō te matenga o tōna kōkā i te marama o Pēpuere ka tono a Nuka me tuku te kuia rā i raro i ngā tikanga o te hāhi Karaitiana, ēngari nō te mea kīhai te kuia rā i Karaitiana, ka kauwhau noa atu a Parāone ki te whakaminenga, kīhai ia i whakahua ake i ngā tikanga e pā ana ki te tanu tūpāpaku Karaitiana.

Ko Nuka tētahi o ngā rangatira i tāpiri atu i tōna tohu ki te Tiriti o Waitangi i Tauranga i te marama o Āperira 1840. E whitu tau i muri mai ka heke a ia ki Tāmaki-makau-rau, ko tana take he hāmene i tētahi Pākehā he kore e utu mai i a ia mō ētahi poaka i hokona atu e Nuka ki a ia. Ka whakaaetia e te Kōti me utu atu te £50 ki a Nuka. Ko tēnei moni i hoatu e Nuka ki a Parāone tiaki ai, arā, kia eke te wā e piki ai tāna pūtea moni kia riro mai ai he kaipuke (he hunua) mō tōna iwi. I te tau 1848 ka hokona mai e ia te hunua, ko te īngoa ko te Highlander, ko Robert Darroch o Tāmaki-makau-rau te tohunga tārai.

I te tau 1848 nā Nuka rāua ko Hōri Kīngi Tūpaea, te ariki o Ngāi Te Rangi, i kōrero ngā kōrero kia kore ai e āhei a Haerehuka ki te hoko pū i Tauranga hei hari māna ki te pakanga ki a Ēpeha o te rohe tata atu ki te moana o Taupōnui-a-Tia. Nō muri tonu iho ka pāngia a Nuka e te māuiui, ko te kōrero nā Haerehuka a ia i mākutu. Nō te roa o tōna māuiuitanga ka pōraruraru ōna whakaaro, ka tono ia kia tīkina he tohunga mōna. Nō muri mai ka huri anō ia ki te hāhi Karaitiana, ēngari ka pāngia ia e te mate wairangi. I te tau 1849 ka haere a Nuka me tōna iwi ki te kōrero ki tērā iwi whewhei ki a rātou, ki a Ngāti Maru ki Pārāwai (Thames). I a ia i reira ka pāngia anō ia e te mate pōrangi, ka okaina e ia te tama a Wakakaraka ki tana tao, tata tonu ka hemo. Ko te kōrero ko tēnei mahi hei ngaki i te matenga o tētahi tamaiti a Ngāi Te Rangi i a rātou e pakanga ana ki a Ngāti Maru i Tauranga i te tau 1842. I te tau 1850 ka tono a Nuka kia iriiritia a ia, ēngari kīhai a Parāone i whakaae, tērā pea nō te mea kua wairangi kē te rangatira rā. I mate a Nuka Taipari i te 8 o Noema 1863; kīhai i tuhia he kōrero mō te wāhi kei reira a ia e tanumia ana.


He whakaaturanga anō

Rārangi pukapuka

    Brown, A. N. Journal, letters and papers, 1835--1864. MS. The Elms, Tauranga

    Gifford, W. H. & H. B. Williams. A centennial history of Tauranga. Dunedin, 1940

    Taylor, N. M., ed. The journal of Ensign Best, 1837--1843. Wellington, 1966


Me pēnei te tohu i te whārangi:

Steven Oliver. 'Taipari, Nuka', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1990. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/biographies/1t3/taipari-nuka (accessed 20 April 2024)